EFFECT OF ADJUSTMENT ABILITY ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF FIRST YEAR MBBS STUDENTS IN A GOVERNMENT MEDICAL COLLEGE IN SOUTH KERALA

The adjustment problem is highly prevalent among medical students compared to other streams of education. Maladjustment has profound influence on the academic performances and also will also have many immediate and remote influence on the students both physical and mental health. Hence this study was undertaken to assess the adjustment ability of our students and its effect on their academic performances. Adjustment ability of 98 first year MBBS students in
Government in Kerala Medical College was assessed using Bell’s adjustment Inventory (BAI). Scores obtained were compared with the marks scored for the final sessional examination using independent sample t Test. The mean Bells score for our students was 48.36± 14.17 which is above the cut off score of 44 indicating unsatisfactory adjustment ability. Out of 98 students 59 students were having Total Bell’s score above 44. There was no significant gender difference noted. There was a significant difference in the Bells score between the students who secured more than 50% marks and those who have not. This study shows that a majority of first year MBBS students in our institution have unsatisfactory adjustment ability. Adjustment issues should be of concern because they may lead to undesirable coping strategies like substance abuse and the incidence of this is found to be increasing in medical students in India as shown by many studies.
Hence adjustment issues among students should be addressed effectively not only to improve academic performance, but to prevent psychiatric morbidities in the future.