Middle East Journal of Applied Science & Technology (MEJAST)

(A Referred Quarterly International Journal) Volume 1, Issue 1, Pages 01-06, October-December 2018

Research Article
A Comparative Study of Adjustment Problems of High and Low Achiever Students
in High Schools Of Bhawanipatna (Odisha)
Manoranjan Tripathy1 & Bisweswari Sahu2
1
Department of Psychology, Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, Haridwar, Uttarakhand - 249411, India.
2
Department of Education, H.N.B. Garhwal University, Srinagar, Uttarakhand - 263002, India.

Article Received: 04 October 2018 Article Accepted: 29 November 2018 Article Published: 17 December 2018

ABSTRACT

Background: Adjustment develops the ability to work efficiently in the person, maintains a balance between him and the environment and develops
his personality in all directions. Achievement is the actual ability achieved by a person using his powers.
Aims: The present study has been done for the purpose of examining and establishing an adjustment problem related to home, health, emotional,
social and school adjustment of high and low achievement students.
Methods: A sample of 200 subjects were selected from the population for observation and analysis from five high schools of Bhawanipatna (Odisha)
and two groups achieving high and low achievement were selected from them. The entire sample belonged to the age group of 13-15 years. The
descriptive survey method has been adopted to carry out the study. High School Adjustment Inventory prepared by A.K. Singh and A. Sengupta was
used to collect the data and applied on selected 200 students. High and low achievers have been selected on the basis of their high school board
examination result by random sampling method.
Statistical Analysis Used: Data were analyzed using Graph Pad Quick Calcs: t test calculator. The data were statistically analyzed by independent
t-test to test the hypotheses.
Results: The obtain t-values and the calculated t values of the entire hypotheses are greater than critical values which is considered to be extremely
statistically significant at 0.05 level of confidence at df = 198, so the means are significantly different. Analyze the data and the results point to the
importance of adjustment problems related to home, health, emotional, social, school etc. The problem of low achievers requires immediate solutions
and society needs a well-adjusted and mentally healthy citizens.
Keywords: High School Students; Adjustment Problems of Achievers.

INTRODUCTION
Adjustment, in psychology, the behavioral process by which humans and other animals maintain an equilibrium
among their various needs or between their needs and the obstacles of their environments. A sequence of
adjustment begins when a need is felt and ends when it is satisfied. Hungry people, for example, are stimulated by
their physiological state to seek food. When they eat, they reduce the stimulating condition that impelled them to
activity, and they are thereby adjusted to this particular need.

Humans have a special ability, being conscious of them and understanding themselves. Apart from this, they have a
unique position to live in a formal society. Both of these facts are responsible for human adjustment in order to
achieve inner harmony and ability in inter-personal relationships. According to Adler (1956) Values may be seen
as absolutes, as inherent in objects, as present within man, and as identical with his behavior. Absolutes are
inaccessible to science. Values in objects cannot be discovered apart from human behavior relating to the objects.

The concept of adjustment was basically a biological one and was related to the optimization of the physical
environment, but humans have to adjust the demands of social pressures and socialization that are implicit in

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 Middle East Journal of Applied Science & Technology (MEJAST)

(A Referred Quarterly International Journal) Volume 1, Issue 1, Pages 01-06, October-December 2018
interdependence with other people. There is also a need for a person's inner nature, his physical needs as well as his
psychological needs, which affect the human system in many ways.

Adjustment can be seen from two angles. First of all, adjustment can be seen as an achievement or how well a
person handles his struggles and as a result, he can overcome stress. Second, adjustment can be seen as a process
that how a person adjusts or compromises their struggles.

Adjustment is a learning process and a competent teacher will bring adjustments in a positive way, which
strengthens a child's personality. A well-adjusted child enjoys the positive environment of his school environment,
and not by turning his personality unhealthy. But when we are unable to provide conditions at school, which can
enable students to meet their needs, both high and low responders react differently and adjustment problems arise.
Thus, adjustment problems are always the result of the need and their non-fulfillment.

The struggles and needs of the high and low recipients should not be the same. This study will focus on the
adjustment problems of high and low recipients of high school students, who will enable anyone to understand their
behavior and make predictions and suggest solutions to their adjustment problems.

REVIEW OF THE RELATED LITERATURE

A number of studies have been conducted about the facts and problems related to adjustments and achievements of
students. Tripathy & Sahu (2018) found that there is no significant mean difference in home adjustment of high
school students in relation to their gender. There is no significant mean difference in school adjustment of high
school students in relation to their gender. There is a significant mean difference in social adjustment of high school
students in relation to their gender. Boys students adjustment is more than girls. There is no significant mean
difference in emotional adjustment of high school students in relation to their gender. Agarwal, Kaul and Gandhi
(2017) conducted on the undergraduate students of various colleges of Ahmedabad city. A sample of 64 students
(32 Boys and 32 Girls) was selected by using quota sampling technique from various colleges. The findings
revealed that the male and female students differ significantly in their emotional and social adjustment. Vishal &
Kaji (2014) were to find out of adjustment of boys and girls school students in Ahmedabad. The sample consisted
of 120 boys and girls school students out of which 60 where boys and 60 where girls students. The result showed
that there is significant difference in total, home, social and emotional adjustment of boys and girls students at 0.01
& 0.05 levels. There is no significant difference in school adjustment of boys and girls students in Ahmedabad. Oni
(2010) investigated peer group pressure as a determinant of adolescents' social adjustment in Nigerian schools, with
a focus on the Ikeja Local Government Area of Lagos State. The results of the analysis showed that peer group
pressure among adolescents is related to their social adjustment and that the gender of the adolescents affect s their
social adjustment as well. Bart, Hajami & Bar‐Haim (2007) assessed the relations between basic motor abilities
in kindergarten and scholastic, social, and emotional adaptation in the transition to formal schooling. Seventy‐one
five‐year‐old kindergarten children were administered a battery of standard assessments of basic motor functions.
The results indicated that in addition to the already documented association between visual–motor integration and

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 Middle East Journal of Applied Science & Technology (MEJAST)

(A Referred Quarterly International Journal) Volume 1, Issue 1, Pages 01-06, October-December 2018
academic achievement, other motor functions show significant predictive value to both scholastic adaptation and
social and emotional adjustment to school.

OBJECTIVES:
 To find out the difference between high & low achievers in home adjustment.
 To find out the difference between high & low achievers in social adjustment.
 To find out the difference between high & low achievers in emotional adjustment.
 To find out the difference between high & low achievers in health adjustment.
 To find out the difference between high & low achievers in school adjustment.

HYPOTHESES
1. There is no significant difference between high & low achievers in home adjustment.
2. There is no significant difference between high & low achievers in social adjustment.
3. There is no significant difference between high & low achievers in emotional adjustment.
4. There is no significant difference between high & low achievers in health adjustment.
5. There is no significant difference between high & low achievers in school adjustment.

METHODS:-
Design of the study: Descriptive survey method has been adopted to complete the study. This is one of the
common methods of diagnosing and solving social problems. In order to evaluate the adjustment problems of high
recipients, it is necessary to contact the students with whom the problem is. Descriptive survey method thus proved
to be very important and useful for this research.

Sample of the study: A sample of 200 subjects were selected from the population for observation and analysis
from five high schools of Bhawanipatna (Odisha) and two groups achieving high and low achievement were
selected from them.

Sampling of the study: In the present study, the researcher used simple random sampling method to select from
the urban five high schools of Bhawanipatna Town, Kalahandi District of Odisha. The age ranged between 13 to 15
years.

Tool and Test for the Study: High School Adjustment Inventory prepared by A.K. Singh and A. Sengupta has
been used and applied to the selected sample. Inventory is divided into five different areas of adjustment such as
home adjustment, health adjustment, social adjustment, emotional adjustment, school adjustment. On the basis of
the results of the examination of the High School Board, 100 students achieving more than 60% marks are
considered as groups of high achievers and 100 students below 45% are considered to be a group of low achievers.

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 Middle East Journal of Applied Science & Technology (MEJAST)

(A Referred Quarterly International Journal) Volume 1, Issue 1, Pages 01-06, October-December 2018
Statistical Analysis Used: Data were analyzed using Graph Pad Quick Calcs: t test calculator. The data were
statistically analyzed by independent t-test to test the hypotheses.

ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA:-

H0: There is no significant difference in home adjustment problems of low and high achievers.
Table No.1
Home Adjustment
Significance
Groups N Scores SED CR
Level
Mean SD
High
100 68.59 4.39 Significant at
Achievers 0.96 2.35
0.05 level
Low Achievers 100 66.42 8.14
df = n-2 (For single group)=198

As shown in Table 1, shows that the mean scores of the high achievers and low achievers are 68.59 and 66.42
respectively on adjustment. The SD of high achievers and low achievers are 4.39 and 8.14 respectively. The t-test
was used to assess the significance of the hypothesis. The obtained C R-value is 2.35, since the obtained CR-value
is more than the table value at 0.05 level of confidence and less than the table value at 0.01 level of confidence at
df=198. So, there is significant difference on the level of adjustment among high and low achievers in home
adjustment. Thus the null hypothesis 1 is rejected.

Table No.2
Values of mean, std. deviation, critical ratio of high and low achievers in health adjustment.
HAs LAs C.R.
M1 Q1 M2 Q2
3.24
21.94 3.08 19.54 4.086

The values of mean, standard deviation and critical ratio in table no. 2. The value of critical ratio is 3.24 which is
more than 2.63 at 0.01 level of significance. Therefore null hypothesis 2 is rejected, meaning thereby that there is
significant difference between the high and low achievers in health adjustment.

Table No. 3
Values of mean, std. deviation, critical ratio of high and low achievers in social adjustment.
HAs LAs C.R.
M1 Q1 M2 Q2
0.05
19.94 3.88 19.9 3.8

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 Middle East Journal of Applied Science & Technology (MEJAST)

(A Referred Quarterly International Journal) Volume 1, Issue 1, Pages 01-06, October-December 2018
In table No. 3 the value of critical ratio is 0.05 which is less than 2.63 at 0.01 level of significance. Therefore null
hypothesis 3 is accepted, meaning thereby that there is no significant difference between the high and low achievers
in social adjustment.
Table No. 4
Values of mean, std. deviation, critical ratio of high and low achievers in emotional adjustment.
HAs LAs C.R.
M1 Q1 M2 Q2
4.75
19.46 3.18 16.66 2.66

In table no. 4 the value of critical ratio is 4.75 which is more than 2.63 at 0.01 level of significance. Therefore null
hypothesis 4 is rejected, thereby there is significant difference between the high and low achievers in emotional
adjustment.

Table No. 5
Values of mean, std. deviation, critical ratio of high and low achievers in school adjustment.
HAs LAs C.R.
M1 Q1 M2 Q2
1.2
22.82 4.56 21.9 3.8

In table no. 5 the value of critical ratio is 1.2 which is less than 2.63 at 0.01 level of significance. Therefore null
hypothesis 5 is accepted, meaning thereby that there is no significant difference between the high and low achievers
in school adjustment.

CONCLUSION
We know that apart from minimum academic requirements, the quality of scholastic performance depends upon
certain adjustment problems. The findings of this study indicate towards the importance of adjustment problems
related to home, health, emotions, social, school etc. The young students whose scholastic performance is
unsatisfactory is a serious loss to the society. Hence it is justified from educational point of view that the
fundamental purpose of teaching is to help the learner to do better academically. Low achievement problem needs
an urgent solution. It should not remain neglected for long. The society requires well adjusted and mentally healthy
citizens. The present study may help the parents and teachers to understand the children adjustment problems in a
better way.

Acknowledgements:
The researchers would like to thank all the participants of this study. A special vote of thanks to High School
Headmasters of different areas in Bhawanipatna Town, Kalahandi District, Odisha for their kind assistance.

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 Middle East Journal of Applied Science & Technology (MEJAST)

(A Referred Quarterly International Journal) Volume 1, Issue 1, Pages 01-06, October-December 2018
REFERENCES
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Bart, Orit, Dov Hajami, and Yair Bar‐Haim. "Predicting school adjustment from motor abilities in kindergarten."
Infant and Child Development: An International Journal of Research and Practice 16, no. 6 (2007): 597-615.
Oni, Adesoji A. " Peer Group Pressure as a Determinant of Adolescent Social Adjustment in Nigerian Schools."
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Singh, A.K., & Senguta, A. High School Adjustment Inventory (HSAI). Ankur Psychological Agency, Indira
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Vishal, P., & Kaji, S. M. (2014). Adjustment of Boys and Girls School Level Students in Ahmedabad. The
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