project proposal

Just need help with number 5-9 please Please upload your research proposal to Blackboard by ONE group member by its due date. Please use this document and type your answers below the questions. The proposal is worth 30 points. If you have any questions, please ask me before submitting this document.

1. What is (are) the major research question(s) that you are seeking to answer in your study? Please be specific.

Is there a significant association between academic stress, sleep disorder symptoms, and eating disorder symptoms among college students?

1. What are your specific hypotheses?

Hypotheses #1: Higher levels of academic stress will be positively correlated with higher levels of eating disorder symptoms.

Hypotheses #2: Higher levels of sleep disorder symptoms will be positively correlated with higher levels of eating disorder symptoms.

Hypotheses #3: Academic stress will be a stronger predictor of higher levels of eating disorder symptoms among college students than sleep disorder symptoms.

1. How does your research question(s) fill a gap in the existing literature?
2. List at least 5 research articles in APA 7th edition format that youve used in creating your proposal. How do the articles results relate to your research question(s)?

Article #1 Title: Perceived stress, mental health symptoms, and deleterious behaviors during the transition to college.

Fruehwirth, J. C., Mazzolenis, M. E., Pepper, M. A., & Perreira, K. M. (2023). Perceived stress, mental health symptoms, and deleterious behaviors during the transition to college. PLOS ONE, 18(6), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0287735

Summary:

The article Perceived Stress, Mental Health Symptoms, and Deleterious Behaviors During the Transition to College examines how different sources of stress affect first-year college students as they adjust to college life. Using survey data from 885 students at a large public university in North Carolina, the researchers found that unhealthy behaviors were fairly common. Nearly 19% of students reported symptoms of eating disorders, 42% were not getting enough sleep, and 43% did not engage in enough vigorous physical activity. Overall, higher levels of chronic stress increased the likelihood of these behaviors, even after considering demographics and social support.

The study also showed that certain types of stress were more strongly linked to specific health behaviors. Stress related to appearance and health was associated with eating disorder symptoms, while health-related and romantic stress were connected to insufficient sleep. Health-related stress was also linked to lower levels of physical activity. These patterns did not differ by gender or by whether students experienced moderate to severe anxiety or depression. Although the study relied on self-reported data from one university and could not determine causation, it highlights the significant role stress plays in students health during the transition to college.

Article #2 Title: Associations Between Sleep Duration and Eating Disorder Symptoms Among U.S. College Students

Abanobi, A. N., Itacy, S., Coleman, C. M., & Harlow, B. L. (2023). Association between eating disorders and sleep duration among college students: Findings from the National Healthy Minds Study. Journal of American College Health, 73(1), 399405. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2023.2225616

Abanobi et al. (2025) conducted a cross-sectional analysis using data from the Healthy Minds Study, a large, nationally representative survey of U.S. college students, to examine the relationship between eating disorder (ED) symptoms and sleep duration. Students self-reported ED symptoms, sleep duration, mental health indicators such as depression and anxiety, and demographic characteristics. The findings indicated that students who reported insufficient sleep had significantly higher odds of experiencing ED symptoms, even after accounting for depression and anxiety, suggesting that sleep insufficiency may be an independent and potentially modifiable risk factor. Although the study relied on self-reported data and could not establish causal relationships due to its cross-sectional design, it highlights the importance of integrating sleep health into campus prevention, screening, and clinical efforts. As a college student, this research is especially relevant given the prevalence of sleep deprivation due to academic stress, social demands, and irregular schedules, and it underscores how improving sleep habits may support both mental health and healthy eating behaviors among students.

Article #3 Title: Perceived stress, coping and night-eating in college student

Wichianson, J. R., Bughi, S. A., Unger, J. B., SpruijtMetz, D., & NguyenRodriguez, S. T. (2009a). Perceived stress, coping and nighteating in college students. Stress and Health, 25(3), 235240. https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.1242

In the following article, Perceived stress, coping and night-eating in college students, researchers Wichianson et al. (2009) discuss how college students cope with perceived stress and how they engage in the night-eating syndrome. This article focused on 95 undergraduate participants who were randomly recruited on campus and ranged from 18-29 years of age. Among the sample, there was a high number of female participants compared to male participants who took part in this experiment. Wichianson et al. (2009) focused on many different health behaviors, such as night-eating and any psychosocial constructs that come with those behaviors. Various measures were used during this experiment, such as the Perceived Stress Scale, the Night-Eating Questionnaire (NEQ), and the Brief COPE.

The results showed us that there was a significant difference when it came to the participants gender. In particular, female participants had a significantly higher score when it came to adaptive coping. This was the only variable that showed a higher score in relation to the participants gender. There were some associations found between perceived stress and night-eating syndrome and perceived stress and maladaptive coping. Wichianson et al. (2009) concluded that participants who showed high levels of stress in college may lead them to engage in night eating behaviors due to their maladaptive coping strategies. Based on the articles findings it shows us that stress was a factor that was highly associated with eating disorder behaviors among college students, which correlates with our research question. Although we know stress is a common factor in college students lives, there are still many variables that may influence how eating disorder behaviors develop, such as sleep disorder symptoms.

Article #4 Title:

Article #5 Title:

1. List all the variables that you will use in your study and provide following information for all of your measures separately (YOU NEED TO REPEAT ANSWERING a f for ALL YOUR VARIABLES).
2. Construct it is assessing (e.g., personality traits)
3. Name of the measure (e.g., Big Five Inventory)
4. Number of items
5. Any psychometric properties in the literature (e.g., reliability coefficients)
6. Citation of the measure
7. Please attach a copy of the measure at the end (i.e., all typed up as you will use it in your study).
8. List all demographic variables you will collect in your study (I recommend that you collect age and gender). Think about whether you will analyze the variable and include those that you will use.
9. List the order of the measures that you will administer and how long you estimate that each measure will take for the participants to complete.
10. Can you test your participants online? If you need face-to-face assessment, can you test as a group or do you have to test them individually? If group, how many participants can be tested at one time? If individually, what are the reasons?
11. Write instructions that you will need to give during testing (e.g., At the beginning of the testing, what instructions will you give to participants? Any instructions to give during testing? Any final notes to make before participant leaves?).