The most stressed-out generation of American adults consists of those between 18 and 34, who are part of the generation known as the ‘Millennials,’ according to a new study.

People in that age group reported in a 2012 online survey that they were experiencing stress levels that were higher than members of earlier generations claimed to be going through.

Millennials also indicated on the survey, conducted by the American Psychological Association, that their stress level had increased during the past year.

More than half the respondents in that age group, 52 percent, said stress had disrupted their sleep at some point.

The results of the APA’s annual ‘Stress in America’ report also disclosed that many Millennials and members of Generation X, who are between 34 and 47, were having difficulty coping in a healthy way with their stress.

Of the respondents in those age groups, 44 percent reported becoming irritable or angry as a result of stress. Only 36 percent of Baby Boomers and 15 percent of Americans older than 67 were becoming aggravated due to the amount of stress they were under, according to the report.

Considerably more Millennials than in previous years are finding work stressful, as well, the survey found.

In the APA’s 2009 survey less than half of Millennials reported that their jobs were a somewhat or significant stressor,. The 2012 survey found that 76 percent of Millennials were stressed by their jobs.

That number was well above the figures for Gen Xers (65 percent) and Baby Boomers (62 percent).

Experts suspect that the enormous college debt facing recent graduates, who are also having a tough time finding a job, could be contributing to the Millennials’ self-reported high level of stress, according to NBC News.

Unemployment in the United States is 7.9 percent, but some figures suggest the rate is even higher among 18- to 29-year-olds, at 11.5 percent, according to news reports.

The dismal economic outlook could be prompting younger Americans to postpone marriage and having children, NBC News reports.

The APA surveyed 2,020 American adults in August 2012 through an online questionnaire. The APA has commissioned the survey every year since 2007.

Generation Xers reported that they had the same level of stress as the Millennials, with both groups indicating they had an average stress level of 5.4 on a scale of 10.

But fewer Generation Xers said their stress had increased during the past year or that it was keeping them up at night.

Jordan Shepherd | Elite.