Resilience and perceived social support among school-going adolescents in Mangaluru

Abstract

Background: Resilience building interventions are gaining popularity, and the same needs to be enforced. However, considering the effectiveness of a programme after a need assessment, understanding the extent of resilience and the related construct of perceived social support (PSS) becomes imperative. Hence, this study aimed at assessing the resilience and PSS among school-going adolescents. Objectives: The objectives of the study were to assess the Perceived Stress, PSS, to understand the gender differences in level of PSS and resilience among school going adolescents in Mangaluru city of Southern India. Materials and Methods: A cross- sectional descriptive research design was used. School-going adolescents from grades 8–10th of the four schools of Mangaluru city were selected through convenient sampling (n = 206). Data were collected through self-administered scales. Descriptive statistics and t-test were applied. Results: The mean age of the study sample was 14.10 (±0.896) years. Adolescents had mild level of perceived stress, high PSS, and moderate resilience. Significant difference was noted between boys and girls in the global PSS and PSS from friends and significant others and resilience. Conclusions: The moderate resilience highlights the scope for resilience building programmes in schools of Mangaluru. Furthermore, the gender differences in the measured competencies indicate the need to develop gender-specific intervention packages.