IMPACT OF SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT ON AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOUR OF ADOLESCENTS

The present study entitled “impact of school environment on aggressive behaviour of adolescents” was under taken in the Ludhiana district of Punjab State. The study was designed to assess and compare the impact of school environment on aggressive behavior of adolescent boys and girls. The sample comprised of 400 adolescents (200 boys and 200 girls) in the age group of 13-17 years. Results revealed that adolescent boys were more assaultive, negative and verbally aggressive than adolescent girls, while girls were more suspicious than boys. Correlation analysis of adolescents’ aggression with school environment showed that assaultive behavior is positively related to rejection at school, while negatively related to acceptance. Expression of indirect aggression is negatively related to creative stimulation, cognitive encouragement and control. Results showed that irritability and negative feelings of adolescents are not affected by school environment. Resentment showed positive association with rejection. That is why classroom environment is an influential factor for the development of adolescent aggression. Aggression is a form of behavior characterized by physical or verbal attack. It may be directed outward against others or inward against the self, leading to self destructive or suicidal actions. Kakar (1974) defines aggression as an attempt by an individual or group to inflict physical injury on another individual or group without the consideration of whether their attempt was intentional or whether it was successful. Berkowitz (1993) defined aggression as any form of behavior that is intended to injure someone physically or psychologically. The dictionary meaning of aggression is hostile or violent behavior or attitudes. It is disorganized emotional response. Operationally aggression may be defined in terms of frequent quarreling, impulses of taking revenge and reactionary attitudes to traditions and beliefs. It is considered as a learned behavior or as an act against frustration which is affected by various biological and environmental factors. Aggressive behavior is any demanding or intrusive behavior that has an adverse effect on others (e.g., name calling, taunting, or verbal threats). It can be direct (yelling, destroying personal property, insulting) or indirect (gossiping, ignoring, spending false rumours). It may be driven by emotional arousal often some form of frustration, or it may be instrumental when it is used to secure a reward. Aggression in some cases assume a relatively positive and socially approved form if it is manifested by ambition, hard work to prove a point or a vigorous competitive spirit. It is of course, true that during the course of life time every individual suffers many frustrations and correspondingly it can be expected that everyone expresses aggression from time to time. So, frustration and its consequences may be seen as normal aspects of the developmental process. They become really serious when they assume too great a magnitude. Aggression gets out of control when an individual begins to display it in an increasingly broad range of situations with increasing frequency. Aggression also become serious when an individual develops it as a pattern and refuses to consider more culturally means to attain goal. We must accept that aggressive behavior does not develop at the age of 16 or 17 years. It is a part of long developmental process that begins during the childhood. Many children mature in an atmosphere of violent relationships between men and women-husbands battering wives, women assaulted by boyfriends and other males or they themselves being at the receiving end of physical punishment. These children come to adopt the same attitudes and practices in dealing with peers and, eventually, their own families as their elders did. Aggression doesn’t develop overnight, and is largely homebred. Experts ascribe aggression to a combination of factorsincreasing exposure to violence through the media and the internet, lack of parental supervision, persistence tension and use of foul language at home, lack of communication between child and parents, faulty parenting, performance pressure at school, growing substance abuse, increasing intake of junk food and sedentary life style (Broota 2008). During the formative years, that are two to 10 years of age, children are very inquisitive. They want to use every new world they come across, want to imitate their role model and want to feel big. At this age, if parents are not there to answer their queries, chances of their falling prey to behavior problems are high. Adolescent accounts for one fifth of the world’s population and have been on an increasing trend. In India they account for 253.2 million in 2011 (Census 2011). This implies that about 230 million Indias are adolescents in the age group of 10 to 19 years. World Health Organization (WHO) defines adolescence as a period of life between 10-20 years of age. The term adolescent means “to emerge” or “achieve identity”. Adolescence is defined as phase of life characterized by rapid physical growth and development, physical, social and psychological changes and maturity, sexual maturity, experimentation, development of adult mental processes and a move from the earlier childhood socio-economic dependence to relative independence.