To analyze the pattern in which home environment affected various aspects of psychological well-being of adolescents,153 higher secondary school students were selected  randomly from five schools of Kerala state. Data collected using psychological well-being scale and home environment inventory, on analysis, revealed significant correlations between the subscales of both measurements. As per multiple regressions, negative HE mainly affected the “interpersonal-relation” and “sociability” levels of adolescents. Disciplinary variables showed significant predictive power in “satisfaction”, “sociability”, and “interpersonal relationship” aspects of psychological well-being. Meanwhile, Positive HE variables exhibited significant predictive power in all the five aspects of psychological well-being. Demographic variables hadn’t any significant effect on psychological well-being. Counselors, parents, teachers and other caretakers will be benefitted from these revelations about the subtle environmental pathways into the psychological well-being of adolescents.

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Mental health is found to be reinforced by personality traits and among the Eysenck’s personality traits Neuroticism has a significant inverse influence on the behaviour. The current study examines the influence of neurotic personality dimension on the mental health among the youth in Kerala. The participants consisted of 211 undergraduate students between 18 to 24 years. The data were collected using the Mental Health Inventory and Eysenck’s Personality Questionnaire-R, and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results of MANOVA revealed that mental health of youth significantly differ based on neurotic dimension of their personality. The mean mental health index score was low among the high neurotics compared to the low neurotics. The results of Discriminant Analysis showed that among six dimensions of mental health, anxiety and, loss of emotional and behavioural control contribute more to discriminate the high and low Neuroticism groups. On an average, 73% of subjects originally grouped as belonging to high and low Neuroticism groups were correctly classified. The findings suggest the need for incorporating personality as a core variable in mental health promotion and illness prevention approaches to account for individual differences in thinking, feeling and behaviour.

Childhood experiences deeply influence a young person and profoundly affect emotional and physical health later in life. The present study aims to determine the stress and the stress manifestations among adolescents (N= 46), and the effect of Progressive Muscle Relaxation Technique on stress. Data were collected using stress rating scale and stress manifestation checklist from adolescents (N= 46) who were selected through convenience sampling from a selected school in Udupi, Karnataka. Results revealed that majority of adolescents (63%) experienced moderate stress specifically in the interpersonal domain. Psychological manifestations were more and depression (70%) was the most common manifestation experienced. Analysis using paired sample t test showed that there was significant reduction in stress and stress manifestations after the intervention revealing the effectiveness of Progressive Muscle Relaxation Technique on stress. Results suggest the need for early recognition and management of adolescent stress.

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