Emotional Maturity of Adolescents from Orphanages, Single Parent Families and Intact Families:A Comparative Study

The present study assessed and compared the emotional maturity of adolescents in orphanages, single parent families and intact families. The sample comprised of 300 respondents in the age group of 14-16 years, from the four selected cities of Punjab (Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Patiala, & Hoshiarpur). 100 school going adolescents were picked from the selected orphanages and 100 adolescents were selected under both single parent families and intact families from the government schools. The sample was equally distributed across both the genders (50 each). Emotional maturity of adolescents was assessed by administering Emotional Maturity Scale. The study revealed that overall, more numbers of orphans were found emotionally immature. Adolescents living with intact families were significantly more emotionally progressed, socially adjusted, independent and overall analysis also showed that they were more emotionally mature. In order to cultivate emotional maturity of adolescents, parents or care takers should try to become a good and effective listener, avoid comparisons, teach the problem solving skills and model a good behavior in front of adolescents.