Psychological Hardiness and its Relationship with Comorbid Mental Health Problems among Rural Adolescents

Psychological hardiness is a protective measure against life stressors that helps to enhance the individual's capability to combat various pressures of life with confidence. It is a combination of various attitudes that encourage and motivate the individual to turn the threats of life into opportunities for personal development. The present study aimed to examine the relationship between psychological hardiness and comorbid mental health problems among rural adolescents. For this purpose, 240 rural adolescents were selected from the four government schools of the Hisar district of Haryana. A self-structured General Information Sheet, Hardiness Scale by Bartone (1989) and DASS-21 by Lovibond and Lovibond (1995) were administered to selected adolescents to collect the required data. The data analysis revealed that psychological hardiness was negatively correlated to comorbid mental health problems among adolescents which indicated that a higher level of psychological hardiness leads to fewer mental health problems and better well-being. The findings of the study support the implementation of hardiness training programs that will boost the level of psychological hardiness among adolescents to combat the hardship of life with courage and confidence.