Self Concept A Determinant of Academic Stress and Perceived Parenting Mom Mitra De
The present investigation was undertaken to understand the relationship between Academic Stress and Perceived parenting on the Self concept of the adolescents. The study has its roots in a highly competitive examination system that focuses on marks rather than on an ability to think and grow. The pressure to perform and make a career begins early gaining momentum in the teenage years, with parents adding their bit on how they evaluate themselves. It has therefore been assumed for the present purpose that the level of Academic Stress is dependent on several psychosocial factors. Subsequently the objective of the present study is to find out the relation between Perceived Parenting and Academic Stress and its impact on the Self Concept of the adolescents and viceversa. A sample of 302 adolescents from kolkata aged 14 18 years participated in the study. They were selected through incidental purposive sampling technique. The tools used were an Academic Stress Questionnaire developed by the researchers and a standardized test for measuring Perceived Parenting and Self Concept. The findings of the study reveal an inverse relationship between Self Concept and Academic Stress. Perceived parenting was found to have a direct and positive relationship with the Self Concept of the adolescents. No significant statistical difference in relation to gender was found in the level of Self Concept, Academic Stress and Perceived Parenting of the Adolescents. It is concluded that Self Concept plays a significant role in the level of Academic Stress and in their perception about parenting. The study has strong implications on the effects of parenting on the self image of the adolescents. KeyWords Academic Stress, Perceived Parenting, Self Concept, Adolescents. Today's adolescent is living both in the best of times and in the worst of time in India. They possess longer life expectancies and luxuries inconceivable less than a century ago with television, computers, satellites, air travel etc. However the temptations and hazards of the adult world descend on them so early that too often they are not cognitively and emotionally ready to handle them effectively. Every stable society transmits values from one generation to the other, but today we adults are very concerned about the values being communicated to Indian adolescents. In many ways today's adolescent inhabit in an environment that is less stable than that several decades ago. High divorce rates, pregnancy rates, suicide rates, drug use, increased U Assistant Professor, Department of Education, Surendranath College for Women, Kolkata. Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta, West Bengal geographic mobility of families contribute to this lack of stability. (Santrock, 2007) Yet growing up has never been easy. The developmental tasks faced by todays adolescents are no different from those faced by adolescents fifty years ago. Adolescence is a time of evaluation, decision making, commitment and finding a place in the world than being a time of rebellion, crisis and deviance. (Santrock, 2007) Adolescents are a heterogeneous group (Cohen others, 2003; Wigfield others, 2006) where most of them successfully negotiate the lengthy path to adult maturity, but a large minority do not. Socio economic, ethnic, cultural, gender, age and lifestyle differences influence the developmental trajectory of every adolescent. (Spencer,2006) Contexts are the social settings in which development occurs, play important roles in adolescent development. These contexts include families, peers, schools and culture. (Santrock, 2007) These social contexts also contribute to the development of an adolescent's self esteem. (Dusek Mc Intyre, 2003; Harter, 2006; Turnage, 2004) Studies have shown that increase in family cohesiveness increases adolescent cohesiveness overtime. (Baldwin Hoffman, 2002) where family cohesiveness was based on the amount of time the family spent together, the quality of their communication and the extent to which the adolescent was involved in family decision making. (Santrock, 2007) The marital relations, parenting and adolescent behavior can both have direct and effects on each other. This means that there is reciprocal socialization within the members of the family. Marital satisfaction is often related to good parenting that ultimately results in healthier children and adolescents, (Grych, 2002) Close relationship with parents function as models or templates that influence the construction of new relationships in future. (Gjerde, Block Block, 1991) Adolescents with secure attachment histories have been found to be more socially competent, that included providing the necessary support for effectively engaging in the peer world in turn providing foundation for more extensive complex peer relationships. (Santrock, 2007) During the course of puberty the expectations of adolescents and their parents often seem to be violated as the teenagers change dramatically. Parental are often seem to clamp down and put more pressure on the adolescents to confirm to parental standards. But since the journey from childhood to adulthood is a long journey with many hills and valleys they do not confirm to adult standards immediately. Neither high intensity demands for compliance nor an unwillingness to monitor and be involved in the adolescent's development is likely to be a wise parenting strategy. Parents who recognize that adolescents take a long time "to get it right" usually deal more competently and calmly with adolescent transgressions than do parents who demand immediate conformity to parental standards. Whereas there are others who virtually do the opposite and let them do as they please in a permissive manner. Parents sometimes may perceive that all conflict with their adolescent is bad, but studies have shown that a moderate degree of conflict with parents in adolescence is not only inevitable but may also serve a positive developmental function. (Santrock, 2007) The way parents feel about themselves their situations and their children goes hand in hand with the way parents behave towards their children. The security of attachment is very important for the development of healthy, adaptive emotions and social behaviours, parental sensitivity and responsiveness are important components of the attachment relationships along with children's attributes. (Kirby, 2011) Adolescents carry with them a sense of who they are and what makes them different from everyone else. The selfunderstanding in adolescence is not completely internal in nature rather a social cognitive construction. (Bergman, 2004; hare, 2004; Harter, 2006; Santrock, 2007) which means that adolescents developing cognitive capacities interact with their socio cultural experiences to influence their self understanding. This development of self understanding does not take place in social isolation. They turn to their parents, friends for support and selfclarifications. Peers to adolescents are the reflected self appraisals, the social mirror into which adolescents anxiously stare. (Rosenberg, 1979) Fluctuations in self esteem during adolescents were related to life events and family cohesiveness. (Baldwin Hoffmen, 2002) Youth who find it too difficult to move between worlds can become alienated from their school family or peers. However those who are able to navigate effectively between different worlds can develop bicultural and multicultural selves and become culture brokers for others.(Santrock, 2007) The high self esteem may refer to accurate justified perceptions of one's worth as a person and one's successes and accomplishments. On the other hand low self esteem can develop into other problems. (Usher Others, 2000; Zimmerman, Copeland Shope, 1997) It has been implicated that depression, suicide, anorexia nervosa, delinquency and other adjustment problems. (Fenzel, 1994) The seriousness of the problem depends not only on the nature of the adolescent's low self esteem but on other conditions as well, like difficult school transitions troubled family life or other stressful events that can intensify an adolescents problem. (Santrock, 2007) High narcissism, low empathy and being sensitive to rejection combined with low self esteem were linked to adolescents' violent thoughts. (Harter Mccarley, 2004) Rapid global change is altering the experience of adolescents, presenting new opportunities and challenges to young people's health and well being. Adolescents' experiences around the world may differ depending upon their gender, family, schools and peers. (Brown Larson,2002, Larson Wilson, 2004) Changes driven by technological opportunities have a huge impact on economy, community as well as on families. We have rocketed into a new way of life, and these changes have had powerful effects on the experience of growing up. Today's children are in a very difficult situation than their parents or grandparents. The present world is the world of achievements is also a world of stress, and has therefore rightly been called the "Age of Anxiety and Stress" (Pestonjee, 2009) Youth today are living in an increasingly anxiety ridden atmosphere. (Nalini, 1997) They live in a world when nothing seems to be guaranteed with certainty and at the same time are expected to perform at every font, the main being academics. (Bhansali trivedi, 2008) Most of the problems concentrated on academic anxiety are followed by anxiety