Indian Journal of Health and Wellbeing

Palak Maheshwari ¹, Gulgoona Jamal ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Psychology, Zakir Husain Delhi College, University of Delhi, Delhi, IN

Abstract

Being an only child has detrimental effects on an individual's adjustment, personality, and character. Despite growing trends and evidences revealing the strengths of the only child, negative stereotypes about only children persist. To compare the subjective well-being by measuring affect balance, life satisfaction, self-esteem and global self-concept in case of only children and children with siblings. Cross-sectional comparison between groups. Group 1 (30 children with siblings) and Group 2 (30 only children) of age group 14-17 years; school students were examined and compared for affect balance, life satisfaction, self-esteem, and self-appraisals in looks, performance in sports, performance in school and peer relationship. Only children showed significantly low positive affect, higher negative affect, low affect balance, and low life satisfaction when compared to children with siblings but did not differ significantly in case of self-esteem. In self-appraisals, for looks, performance in school and popularity among peers, only children showed significantly higher ideal self and for school performance, significantly higher social and real self-conception than the children with siblings.

Keywords

Only Child, Stereotypes of only Children, Subjective Well-Being.

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Gulgoona Jamal ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Psychology, Zakir Husain Delhi College (University of Delhi), J. N. Marg, New Delhi, IN

Abstract

To examine the “sleep quality” and its relationship with “life satisfaction”, “psychological well-being”, and levels of “depression”, “anxiety”, and “stress” in Indian male and female college students. Method. The “sleep quality” of male (n = 72) and female (n = 77) college students with an age range of 18 to 25 years was measured with “Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index” (Buysse, Reynolds, Monk, Berman, & Kupfer, 1989). Based on the scores on PSQI, the final sample had 52 male and 63 female college students with poor “sleep quality”. The “life satisfaction”, “psychological well-being”, “depression”, “anxiety”, and “stress” of the final sample was assessed with the help of “Cantril's Self-anchoring Scale” (Cantril, 1965); “Psychological Well-being Scale” (Ryff, 1989); “Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale” (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1955) respectively. Poor “sleep quality” was significantly prevalent in both male and female college students, and they did not differ significantly from each other on poor “sleep quality”, “life satisfaction”, “PWB” and its domains, and levels of “depression”, “anxiety”, and “stress”. Poorer the “sleep quality” significantly lower was “life satisfaction”, and higher were “depression”, “anxiety”, and “stress” in both male and female college students. Further, only for male college students, poorer the “sleep quality”, significantly lower was the “PWB” and “positive relations with others.” Furthermore, while poor “sleep quality” accounted for maximum variance in PWB, followed by “depression”, “anxiety”, “life satisfaction”, “positive relations with others”, and “stress” for male college students, it accounted for maximum variance in “stress”, followed by “life satisfaction”, “anxiety”, and “depression” for female college students. The present study supports the existing research as a high percentage of both male and female college students showed poor sleep quality and poorer their “sleep quality”, lower was “life satisfaction” and “PWB”, and higher were “depression”, “anxiety”, and “stress”. However, poor “sleep quality” accounted for maximum variance in “PWB” for male college students, students, and maximum variance in “stress” for female college students. Since the previous studies have not reported sleep quality as a predictor of different variables in male and female young adults, hence, the present study provides an impetus for further research in this area.

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