Emotional Intelligence and Adjustment Abilities among Scheduled Tribe Students of Senior Secondary School

Abstract

The present study aimed to examine the levels of emotional intelligence and adjustment abilities and the relationship between these two variables among Scheduled Tribe (ST) students studying at the senior secondary level. A descriptive survey research design was employed for the study. The sample comprised 395 ST students studying in Classes XI and XII in selected government senior secondary schools of Jeypore, Koraput district, Odisha. Data were collected using standardized measures of emotional intelligence and adjustment abilities. Descriptive statistics, including frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation, were used to determine the levels of emotional intelligence and adjustment abilities. Pearson’s product-moment correlation was employed to examine the relationship between emotional intelligence and adjustment abilities. The findings indicated that majority of ST students have possessed low level of intelligence whereas most of the students demonstrated high adjustment abilities. Further, a strong positive and statistically significant relationship was found between emotional intelligence and adjustment abilities (r = .858, p < .001, N = 395), indicating that students with higher emotional intelligence tended to report higher adjustment abilities. The findings highlight the importance of emotional and adjustment-related competencies in the educational and personal development of ST students at the senior secondary level. The study has implications for teachers, school counsellors, and educational institutions in developing appropriate programmes to strengthen students’ emotional competencies and adjustment abilities.