Although tests, grades and academic rivalry have long been viewed as main sources of student stress, recent research points to family conflict as a more frequent trigger for those seeking psychological help than school-related pressure.
Data from Cadabams Hospitals, drawn from over 58,000 student interactions and 3,569 counseling sessions by psychologists placed in Bengaluru schools and colleges, indicate that many young people’s emotional difficulties originate outside the classroom.
Anxiety made up nearly one third of counseling issues at 29 percent, while family conflict at 14 percent exceeded academic stress at 10 percent, followed by relationship problems at 8 percent and isolation at 7 percent.
Pre-university students aged 16 to 18 showed the highest levels of self-harm concerns across all groups studied.
Mental health patterns varied by academic path. Engineering students most often sought assistance for relationship issues and attention concerns, with the highest self-referral rates. Medical students faced combined academic and clinical demands. Management and architecture students commonly reported isolation, homesickness and career doubts, whereas law students had the greatest concentration of serious mental health cases.
Neha Cadabam, senior psychologist and executive director at the hospitals, noted that many students suffer in silence because of limited opportunities to discuss home experiences. She stressed the need to build emotionally secure spaces beyond exam-focused talks so young people can express themselves without fear of criticism.
The research covered more than 20 institutions, with about 92 percent of contacts based in Bengaluru.
