Factors Affecting Mental Health of North Indian Adolescents

The study explored the different factors that affect mental health of adolescents. A total of 1209 adolescents participated of which 591 adolescents responded in English and 618 adolescents responded in Hindi. The participants were given a language choice. About 1089 adolescents were attending school and 120 adolescents were school dropouts. In the current study, original tripartite structure of Hindi-translated Mental Health Continuum Short Form was confirmed. The measurement invariance results indicated that Mental Health Continuum Short Form is a valid scale in English and Hindi languages. Multivariate results indicated age group (early vs. middle vs. late), type of school (government vs. private), place of residence (urban vs. rural), ability to express thoughts and opinion in front of parents, presence of relaxed environment at home and satisfaction with dressing style affected adolescent’s mental health. Adolescents attending school displayed better mental health functioning than drop outs.