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A Culture of Judgement and a Crisis of Anxiety Among Adolescents


Authors : Dr. Rinita Jain; Prerana Jain

Volume/Issue : Volume 11 - 2026, Issue 6 - June


Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/3tsrkpfj

Scribd : https://tinyurl.com/5xnyyssn

DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/26jun917

Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.


Abstract : Adolescence is a vulnerable period, where they are prone to emotional vulnerability and are more sensitive to peer evaluations and social judgement. In today's social environment, superficial judgement based on appearance, behaviour, or social image has emerged as a potential contributor to anxiety among adolescents. The present study was to determine the level of anxiety in adolescents, examine their perceptions regarding superficial judgement in social settings, and explore the co-occurrence of anxiety and perceived judgemental social climate. A pilot study was done with a sample of 150 school and college-going adolescents. The study used the Adolescent Anxiety Scale (AAS) developed by Dr. Rinita Jain and Khushboo Pareek, along with a single-item measure assessing whether participants believed that “people should be less judgemental about superficial things.”

Keywords : Adolescent Anxiety, Social Evaluation, Judgemental Climate, Peer Pressure, Mental Health, Study.

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Adolescence is a vulnerable period, where they are prone to emotional vulnerability and are more sensitive to peer evaluations and social judgement. In today's social environment, superficial judgement based on appearance, behaviour, or social image has emerged as a potential contributor to anxiety among adolescents. The present study was to determine the level of anxiety in adolescents, examine their perceptions regarding superficial judgement in social settings, and explore the co-occurrence of anxiety and perceived judgemental social climate. A pilot study was done with a sample of 150 school and college-going adolescents. The study used the Adolescent Anxiety Scale (AAS) developed by Dr. Rinita Jain and Khushboo Pareek, along with a single-item measure assessing whether participants believed that “people should be less judgemental about superficial things.”

Keywords : Adolescent Anxiety, Social Evaluation, Judgemental Climate, Peer Pressure, Mental Health, Study.

Paper Submission Last Date
30 - June - 2026

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