A Comparative Study of Relationship between MentalHealth and Academic Performance among AdolescentOrphan and Non-Orphan Students: A Cross-sectionalStudy of Two Districts of Jammu and Kashmir

摘要

This study attempts to seek psychosocial approaches to properly understand and address mental health services needed for orphansespecially in conflict and post-conflict settings. The present research aims to establish the level of mental health problems with academicperformance among 112 orphan students aged 9–16 years who were studying in various caregiving institutions of the two districts of Jammuand Kashmir. Further this study tries to find the relation between mental health and academic performance in orphans and non-orphanadolescent students for this purpose, 224 adolescent students were selected via purposive and random sampling method. Standardized DASSmeasurement scale and composite mental index was used to measure mental health constructs in both orphans and no orphans which wascompleted by the adolescent students and their main caregivers. While students to ta leverage score for last two years was used as an index oftheir academic performance.Finally, the data were analyzed dusingcorrelation coefficient models and independent-test for mental health constructs and academicperformance. The statistical analysis results showed that adolescent orphans demonstrated high rates of anxiety, depressive and posttraumatic stress reactions as compared to non-orphans and there was strong significant relation with their academic. According to thefindings of this study it can be evidenced that better the mental health outcomes, better is their academic output, although hit seemsthat the other social interaction terms also affects the academic performance.Implications of findings of this study include that we need an orphan centered comprehensive solution within the policy dimensions for caregiving institutions especially orphanages and should include psychosocial syndemic determinants to tackle wider mental health constructswithin the philosophy of inclusive holistic development.