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16
 CHAPTER-1
A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SELF-CONCEPT AND ADJUSTMENT
OF NORMAL AND PHYSICALLY DISABLED STUDENTS

1.1 Conceptual Framework

Education is a lifelong process. The entire development of personality is

termed as education. Education is not just limited to passing an examination, it
broadens our horizon, deepens our insight, refines our reactions and stimulates
our thoughts and feelings. Thus education in its complete form include attitude,
skills, knowledge and other factors required for the development of personality.

An individual’s personality as a whole can be considered in components

as self-concept, adjustment, anxiety, intelligence and such more. Personality is
said to be acquired after birth from the environment and personal experiences a
person has. Though experiences and environment are not the same for any two
individuals but they can have similar personality traits.

Adjustment is the most suitable, feasible and productive behavior to be

maintained between availability and the need at any hour of life. Adjustment
problems in the social, environmental, administrative, and domestic and all
other problems being faced by adolescents need serious and remedial
considerations. 18th century was the century of enlightenment, 19th century as
the century of progress and development and 20th century a cause of conflict,
anxiety bickering infighting etc. whereas the 21st century, the age of computer
which is making human beings behave like machines and demands more
concentrations, more hours, speedy reactions, active monitoring and suitable
restructuring, which is posing threat to the individual’s authority and mental
health, which effects individual’s adjustive behavior. The complex structure
and functioning of our society has proved to be taxing for individual’s adjustive
capacities to meet the demands of the environment. Personality and behavior

1
disorders are increasing day by day and have challenged the thoughts of
educationists, psychologists and sociologists. The problem of maladjustment
has become so common that steps are needed to be taken for preventing serious
maladjustment. The prevention is essential not only for the individuals but for
the society at large. The present generation particularly the students are facing
stress, confusion, tension and conflicts. It is to be realized that academic
achievements of students basically depend upon their personal, social,
emotional and health adjustment, if there is something wrong with any aspect
of adjustment of the pupil, he/she cannot benefits from the education of a
school in spite of his/her best efforts. So early detection of maladjustment and
adopting remedial measures can help the students in achieving good scores and
maximum satisfaction. By detecting his/her maladjustment with proper
counseling and guidance the individual can build up new habits and attitudes
develop adequate behavior patterns to carry him/her satisfactorily through the
journey of life.

The concept of adjustment was originally biological. It was termed as

adaptation. Adaptation was used in Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. Adaptation
means adjustment according to circumstances. Those who do not or cannot
conform may often be considered maladjusted. The term ‘adjustment’ means
accommodating ourselves according to demands of our environment. The
important component of adjusted behavior is the possession of a wholes one
outlook of life, a realistic perception of self, emotional and social maturity.
Adjustment is a continuous process of maintaining harmony among the
attributes of individual and the environmental conditions, which surrounds one,
is an important aspect of one’s life. The adjustment of an individual depends
much on one’s recognition as a worthwhile individual whatever age, status or
condition is. An individual seeks approval from others because society has
placed a premium on physical beauty, strength and ability. It is easy for a

2
crippled child to devaluate himself because he does not have these qualities. He
sometimes needs helps in making realization that he lacks some qualities that
are of worth. The fact that he is inferior in some ways does not make him
inferior as a person. The need to overcome obstacles to do something wills, to
gain self-esteem which can also be called self-concept is also very strong in
every human being. A child’s concept about his ‘self’ is greatly influenced by
the concept he has about his body image. Thus if there is a shame or disgust or
fear in his attitude towards his impaired body, the same attitude is likely to be
rejected itself to his concept of himself as a person. He often needs helps and
guidance in integrating a physical disability into a healthy self-concept. Self-
concept or identity is not defined only during adolescence but it is lifelong
process rather than a onetime event. Other people often reject those individuals
who have a poor self-concept. Acceptance of self is positively and significantly
correlated with acceptance of and by other. Thus there is a close relationship
between self-acceptance and social adjustment and low social adjustment is
related to low self-concept. Such students are not selected as leaders and do not
participate very often in class, club or social activities they do not stand up for
their own rights or express their opinion on matters that concern them.

Psychologists define adjustment on the basis of self-concept or self-

picture of the individual which should be in accord with reality. A well-
adjusted person has essentially positive attitude towards self and others. He has
the feeling of dignity and integrity, worth and self-actualization (combs and
Snygg 1959). Maladjustment takes place when the individual’s psychological
view regarding himself is not in accord with concurrence of reality. Steering a
crippled child’s efforts in a direction where he can succeed and giving him a
feeling of accomplishment may help to satisfy this motive of self-realization.
Cohen (1977) concluded that physical ability is the prerequisite “by which the
handicapped child may learn about himself”. Physical handicappedness,

3
therefore, possibly effects the rate of conceptualization in the process of self-
concept formation.

Self-discovery is a process of defining self-concept. Self-discovery, self-

identity or self-concept is not defined only during adolescence. The self is like
a planet, tree or even a river that grows and changes its course of development
all the way. In other words the “self” develops grows and renews itself.

According to Erikson (1968) in his psychological theory the core

conflict of adolescence is tension between role confusion and identity. Seeking
identity involves searching for continuity and sameness in oneself trying to get
a clear sense of what one’s skills and personal attributes are to discover where
one headed in life and to believe that one can mount on recognition. The
adolescent who forms a sense of identity gains two key benefits according to
Erikson.

(a) “A sense of psychological wellbeing.

(b) Feeling of being at home in one’s body”.

The use of word “individual” instead of a “person” signifies that how

much ever a person is close to each other but he is different and a separate
entity.

By the time a person reaches adolescence many of his views and

attitudes regarding himself have strongly being established. A negative self-
concept and low esteem often results in excessive failures.

Some studies of physically disabled children have generally concluded

that these children’s self-concepts are more negative than that of normal
children. Disabled students more often develop feeling of isolation and more
often get afflicted with pangs of loneliness. They lack the self-confidence.
Adolescence is period of stress and storm because of physical and
psychological changes. Disabled students too have to deal with conflicts being

4
faced by normal adolescents. The self-concept plays a vital role in adjustment.
The fundamental problem of neurotic is that he/she is self-rejected. The
objective of their therapy is to make them come to terms with themselves and
adjust their behavior and perception of themselves to the point at which they
are able to accept themselves.

Wylies (1961) suggested that self-concept is related to adjustment. The

individual who has negative feelings towards self generally has negative feelings
towards others and these results in poor adjustment. Improvement in attitude
towards self on the other hand will be accompanied by an improvement in
attitude towards others with improved social acceptance. Those with stable self-
concepts have higher level of self-esteem, they are free from feeling of
inferiority, they are better liked by the group, they have more friends and are
more active socially, and they make better adjustment than those who have
unstable concepts of self. Those whose concepts of self are unstable, make poor
social adjustments and show disqualities such as negativism, introversion, hyper
activity, dominance seeking and other forms of problem behavior. Dibner and
Dibner (1973) revealed in their study that a child with poor self-concept tends to
be more anxious and less well-adjusted and less effective in the task at school
and in life than a child with more adequate self-concept. It is clear from the
above discussion that the adjustment process is multidimensional. Disabled
students have also to deal with conflicts being faced by normal adolescent and
especially of disabled ones are of prime concern for educators, philosophers,
social scientist and psychologists since early ages. Educationists have a practical
interest in studying those people, so that they might be wiser in dealing with
them. So, it is necessary to study the self-concept and adjustment level of physically
disabled students.

1.2 Types of disabilities

Disability is a term of common parlance which generally denotes

individual’s inability to do certain physical and mental activities which the

5
other children of his/her age can simply do with ease. Thirteen different
categories of disabilities are recognized by “Individuals with Disabilities
Education Improvement ACT (IDEA 2004)”. If children experience difficulties
that fall in one of the thirteen categories and their education is significantly
affected as a result of their disability they can get support from a wide variety
of resources. Following are the different types of disabilities.

Thirteen different types of disabilities.

Source -Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA

2004).

Orthopedic impairment is one of the categories of physically disabled

children. These children can be categorized as follows.

• Cerebral Palsy

• Spina bifida

• Spinal cord injuries

• Physically disabled children caused by musculoskeletal condition

• Arthritis

• Osteomyelitis

6
 (1) Cerebral Palsy : In the term Cerebral Palsy the word cerebral
means damage to the brain, ‘Palsy’ depicting the impairment in motor
functioning. So cerebral Palsy means neuromuscular impairment. Cerebral
palsy is not contagious, it is a condition which disabilities the movement and
posture resulted from damage to the brain before, during birth or in infancy
cerebral palsy is an injury not a disease (though can be caused by a disease). It
can be treated but not cured implies proper treatment may help to limiting further
physical damage or impairment with improving functional skill for leading
independent life.

(2) Spina bifida:-Spina bifida is a birth defect of the back bone.

During pregnancy period foetus may fall in the serious backbone defect. Spina
bifida is a general term for a congenital defect in the vertebrae that enclose the
spinal cord. In this disease the spinal cord fails to develop normal muscle
control. Lower back area gets defected at any point along the spine. Spina
bifida may be classified as in three main types.

(i) Occulta:-It is the mildest form of the spina bifida. In this disease only a
slight defect occurs in the malformation of a few vertebrae.

(ii) Meningocele: - It represents the moderate form of the spinabifida. The

flexible covering of the spinal cord buldges through an opening in the
back of the child at birth.

(iii) Memingomyelocele: - It is the most common and most severe form of

spina bifida. A sac like structure that contains spinal cord membranes,
spinal fluid and a portion of the spinal cord protrudes over the spinal
column. This condition carries a high risk of paralysis and infection in
the broken area of the spinal cord. Surgery is needed soon after the birth
to close the spinal openings and to prevent further damage and possible
infection. Probability of paralysis and severity condition of spina bifida
depends on the location of the spinal cord.

7
 (3) Spinal cord injuries:- Spinal cord injuries occur when a child is
involved in an accident or incident like car or motorcycle accident or caused by
chronic disease and infections. These injuries may result in partial or total
paralysis. Partial paralysis occurs with spinal cord partially damaged and complete
paralysis is caused by complete severity of spinal cord. The location of injury
vitally counts for loss of degree of physical movement and other functions.

(4) Physical disabilities caused by musculoskeletal conditions.

(i) Muscular dystrophy: -The term muscular dystrophy is referred to

a group of inherited diseases in which the muscles of the body are very weak.
The affected child may suffer right from his birth with the serious impairment
like muscular weakness, difficulty in walking, breathing and use of the hands.
The exact cause is unknown and the conditions get worsened as the child
advances in age. Its diagnosis is made on the basis of certain tests e.g. muscle
biopsy (replacing muscle fiber with fat) blood and urine tests.

Thirteen different types of muscular dystrophy are available in its

various forms. However the following three types are generally more popular.

(a) Landouzy Deferine Muscular Dystrophy: -It occurs equally in both

boys and girls during the period of adolescence and causes weakness in
the arms, shoulders and facial muscles more than the legs. The
individuals affected with this impairment can lead a normal life.

(b) Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy: - It is the most common and severe

muscular dystrophy affecting boys. The affected child feel difficulty in
walking, running, climbing or catching objects. The affected children
hardly live 15 years from the onset.

(c) Juvenile Dystrophy: - It is least severe of all the three mentioned

dystrophy. The age of this dystrophy ranges 6 to 10 years. It has a slow

pace of progress and is responsible for causing muscular weakness in the

8
 pelvis, arms, hands and fingers. Till now we have no cure for muscular

dystrophy. Regular exercises and use of assistive devices (like wheel

chairs, braces etc) are only the treatment for undamaged muscles.

(ii) Poliomyelitis:- Poliomyelitis also known as polio, is a

communicable disease caused by viral infection. It gets spread by contaminated

food and water. The acquired germs begin to multiply in the walls of the
intestine of the affected person and get spread to the nervous system causing

paralytic conditions. In the milder case the child can have partial paralysis of

certain limbs and spine. Many children suffering from severe paralysis and gross
deformities have to move on four limbs from a place to another. SABIN (aural

polio vaccine) helped to eradicate polio from the world map. However the

developing countries like ours have still to face a large number of physically

impaired children affected by this disease in schools and living places.

(iii) Clubfoot: -It is a disease in which both feet of a child are turned at

the wrong angle at the ankle. This deformity may have various forms like

twisting of one or both feet inwards, sharply angled at the heel. In milder cases
physical therapy helps to cure the deformities, but in severe cases surgery may

be needed.

(iv) Paralysis of one or more limbs: - Limbs deficiencies resulting in

major physical disability in the children may be present at birth or occur any
time later in life. By limb deficiency means loss of one or more limbs. Paralysis

of limbs caused by disease or an accident. Fitting of artificial limbs like hand,

arm, leg etc. is essential for restoration of function in the paralytic children.

(v) Arthritis:- Arthritis is a bunch disease. Arthritis generally

affecting elderly people but some forms of arthritis can affect people at an early

9
age. The most common forms of arthritis are osteoarthritis, rheumatoid,

arthritis and Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. It is related to pain in and around the

joints. Juvenile rheumatoid is relatively a chronic syndrome. In its most

common form rheumatoid arthritis is a systematic disease with major symptoms

like developing sudden fever, rashes, joint pains, swelling, stiffness, severe

weakness fatigue and joint deformity. Treatment of arthritis rests with

supervised exercise, massage and well balanced diet

(vi) Osteomylitis: - In this disease there is a bacterial infection of the

child’s bones of arms and legs. It usually occurs when a child’s bone is

damaged in some way and at the same time has a bacterial infection. The

injured and infected bone, then may spread the infection to other parts of the

body causing mild to severe physical disability.

A Physically disabled child is one who suffers from physical defect or

deformity. This may be congenital or acquired. This disability involves a

condition in the muscles, bones or joints, which impairs their normal

functioning.

World Health Organization (WHO), 1980 defined “Physical

disabilities as a disability to an individual’s ability to execute distinctive

activities associated with moving both himself and objects from place to

place”.

Physically disabled children are one of the categories of exceptional children.

Exceptional children have been classified into various categories based on the

type of disabilities they suffer from. The classification of exceptional children

is as follows.

10
1.3 Types of Exceptional Children

Source: www. education .com

1.4 Defining physical disabilities

National sample survey organization (1991) Defined physical disabilities as

the loss or lack of normal abilities of an individual to move both
himself/herself and or objects from one place to another.

1.5 Causes of physical disabilities: -

The causes of physical disabilities among children are inadequate

nutrition of mothers and children vitamin deficiencies abnormal parental and
perinatal events such as prenatal damage during the birth process, infectious
diseases during the prenatal and postnatal life including environmental
pollution. More causes are as follows.

11
 Genetic or hereditary cause:- Heredity in no way be said a clear direct
contributing factor for transmitting the physical disabilities as such (like loss of
any limb, deformity of bones, joints etc.) cannot be carried through genes and
chromosomes at the time of conception of child. However there is some
possibility of inheriting malformed bodies or diseases responsible for the
development of physical disability.

Causes operative in the womb of the mother: - Passive smoking and

consumption of tobacco and smoking on the part of pregnant mothers may
affect the growth and development of the foetus and causing physical
disability. Using up of alcohol by a pregnant mother has devastating effect on
the developing foetus.

With Foetal Alcohol syndrome (FAS). The children with FAS are found
to suffer from neurological impairments, brain damage, heart failure and
defective physical and mental health.

Causes operative at the time of birth: - There are premature deliveries

and as a result, the development of the children leads to physical disability and
there remains many deficiencies in the full growth. In many cases children are
delivered through an operation and sometimes new born children may get
infected with chronic diseases.

Causes lying in the poverty and lower socio-economic condition: -

Unhealthy living conditions are responsible for abnormal growth and
development. The uncongenial environment of the family of the child
characterized by very poor economic conditions, illiteracy and lower socio-
economic status disability furthers poverty leads to child marriage, child
mothers and premature babies, are causing many physical disabilities in the
new born children.

Accidental and incidental factors: -A simple accident like slipping on

the floor, stumbling on the road or hit by any object may cause an injury of
serious physical disability to the child. People may get burnt, losing limbs,
badly injured and important body organ including head, spinal cord and other

12
sensitive parts missing. These misshapenness and accidents may be considered
as physical disabilities.
Nutritional deficiency: - Many of the physical disabilities in the
children may be caused by nutritional elements which are essential for growth
and development of bones muscles and their joints.
The effect of infection and diseases: - In the many cases physical
disability is the result of the infections received and diseases suffered by the
children during the period of their growth and development. Polio the major
contributor of the physical disability in the children is an infectious disease.
Physically disabled persons have to deal with the conflict faced by non-
disabled or normal adolescents besides conflicts which their condition creates.
Studies indicate that physically disabled have average intelligence if they are
not affected by any brain damaging disease or injury. Thereby, normal
adolescents and physically disabled adolescents have as much as intelligence as
can be expected of normal adolescents. In disability survey 2013 percentage of
causes of physical disabilities have shown as under mentioned in pie diagram.

Source- Disability survey: 2013; www.stats.govt.nz

13
1.6 Meaning of self-concept:-

The individual’s perception assessment or view of self is part of the

environment in which he/she is involved is known as the phenomenal self and
the rest of the environment of which he/she is aware or to which he/she
responds is his/her phenomenal environment. The self-concept is what the
individual thinks of as his/her actual self. There are several terms that are
virtually synonymous with self-concept among them are “self” “self-
understanding” “self-perception” and “phenomenal self”.

According to dictionary of psychology self-concept means the

individual’s evaluation of self. Self-concept means the pictures or image a
person has of self. Self-concept is what the individual thinks of his/her actual
self.

Rogers (1951) defined self-concept as “an organized configuration of

perceptions of the self in relation to others and to the environment, the value
qualities which are perceived as associated with experiences and objects and
the goals and ideals which are perceived as having positive or negative
valance”..

Paderson (1965) described self-concept as an organized configuration

of perceptions, beliefs, feelings attitudes and values which the individual views
as a part of characteristics of himself.

Brookover (1966) described that there is a relationship between the

self-concept and achievement of student.

William (1967) defined that how a person perceives himself will be

termed as his self-concept.

Saraswat and Gaur (1981) defined “The self-concept is the

individual’s way of looking at himself. It also signifies his way of thinking,
feeling and behaving”

14
Kinds of Self-concept

Perceived self: - Perceived self means what a person thinks about

himself. This is influenced by a physical self of a person, his physical
appearance by his values by his beliefs and aspirations. Perceived self means
traits of one’s nature which have been detected and integrated into a pattern, it
constitutes the idea or concept that one forms about himself.

Real self: - Real self means what the person really is. It also includes
what the individual is aware of and characteristics of the person are assessed
objectively and seen sometimes by other people. This self is also called real
self plus unconscious self.

Social Self: - The social self refers to the self as one thinks and others
see it. This concept may not correspond with other people’s perception of him
but even them his self has a very major effect upon one’s behaviors.

Ideal Self: - This self means what an individual thinks he would like to
be. Butter and High (1954) observe ideal self as the organized conceptual
patterns of characteristics and emotional status, which an individual
consciously holds desirable for himself.

1.7 Dimensions of Self-concept:-

(i) Physical (ii) Social (iii) Temperamental (iv) Educational (v) Moral
(vi) Intellectual

• Physical: - Individual’s view of his body, health, physical appearance

and strength.

15
• Social: - Individual’s sense of worth in social interactions.

• Temperamental: - Individual’s view of his prevailing emotional state

or predominance of a particular kind of emotional reaction.

• Educational: - Individual’s view of himself in relation to school,

teachers and extracurricular activities.

• Moral: - Individual’s estimation of his moral worth, right and wrong

activities.

• Intellectual: - Individual’s awareness of his intelligence and capacity of

problem solving and judgments.

1.8 Meaning of Adjustment: -

The term adjustment means accommodating ourselves according to

demands of our environment. An individual has usually two types of demands
external (social) and internal (biological and psychological). Sometimes these
demands come into conflict with each other and make the adjustment a
complicated process for the individual conflicts among the various needs or
demands of a person present special problems of adjustment. These may cause
frustration and lead to abnormal behavior, psychologists have stated adjustment
in two ways first adjustment is an achievement or learning and second is a
process. It means that adjustment is both process and product. An achievement
serves the efficiency of a person for performing his duties in different
situations. Education requires the well-adjusted pupils in schools.

The term adjustment has two meanings. In one it is continuous process

by which a person varies his behaviors to produce a more harmonious
relationship between himself and his environment. In other sense adjustment is
a state i.e. the condition of harmony arrived at by a person whom we call well

16
adjusted. The word adjustment has been described in many ways by different
psychologist, biologists, mental hygienists and other behavioral scientists.
Biologists take adjustment in terms of adaptation to physical world some
explain adjustment in terms of conformity to environmental demands. Those
who do not or cannot conform may often be considered maladjusted. The
mental hygienists take a more personal view of the adjustment process and
consider it to be the need for a person adjusting to himself understanding his
strength and limitations facing reality and achieving a harmony within himself.

Definitions of adjustment:-

Glanz and Walston (1958) defined adjustment as “Adjustment is the

process of meeting life’s problems with personality and the self-concept aspect
of personality in action”.

Coleman described: -“Adjustment is the outcome of individual’s

efforts to deal with distress and meet his needs”.

Skinner: - “We seek under the adjustment a healthy energetic

participation in group activity grasping of responsibilities at time to the point of
leadership and above all avoidance of any self-deception in adjusting”.

Smith: - “A good adjustment is one which is both realistic and

satisfying”.

LD Crow and Crow (1956):- “An individual’s adjustment can be

defined as a satisfactory relation of an organism to its environment.

1.9 Dimensions of adjustment: -

A person has to adjust in different areas of life. He has to adjust in

school, college, home and in his profession. The main dimensions of human
adjustment are as following -

17
 Emotional adjustment: -Individual’s stability of emotions.

Social adjustment: - Individual’s social behavior i.e. submissiveness or

dominating.

Educational adjustment: - Individual’s interest in curricular and co-

curricular programmes in schools.

1.10 Rationale of the study: -

Secondary stage is the stage in schooling when the child starts

understanding the environment better. This is a period to understand and learn
the knowledge necessary for him/her in a better way. This is also a period of
widening the mental faculty and to give concrete shape to the ideas, this is the
stage when relevant education can also be understood more tangibly.

The federal Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) makes it

clear that the schools have a duty to educate children with disabilities in
general education classrooms. The philosophy of integration has its roots in the
ideals and principles governed through equity and equality of opportunities to
all without differentiation and discrimination. In the last few years focus on
children with disabilities has resulted in greater awareness and has increased
sensitivity towards these children.

According to constitution of India education declared as a subject in

concurrent list but in India education is primarily the responsibility of state
Government. Today 10+2 years of school education is the pattern prevailing all
over the country. The NPE 1986, recommended Integrated Education schools

18
for children having mild and moderate disabilities. According to Miles,
M(1994),whereas there was no nationwide plan to provide disability services,
there were voluntary organizations taking care of the needs of disabled people
and the Presidency Government gave financial aids and other assistance to
institutions serving people with disability. In 1992 the modified scheme of
Integrated Education of the disabled children was intended to provide
education opportunities to the disabled children in common schools to facilitate
their retention in the school system.

The initiatives have been taken under the distance education and open
learning system of the National as also the National Institute of Open School to
provide school level education and vocational education and training to persons
with disabilities. The children with disabilities enrolled under project on
Integrated Education of the disabled, a UNISEF supported project introduced
in 1987 showed on an average 91% retention rate which was much higher than
from the non-disabled children. Absenteeism was also low among children
with disabilities. Even the achievement of such children was at par with that of
non-disabled children.

NCERT has also established the Integrated Education cell which

resulted in promotion of networking across the ministries, Institutions, schools
and NGO’s. NCERT has prepared source books in modular form for various
types of impairments.

In 1982 Integrated Education for Disabled (IED) was formulated by the Dept.
Of Education Ministry of Human Resource and Development (MHRD),
NCERT launched a programme in the name of project on Integrated Education
for the disabled (PIED).

The national curriculum framework 2005 states opportunities need to be

given to all children and their specific abilities need to be recognized and
appreciated. The approach will make education accessible to children with

19
disability in all parts of the country. There is a growing global concerns that
children with special need should not be excluded from the general educational
system just for the reason that they are disabled. Problems of self-concept and
adjustment play an important role in the personality development of normal
and disabled students. In the opinion of investigator self-concept and
adjustment affect the personality at every level of education.

Now in the present study the two factors have been taken i.e. self-
concept and adjustment of physically disabled children. Lot of work has been
done related to the self-concept and adjustment. However little work has been
reported regarding physically disabled students. So an attempt is being made to
study the self-concept and adjustment of normal and physically disabled
students. After this the following questions emerged in the mind of researcher.

1.11 Research questions:

• Is there any difference in self-concept between normal and physically

disabled students on the basis of gender?

• Is there any difference in self-concept between normal and physically

disabled students on the basis of locale?

• Is there any difference in adjustment between normal and physically

disabled students on the basis of gender?

• Is there any difference in adjustment between normal and physically

disabled students on the basis of locale?

1.12 Statement of the problem: -

“A comparative study of self-concept and adjustment of normal and

physically disabled students”.

1.13 Objectives of the study: -

Objectives are the driving force for any study. Following objectives are
framed for the study.

20
(i) To study the self-concept of normal and physically disabled students
studying in secondary classes.

(ii) To study the adjustment of normal and physically disabled students

studying in secondary classes.

(iii) To compare the self-concept of normal and physically disabled students

on the basis of gender.

(iv) To compare the self-concept of normal and physically disabled students

on the basis of locale.

(v) To compare the adjustment of normal and physically disabled students

on the basis of gender.

(vi) To compare the adjustment of normal and physically disabled students

on the basis of locale.

1.14 Hypotheses of the study

According to Best and Kahn (1986) –“The research hypothesis is a
formal affirmative statement predicting a single research outcome a tentative
explanation of the relationship between two or more variables.”

Hypothesis means composition of two or more variables which are to be

verified. Hypothesis is the composition of some variables which have some
specific position or role i.e. to be verified empirically. It is a proposition about
the factual and conceptual elements. It is a brilliant guess about the solution of
problem.

Kinds of Hypotheses: - There are four kinds of hypotheses.

• Question form

• Declaration statement

• Directional statement

• Null hypothesis or Non-directional

21
 In the present study Null hypotheses are formulated. Null hypothesis a
statement that no relationship exists between two variables. It states that the
outcomes predicated in the declarative form will not occur except by chance.
This is also known as the statistical hypotheses, testing hypotheses. Null
hypothesis is a statistical hypothesis which is testable with the framework of
probability theory. It is also a non directional form of hypotheses. Keeping this
in mind the investigator formulated the following Null hypotheses.

Part –I Category wise

1 Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between self-concept of normal and

physically disabled students of secondary classes.

1 Subsidiary hypotheses:-

I(1) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on ‘physical’ dimension of self-concept.

I(2) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on ‘social’ dimension of self-concept.

I(3) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on ‘temperamental’ dimension of self-concept.

I(4) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on ‘educational’ dimension of self-concept.

I(5) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on ‘moral’ dimension of self-concept.

I (6) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on ‘intellectual’ dimension of self-concept.

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2. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between adjustment of normal and

physically disabled students of secondary classes.

ll Subsidiary hypotheses:-

II(1) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on ‘emotional’ dimension of adjustment.

II(2) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on the ‘social’ dimension of adjustment.

II(3) There is no significant difference between normal and disabled students

on ‘educational’ dimension of adjustment.

Part -2 Genderwise

3. Main hypothesis

There is no significant difference between self-concept of normal

students of secondary classes on the basis of gender.

lll. Subsidiary hypotheses:-

III(1) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on

‘physical’ dimension of self-concept.

III(2) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on

‘social’ dimension of self-concept.

III(3) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on

‘temperamental’ dimension of self-concept.

III(4) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on

‘educational’ dimension of self-concept.

III(5) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on

‘moral’ dimension of self-concept.

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III(6) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on
‘intellectual’ dimension of self-concept.

4. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between self-concept of physically

disabled secondary classes students on the basis of gender.

1V Subsidiary hypotheses:-

IV(1) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘physical’ dimension of self-concept.

IV(2) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘social’ dimension of self-concept.

IV(3) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘temperamental’ dimension of self-concept.

IV(4) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘educational’ dimension of self-concept.

IV(5) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘moral’ dimension of self-concept.

IV(6) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘intellectual’ dimension of self-concept.

5. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between adjustment of normal students

of secondary classes on the basis of gender.

V Subsidiary hypotheses:-

V(1) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on

‘emotional’ dimension of adjustment.

V(2) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on

‘social’ dimension of adjustment.

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V (3) There is no significant difference between normal boys and girls on
‘educational’ dimension of adjustment.

6. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between adjustment of physically

disabled students of secondary classes on the basis of gender.

Vl Subsidiary hypotheses:-

Vl(1) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘emotional’ dimension of adjustment.

Vl(2) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘social’ dimension of adjustment.

Vl(3) There is no significant difference between disabled boys and girls on

‘educational’ dimension of adjustment.

Part-3 Locale wise

7. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between self-concept of normal and

physically disabled boys on the basis of locale.

Vll Subsidiary hypotheses:-

Vll(1) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

boys on ‘physical’ dimension of self-concept.

Vll(2) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

boys on ‘social’ dimension of self-concept.

Vll(3) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

boys on ‘temperamental’ dimension of self-concept.

Vll(4) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

boys on ‘educational’ dimension of self-concept.

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Vll(5) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled
boys on ‘moral’ dimension of self-concept.

Vll(6) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

boys on ‘intellectual’ dimension of self-concept.

8. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between self-concept of normal and

physically disabled girls on the basis of locale.

Vlll Subsidiary hypotheses:-

Vlll(1) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

girls on ‘physical’ dimension of self-concept.

Vlll(2) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

girls on ‘social’ dimension of self-concept.

Vlll(3) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

girls on ‘temperamental’ dimension of self-concept.

Vlll(4) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

girls on ‘educational’ dimension of self-concept.

Vlll(5) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

girls on ‘moral’ dimension of self-concept.

Vlll(6) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

girls on ‘intellectual’ dimension of self-concept.

9. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between self-concept of normal and

physically disabled boys on the basis of locale.

lX Subsidiary hypotheses:-

lX(1) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

boys on ‘physical’ dimension of self-concept.

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lX(2) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled
boys on ‘social’ dimension of self-concept.

lX(3) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

boys on ‘temperamental’ dimension of self-concept.

lX(4) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

boys on ‘educational’ dimension of self-concept.

lX(5) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled boys
on ‘moral’ dimension of self-concept.

lX(6) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

boys on ‘intellectual’ dimension of self-concept.

10. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between self-concept of normal and

physically disabled girls on the basis of locale.

X Subsidiary hypotheses:-

X(1) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘physical’ dimension of self-concept.

X(2) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘social’ dimension of self-concept.

X(3) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘temperamental’ dimension of self-concept.

X(4) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘educational’ dimension of self-concept.

X(5) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘moral’ dimension of self-concept.

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X(6) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled
girls on ‘intellectual’ dimension of self-concept.

11. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between adjustment of normal and

physically disabled boys on the basis of locale.

Xl Subsidiary hypotheses:-

Xl(1) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

boys on ‘emotional’ dimension of adjustment.

Xl(2) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

boys on ‘social’ dimension of adjustment.

Xl(3) There is no significant difference between urban normal and disabled

boys on ‘educational’ dimension of adjustment.

12. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between adjustment of normal and

physically disabled girls on the basis of locale.

Xll Subsidiary hypotheses:-

Xll(1) There is no significant difference between urban normal and

disabled girls on ‘emotional’ dimension of adjustment.

Xll (2) There is no significant difference between urban normal and

disabled girls on ‘social’ dimension of adjustment.

Xll (3) There is no significant difference between urban normal and

disabled girls on ‘educational’ dimension of adjustment.

13. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between adjustment of normal and

physically disabled boys on the basis of locale.

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Xlll Subsidiary hypotheses:-

Xlll(1) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

boys on ‘emotional’ dimension of adjustment.

Xlll(2) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

boys on ‘social’ dimension of adjustment.

Xlll(3) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘educational’ dimension of adjustment.

14. Main hypothesis:-

There is no significant difference between adjustment of normal and

physically disabled girls on the basis of locale.

XlV Subsidiary hypotheses:-

XlV(1) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘emotional’ dimension of adjustment.

XlV(2) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘social’ dimension of adjustment.

XlV(3) There is no significant difference between rural normal and disabled

girls on ‘educational’ dimension of adjustment.

1.15 Technical Terms Defined

Self-Concept: - “The self-concept is the individual’s way of looking at

himself. It also signifies his/her way of thinking, feeling and behaving”.

In the present study the self-concept has been studied on the basis of
self-concept questionnaire constructed by Dr. R.K. Saraswat. The self-concept
questionnaire has six dimensions and they are as follows :

• Physical

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• Social

• Temperamental

• Educational

• Moral

• Intellectual

Adjustment: - “An individual’s adjustment can be defined as

satisfactory relation of an organism to its environment”.

An adjustment has been studied on the basis of adjustment inventory for

school students (AISS) by Dr. A.K.P Singh and Dr. R.P. Singh.

As per AISS inventory adjustment is three dimensional. They are as

follows :

• Emotional

• Social

• Educational adjustment

Normal Children: - Normal children are those who are able to do

physical and mental activities according to their age and will.

Physically disabled children: - Physically disabled children are those

having physical deformities in any part of the body with limited performances.
The disabled children those who are caused by musculoskeletal conditions
(clubfoot, missing or shortened limb) and Osteomyelitis children with bacterial
infection of arms and legs. Physically disabled students who are selected in the
present study studying with normal children in the same class.

Gender: - Gender means boys and girls students.

Locale: -Locale means urban and rural area. In the present study, the
schools are selected from five districts from two divisions i.e Rohtak and
Gurgaon of Haryana state which are situated in urban and rural area.

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1.16 Delimitations of the study:-

• The schools are selected from only two divisions of Haryana state i.e
Rohtak and Gurgaon. Out of them five districts Gurgaon, Jhajjar,
Rewari, Rohtak and Mahendergarh are selected.

• Both types of thirty five schools are selected i.e Govt. and Private
schools. Only recognized state board private schools are selected. These
schools are Hindi and English medium.

• Those physically disabled students are not selected in the study who are
caused by Spina bifida and cerebral palsy.

• Students are selected from IX and X classes in integrated form

31