Mental Health Symptoms Predict Academic Achievement of the Female Students

The present study attempted to assess the role of mental health symptoms in predicting and shaping the academic achievement of the female graduate students. A two hundred and thirty nine females studying in undergraduate courses belonging to high (M = 18.76, SD = 1.63), middle (M = 18.59, SD = 1.43), and low (M = 18.32, SD = 1.00) socioeconomic status (SES)Maged 16 to 24 years took part in the study whose mental health symptoms, socioeconomic status (SES) and academic achievement were measured by standardized psychometric tools. The results of the study revealed that emotional problems, conduct problems, hyperactivity and peer problems components of mental health symptoms have negative correlations with the scores of academic achievement of the participants whereas the scores of pro-social behaviour component of mental health symptoms of the female students exhibited a positive correlation with the scores of academic achievement. The high, middle and low socioeconomic status of the participants affected their mental health symptoms and academic achievement. The regression analyses showed that the mental health symptoms predicted the academic achievement of the participants.Thus, mental health symptoms and socioeconomic status of the female participants have significant implications for the academic achievement of the students. The results of the study have significant theoretical and practical implications for developing an understanding of the dynamics of academic achievement of the students. The results of the study have been discussed in the light of current theories and findings of mental health and academic success of the students. The conclusions of the study will help the educationists, researchers, academicians, education policy makers and public at large to understand the role of mental health in shaping the academic achievement of the students. The suggestions for future researchers have also been discussed.