Comparison of personality traits and academic performance in students under the support of the Imam Khomeini Relief Committee and regular students

Dissertation for Master's Degree in Psychology (M.A)

Trend: Clinical

Abstract

Introduction: This study was conducted with the aim of comparing the personality traits and academic performance of normal students under the cover of the Imam Relief Committee of Dareh Shahr Universities. Cases and methods: This research is descriptive-analytical. The statistical population consists of all regular and covered students. In this study, 189 students (92 patients and 97 normal) were selected from the target population by random sampling method, and data collection was done using Neo questionnaire (long form) and demographic questionnaire, and students' grade point average was used as an index to measure academic performance. Statistical analysis of data was done using descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation coefficient, stepwise regression, T test of independent groups and drawing profiles. Research findings: The results of Pearson's correlation coefficient and stepwise regression show that there is no clear and direct relationship between the 5 scales and 30 subscales of neo personality with the academic performance of the students and normal students, and the results of the t-test of independent groups (P<0.05) show that there is no significant difference between the academic performance of the two groups. In addition, it was found that there is no difference between successful and unsuccessful students in terms of personality traits and there is no significant correlation between gender and academic performance. According to the significant difference in the two neo scales (A and C), it can be said that there is a difference in personality traits between the students who are clients and normal students, but according to the drawn personality profiles, it cannot be said that the clients have more personality problems. Discussion and conclusion: These results can indicate that there is no direct relationship between the personality traits of students (regular students) and their academic performance, or at least it can be said that personality traits are not the only interfering factor in a person's performance and there are various other factors that affect a person's academic performance.

Keywords: NEO test, student, personality profile, academic performance, personality traits

- Introduction

One of the basic necessities of student life, which attention has a direct effect on the growth and development of society, and addressing it is a basic condition for optimal productivity of efficient and educated forces, is the character trait of students. Student life for reasons such as the desire for many social entertainments against the desire to study, the need to progress in lessons against the feeling of inadequacy, the fear of expressing one's personality against the desire to show off, the desire to marry against obstacles, communication with the opposite sex, hatred of the behavior of others against the inability to express one's feelings, and economic problems that prevent the achievement of individual goals; It is considered a special period of life.

Students experience many stresses and pressures during their studies (academic, social and financial stresses). Many of them cope with these pressures successfully, but some become overwhelmed and desperate. Because emotional and behavioral disorders usually have negative effects on students' academic performance or social interactions. Most of the stresses that students experience are pressures related to the transition stage, which means that more or less all people experience these pressures during the transition from adolescence to youth. A person accepts new roles and takes on new tasks. Of course, in the case of students, roles and assignments can be a bit more complicated. Society, family and university have special expectations from students. Most students live far from their families and are constantly evaluated. Suddenly separating from the familiar environment of family and circle of friends and entering a completely different environment, along with the formation of completely new expectations, puts extra pressure on students. It is also necessary to mention that many major mental illnesses often appear for the first time in the third decade of life. As a result, the appearance of symptoms in a particular student can be considered more than a natural reaction to a developmental transition stage and the appearance of the first signs and symptoms of a serious psychological problem.

Apart from IQ, characteristics such as gender, age, past experiences, personality type, learning and cognitive styles, interests and motivations have shown a significant interaction with academic success. One of the important characteristics of learners is their personality (Tafal Bardbar 2013).

Conceptually, personality trait refers to the ways a person chooses to face new issues. These characteristics are usually fixed and unchangeable. In general, in today's psychology, there are different views on personality, one of which is relatively accepted by experts is the 5-factor theory of personality (Tabae Bardbar 2011).

Research in the field of personality shows that the ability to organize thoughts and manage time is necessary for any learning situation (Dalanger 1991).

Personality is made up of special thought, emotional and behavioral patterns that It distinguishes each person from other people. Personality has an internal source and remains almost stable throughout life. Unlike other personality theories such as psychoanalytic and humanistic theories, the theory of personality traits focuses on the differences between people. The combination and interaction of different characteristics that make up a person's personality is unique to each person. The theory of personality traits focuses on determining and measuring these individual personality traits.

The research literature shows that the explanation of the variability of students' academic performance scores by emphasizing on measures independent of ability, such as personality traits, has occupied a considerable amount of studies. In other words, the limited explanation of the variability of students' academic results by emphasizing cognitive measures made researchers more aware of the importance of the role of variables independent of ability. A wide range of observations from researches show that personality traits, independent and distinct from learners' cognitive abilities, are involved in predicting their academic performance (Blakel 1996). Since these characteristics form the basis of people's behavioral system, addressing this category can clarify certain aspects of people's performance in different fields. One of the clear examples of this issue is the effect of personality traits of people on their academic performance (Maman Posh 2013).

Educational failure is one of the important problems of the education system of third world countries and Iran, and every year more than half of the millions of students who go to universities in the world drop out, are placed on probation or cannot finish their studies on time (Najimi 2014).

From the drop in academic performance, "the reduction of students' academic performance from a satisfactory level to an undesirable level". The results of the conducted studies show the role of factors such as teachers' teaching method, student's personal characteristics such as interest in the field of study and self-sufficiency, as well as life and academic problems such as psychological problems, living in the dormitory, employment and diploma average on students' academic failure. On the other hand, the effect of depression along with symptoms of deep unhappiness, poor mental health, low self-esteem, fatigue, decreased energy, and decreased social work academic performance on students' academic progress has been reported (Ezdi 1384).

Students have differences in terms of personality, attitudes, emotional reactions, learning styles, cognitive styles, etc. 1386).

Studies conducted by Beck[1] and colleagues (1988) state that a high range of depression is seen in student groups, such that 78% of students suffer from some symptoms of depression and 46% suffer from severe depression. Also, the results of the studies conducted by Rafati et al. (2004) on the students of Shiraz Nursing School indicate 59.8% of depression in different degrees. In this regard, Rudbari (2009) in a report states that the academic progress of medical students in basic sciences has a statistical relationship with the factors of marriage, gender, entrance quota, living in a dormitory, being native or non-native, so that unmarried, younger students and the quota of regions were more successful. The results of the research conducted by Hashemi and Kamkar (2010) in Yasuj University also show that 35.5% of students have depression, and lack of interest in the field of study, being non-native, and not participating in extracurricular activities are considered to be effective factors in students' depression.