International Journal of Education and Management Studies

Pages: 137-145
Rohini Thapar and Shubhra Jain (Department of Psychology, D.A.V. College, Chandigarh)

According to Webster Dictionary (2021), addition is defined as a "compulsive, chronic, physiological or psychological need for and use of a habit-forming substance, behaviour, or activity having harmful physical, psychological or social effects characterized by tolerance and typically causing well-defined symptoms upon withdrawal or abstinence". As the penetration of smartphone in this 21st century increases, a highly significant increase in the usage of this device is seen especially amongst the younger generation (Bianchi & Phillips, 2005). Now, with the facility of operating internet-based activity in the Smartphone and with its all-time convenient accessibility, its usage is soon turning into an abuse. Hence, the aim of the present research is to investigate the relationship between internet addiction and big five-personality traits among smartphone addicted female adolescents. For this purpose, Internet Addiction Test by Young (1998); Smart Phone Addiction Scale by Kwon and Lee (2013); and Big Five Inventory by John, Donahue, and Kentel (1991); and SES Scale (Singh et al., revised, 2017) were administered. The study was conducted in two phases. In the first phase, Internet Addiction Test by Young (1998) and Socio-economic Status scale was administered and in the second phase, adolescents who scored more than 20 on Internet Addiction Test and those who belonged to middle-class socio-economic status were selected for the further study. A sample of 100 female adolescents in the age range of 15-18 years, studying in various private schools of Delhi and National Capital Regions (NCR) were thereby taken into consideration. Only students coming from two parent intact family and those possessing and using a personal smart phone for at least last 6 months were selected for the study. The students who were using either their parent's or any other family members' phone were not included. Purposive Sampling method was used for this study to ensure the homogeneity of the sample. Adolescent girls were moderately addicted to both internet and their smartphones. Results clearly exhibited that both internet addiction and smartphone addiction were related, but separate forms of addictions, having different personality correlates. Girls who were introverts and were less imaginative, creative or open minded but rather conventional were more prone to both forms of addiction. Whereas those girls who were less conscientious were higher on internet addiction, and perhaps found safe haven there, which may be reduced their anxieties and made them feel secure.

Pages: 150-154
Lida Mansoori and Yagyima Nehabala (Department of Psychology, Chandigarh University, Mohali, Punjab)

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted almost everyone in the world. So, to prevent the virus from spreading as people were encouraged to self-quarantine in their homes. The lockdown had serious consequences on the mental health of people, causing issues such as stress, frustration, and depression. The psychological reactions of the people have a key role in influencing both the transmission of the disease and the occurrence of emotional anguish and social disorder during and after an infectious disease outbreak. Despite this, adequate resources are rarely provided to manage or mitigate the consequences of pandemics on mental health and well-being. Maladaptive behaviors, emotional distress, and defensive responses are all psychological responses to pandemics. Particularly those are more at risk who are genetically inclined to mental disease. According to surveys, the COVID-19 epidemic has influenced the state of friendship among many adults in the United States. Nearly 60% of young women said they lost contact with a few acquaintances during the pandemic, while 16% said they lost contact with most or all of their pals (Cherry, 2022). The mental health of people has suffered greatly as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The unprecedented level of uncertainty connected with the pandemic could contribute to stress and anxiety, particularly among people who have a high tolerance for uncertainty (Rettie & Daniels, 2021). The current study examined the experiences faced by students in higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic. To explore the effect of Loneliness and Stress among Afghan students in India during COVID-19 Pandemic a correlational study was conducted. 156 Afghan students (Bachelor's, Master's, & Ph.D. students) from age (18-25) years old living in India participated in this study. 7-item COVID-19 Student Stress Questionnaire (CSSQ) and UCLA Loneliness Scale (Version 3) were used in this study. Correlational analysis showed that there is a significant relationship between loneliness and stress. It was found that the level of stress among Afghan students living in India during a COVID-19 pandemic was moderate. Students reported rising mental health problems related to isolation, anxiety of social gatherings, and changes in connections with teachers and peers. And there was a high positive correlation between the three dimensions (isolation, relationship & academic life, & fear of contagion) of the 7-item COVID-19 Student Stress Questionnaire. It was also found that students were suffering from loneliness and isolation at a moderate level because, on the internet, students were no more able to reveal their "real" or inner self to others than they were in face-to-face settings. Therefore, situational factors like moving to a new place, physical isolation, and divorce can all cause loneliness in this context (David, 2015).

Page: 01-10
Cindhu Menaka (Department of Psychology, University of Madras, Chennai, Tamil Nadu)

Academic achievement serves as an indicator of student's future and their educational status in society. Underachievement is a major concern for parents and teachers in the intensely competitive world. It occurs due to many factors such as individual, personal, family, school, or socio-economic background. Inefficient teaching and poor school structure in rural places are hardly ever mentioned by parents and/or teachers, and they play a significant role in demotivating students. It is imperative to understand and evaluate the essence of the problem faced by the underachievers, irrespective of the implementation of favourable schemes and educational rules, chiefly related to rural students. Thus, the present study aims at a new perspective, with an earnest attempt to throw light on the most challenging problems faced in the present educational system. For this purpose, 528 rural low socio-economic status students were selected for an IQ screening test, and among them, 292 students (159 achieving students & 133 underachieving students) were selected as final samples for data collection, by using the Judgmental sampling technique. Discriminant functional analysis are used for finding out the predictive factor responsible for underachievement. It was concluded that low self-esteem is one of the vital determinants of underachievement.

Page: 17-21
Sayantani Chatterjee (Department of Psychology, Loreto College, Kolkata, West Bengal)

For the present study a sample of 80 working women (40 from corporate organizations & 40 from educational institutions) were selected to determine their psychosocial profile differences as shaped by their job structure and also as they play the dual role of managing families and fulfilling job requirements. The variables selected as psychosocial profile factors were anxiety, defense mechanism and locus of control. These variables were considered relevant and applicable since working women have to constantly balance varied ends together, reach job targets, satisfy others at home and at work and also derive a sense of self-fulfillment and appreciation which maybe blended with both success and failure. In addition to this, working women face the transitions in job markets, associated stresses in the positions offered to them and discrimination centering around gender, pay and other facilities/benefits as received. The results obtained from the present study revealed that the two groups of working women did not differ significantly with respect to the variables of anxiety, defense mechanisms and locus of control. However, the mean score of Locus of Control, State Anxiety, Trait Anxiety, Defense Mechanisms of Turning Against Object, Projection and Principalization were higher in case of women working in educational institutions. The mean score of Defemse Mechanisms of Turning Against Self and Reversal were higher in case of women working in corporate organizations. Thus the psychosocial orientations of both the groups, though marginally different in terms of mean scores of the variables, essentially revealed homogeneity of the chosen sample of working women and the overall psyche of women in general.

Page: 29-33
Sumbul Rafi and Nasheed Imtiaz (Department of Psychology, Aligarh Muslim University, Uttar Pradesh)

Mental health is a universal phenomenon and is equally studied and researched worldwide. It is considered the most significant human factor that highlights the working of any organisation. According to WHO (2019), "It is truly in everyone's best interests employers' and employees alike to improve our team's mental health." "Employees with low mental pressure are more efficient in giving output, have high employee turnover, and report lesser personal leaves. Occupational stress is a sense of disparity faced by an individual when they are unable to meet the demands of the workplace in a given period. At the same time, workplace bullying can be explained as a displaying series of negative behaviour subjected towards a particular person or a specific group. Therefore, the researcher grounds this investigation to assess the influence of occupational stress and workplace bullying on the mental health of employees and to study the relationship among the concerning variables. The sample consists of 150 employees of the private bank in Aligarh city. The online survey method has been used to get the responses with the help of questionnaires. The occupational stress index (Srivastava & Singh); Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (Einarsen); and Mental Health scale (Imtiaz) were used as tools to conduct research. Regression analyses were used to analyse the data and to compute the results. The outcomes of the study show that Workplace bullying and Occupational stress emerged as significant predictors of mental health, and there is a highly significant negative relationship among the variables. The findings of the study are discussed in the paper in light of reviewed literature.

Page: 40-45
Kajal Daga1, Anika Magan2, Anurakti Mathur3 (Advanced Diploma in Child Guidance and Counseling, Central University of Haryana1, Department of Applied Psychology, Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies Faridabad, Faridabad,Haryana2, Training Specialist, Amazon, Noida, Uttar Pradesh3)

Skin color bias or colourism is the biased attitude towards the people on the basis of lightness or darkness of the skin. It is a kind of implicit bias that people hold for a group at unconscious level. The present study is carried out to explore the prevalence of skin tone bias (dark or fair) on the basis of traits- attractiveness, friendly, happy, professionally successful, leadership skills, independent, wealthy, sincere, kind and likable. To conduct the study 6 individuals were chosen (4 females & 2 males). Three of them were originally dark complexion and three were of fair complexion based on their self-opinion. Dark skin tone were converted to fair one and Fair skin tone were converted to darker skin tone. So, a total of 12 pictures were there. Two checklists were developed containing those traits. Checklist 1 has 6 mixed pictures (Group 1) of fair and dark skin tone. Checklist 2 has the counterparts (Group 2) of the pictures in checklist 1. These pictures were shown to different individuals. Group 1 set was shown to 92 participants and group 2 was also shown to different set of 92 participants. So, the data of total 184 participants was collected. Chi square was calculated. The results come out to be that fair skin tone are considered favorable by people on the basis of traits like- attractiveness, likable and wealthy than the dark skin tone. Also, there is no significant difference in the way people perceive dark skin tone and fair skin tone individuals on the basis of traits like- friendly, happy, professionally successful, independent, sincere and kind. However, an interesting finding came out to be that on the trait- leadership skills, darker skin tone individuals are perceived favorable than the fair skin tone.