Gender-based Analyses of Mental Health Status and Social Intelligence of School Students during COVID-19

Harshita Bhati, Ranjana Nirwan, and Tarunima Kanwar Jai Narayan Vyas University, Jodhpur, India Pages: 81-87 The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic led to a prolonged effect on mental health worldwide. Populations adjusting to the new norms, a series of lockdowns, being confined to a room during quarantine, and the declining economic rate caused psychological distress. School students have been equally affected by the trajectory of uncertainty, financial loss of their parents, switching from traditional learning to online learning, delayed results, and academic future. Social intelligence plays a vital role in defining a person’s ability to maintain interpersonal relationships. The main aim of the research is to assess the Mental Health Status and Social Intelligence of the boys and girls of higher secondary schools of Jodhpur amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. For the study, a total sample of 80 school students of higher secondary (10th to 12th std), 40 boys and 40 girls were taken. Data was collected using The Mental Health Inventory-38 (MHI-38) by the RAND Corporation and Social Intelligence Scale (SIS) by Dr. S. Mathur. The results showed a significant mean difference (z=2.02, p<0.05) in the Mental Health Index (MHI) between the boys and girls, whereas no significant mean difference (z=-0.68, p>0.05) was observed in their Social Intelligence levels. The boys (M=152.55) exhibit a higher level of Mental Health Index (MHI) indicating greater psychological well-being and less psychological distress than girls (M=141.9) in higher secondary. The findings suggest that boys might have a better coping mechanism than girls. . Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic, Mental Health Index, Social Intelligence, higher secondary, gender.