Impact of Positive and Negative Experience on Life Satisfaction in High School Students

The last two decades were characterized by increasing pressure to improve student achievements through high academic accountability emphasis. As a result, curriculum goals have become more academic and skill-oriented, and social and emotional components of educational programs have taken the back seat to increasingly rigorous academic demands (Hargreaves 2003). Subjective well-being, defined as consisting of a cognitive component (life satisfaction appraisals), and an affective component (the presence of positive affect and the absence of negative emotional experiences) (Deiner 2000), is particularly important in the context of school as studies have demonstrated a positive association between students levels of subjective well-being and their academic functioning, social competence, physical health, achievements, and behavioral engagement in school (Antaramian et al.2010). Additional studies suggest that higher levels of subjective well-being among schoolchildren correlate with better relationships with parents, teachers, and peers (Gilman and Huebner 2006). The present study was taken up to study the positive and negative experiences of children and its impact on life satisfaction. Sample of 100 school children of 9 th and 10 th classes in Hyderabad were selected. Students Life Satisfaction Scale (Huebner, 1991) and Scale of Positive and Negative Experience (SPANE) by Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener, January 2009 were administered to students. The scales were scored and statistically analyzed and the results interpreted.