Experiencing school supportiveness: Assessment of negative mental health in children

Pages: 217-221
Aradhana Shukla (Department of Psychology, Kumaun University Campus, Almora, Uttrakhand)

This study was aimed to find relative efficacy of grade, types of school, gender and level of experiential supportiveness of school climate on negative mental health with special reference to emotional disturbance and depression in children and early adolescents. It was contended that: Variation in grade would cause variation in emotional disturbance and depression; Participants studying in different schools would show difference in their scores of emotional disturbance and depression; Boys and girls would show difference in the magnitude of emotional disturbance and depression; Magnitude of discrepancy in relation to emotional disturbance and depression would found different with difference in the scores of experiential supportiveness of school climate. Three hundred and sixty participants of 5-9 grades served as participants and they were arranged according to the requirements of 4-way factorial design with 3 grades (5, 7, & 9), 3 types of schools (public, government, & municipal), 2 gender (boys & girls) and 2 levels of school climate supportiveness (high & low). In this study three measures were taken and they were: school climate supportiveness scale, emotional disturbance scale and depression Scale. Data were analyzed quantitatively as well as qualitatively. It was found that all main effects and interactions were significant. A close relationship between emotional disturbance and depression was also revisited.