Rejection Sensitivity, Perceived Loneliness and Optimum Health: Examining Gender Differences

The current study looked at rejection sensitivity as a predictor of perceived loneliness and optimum health among adolescents. Responses were collected from 460 adolescents (230 urban and 230 rural students) studying in 11th and 12th grades. The sample comprised of 230 girls and 230 boys enrolled in Government Senior Secondary Schools in the three districts namely Ludhiana, Patiala, and Sangrur in the Malwa region of Punjab. The Fear of Rejection Scale by Nafees and Jahan (2018), Loneliness Scale by Hamid and Parvez (2020), Optimum Health Scale by Kumar and Bala (2016) and a self-structured personal information sheet were used to collect the data. According to the results, boys showed higher levels of loneliness, whereas girls reported higher levels of rejection sensitivity. In terms of optimum health, boys exhibited higher levels of physical health as compared to their female counterparts. Loneliness and rejection sensitivity were found to be significantly positively correlated, indicating that adolescents who were more sensitive to rejection also felt more alone. Additionally, rejection sensitivity was found to have a strong negative correlation with optimum health, suggesting that rejection sensitivity not only made social isolation worse but also decreased overall well-being. The findings highlighted the need for early intervention and resilience-building strategies to reduce rejection sensitivity, loneliness and promote the best possible health for adolescents.