Pandemic-Related Information Overload and Perceived Stress among University Students: Evidence from an Archival Lockdown-Period Dataset

Abstract

During COVID-19 lockdowns, university students had to manage a constant flow of pandemic-related information while also adjusting to online learning, social isolation, and uncertainty about health and education. Accurate information was necessary, but repeated updates, conflicting messages, and difficult-to-process information could also become stressful. This study examined whether pandemic-related information overload was associated with perceived stress among university students in Pakistan using an archival lockdown-period dataset. A cross-sectional correlational design was used, and the sample comprised 213 university students. Participants completed a COVID-19-adapted Information Overload Scale and an adapted version of the Perceived Stress Scale-10. The Information Overload Scale had excellent internal consistency, α = .946, and the Perceived Stress Scale had good internal consistency, α = .828. A significant positive correlation was observed between perceived stress and information overload related to COVID-19 (r(211) = .464, p < .001) using Pearson correlation analysis. Results of a hierarchical regression analysis revealed that information overload was a significant predictor of perceived stress, after controlling for gender and family structure, ΔR² = .187, ΔF(1, 209) = 54.74, p < .001. The final model accounted for 28.6% of the variance in perceived stress. These findings indicate that students who experienced greater pandemic-related information overload were more likely to report higher perceived stress during lockdown. The study contributes archival evidence from a South Asian university context and highlights the need for public health communication that is credible, clear, and manageable rather than excessive or difficult to process.