Bhatia, Rajana. (2014). A STUDY OF STRESS LEVELS AMONG ADOLESCENTS IN GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF DELHI. Unpublished. ERIC, Education

Objectives of the study:

• To measure and compare the mental health of adolescents of government and public schools.

• To determine the stress levels amongst the adolescents students.

• To measure the examination stress among adolescent students.

• To suggest techniques and methods to lower the stress levels among adolescent students.

Hypotheses:

1. There will be no significant difference between the mental health of government and public school students.

2. There will be no significant difference in the stress level among adolescent girls and boys.

3. There will be no significant difference in the stress level among adolescents before and during examination.

Sample:

A sample of 400 students between the age group of 11 to 16 years was drawn from government and public schools on the basis of gender.

Tools used:

• Manual for mental health by Prof Arun Kumar Singh and Dr. Alpana Sen Gupta

• Manual for Academic Anxiety Scale for Children (AASC) of age 13 o 16 years by Dr. A. K. Singh and Dr. A. Sen Gupta, Department of Psychology Patna University, 1984

• Indian adaptation of Saran Son’s General Anxiety Scale for School Going Children (GASC) by Dr. A. Kumar

• Interview (informal): An interview was taken from the students to collect more information regarding their feelings, anxiety and stress levels before, during and after examination.

Method:

Survey Method

Statistical Techniques:

Keeping in mind the objectives of the present study, the following statistical techniques along with the rationale for using them were employed to analyze the data obtained:

1. In order to know the nature of the data, the measures of Central Tendency' and Dispersion like Mean' and 'Standard Deviation' were used.

2. To find out the significance of difference between two means, the data collected was processed and analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. This software was used to calculate the T-Value.

3. To analyze the data, received during the Informal Interview percentage was calculated

Results:

1. The mental health of the students studying in private school has been found to be significantly better than the students studying in the government schools.

2. The score in respect of the stress level in boys has been observed to be significantly higher than the stress level in the girls irrespective of the schools they are studying in.

3. The students that enjoyed being at school before the examination was significantly higher than the students who enjoyed being at school during the examination.

4. The students that allocated time for leisure activities before the examination was significantly higher than the students who allocated time for leisure activities during the examination.

5. The students that wanted to join an academic profession before the examination was significantly higher than the students who wanted to join an academic profession during the examination.

6. The students that took stress during the examination was found to be significantly higher than the stress taken by students before the examination.

7. The stress level of the students at home during the examination was significantly higher than the stress level at home before the examination.

8. The students who get peaceful sleep before the examination were found to be significantly higher than the students who get peaceful sleep during the examination.

9. The stress level in the students was significantly higher while writing the examination than the stress level before writing their examination.

10. There was a lesser amount of difference in the percentage of the students who get support from their friends before the examination and during the examination.

11. The students who get involved in substances like alcohol, drugs and smoking during the examination was found to be significantly higher than the students who get involved in them before examination.

12. The students who take junk food during the examination were found to be significantly higher than the students who take junk food before the examinations.

13. There is a significant difference in the perception of the students in regard with the amount of the appropriate syllabus during the examination and before the examination.

14. There is a significant difference in the options chosen by the students when they have to relieve stress. "Listening to music" is the option that is found to be most favorable when the students have to relieve stress.

15. The students that were confident to overcome stress before the examination were found to be significantly higher than during the examination.

16. The students that shared their problems with the parents during the examination was found to be significantly higher than the students that shared their problems with the parents before the examination.

Keyword(s): Stress, Adolescents