Investigation of the Intra-Family Communication and Social Adjustment of Middle School Students

The main aim of the research has been identified as a study of the intra-family communication and social adjustment of secondary school students. The study group of the research consisted of 265 students (Female=147, Male=118) who attended at secondary schools in Rize city center. Intra Family Relationship Assessment Scale and Personal Information Form were used to gather data, and an interview form was used in order to determine the students’ levels of adjustment. A mixed method which embraced both qualitative and quantitative methods was used in the research. The qualitative data of the research was analyzed by t test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), the quantitative data of the research was analyzed by the descriptive analysis technique. According to the results obtained from the research, male students perceive the relationships in their families as more supportive than female students, and female students perceive the relationships in their family members as more restrictive than male students. As a result of the research, the intra-family communication of the participants did not show any significant difference according to parents’ educational backgrounds and parental coexistence status. However, it showed as statistically significant difference in the aspects of intra family communication of secondary schools as the case of getting an achievement title. As a result of the interviews, it was found that all students with low, medium and high social adjustment perceived the concept of family as positive. In order to improve the family relations, the result of the research shows that the students with low level of social adjustment featured responsibilities in the family, students with moderate level emphasized self-devotion and respect, and students who have high level of social adjustment drew the attention to theme of respect. In addition, in order to improve intra family relations, it was determined that students with low level featured taking risks, moderate level students emphasized self-devotion and respect and students with high level of adjustment draw attention to the theme of respect. It was stated that students with low and moderate levels of adjustment were more likely to have family members experiencing disagreement; and those with high levels of adaptation were less likely to have. According to these results, the higher the level of social adjustment, the lower the disagreements among the family members.

Keywords

Family, intrafamily relations, social adjustment, secondary school students