Emotional and behavioral difficulties in adolescence: relationship with emotional well-being, affect, and academic performance

Abstract The main purpose of this study was to examine difficulties in behavioral and emotional adjustment and their relationship to subjective well-being, positive and negative affect, and academic performance in a representative sample of nonclinical adolescents. The sample consisted of a total of 1,664 participants (M = 16.12 years, SD = 1.36, range 14-19 years), selected through stratified cluster sampling. The instruments used were the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for Children (PANAS-C), the Personal Wellbeing Index-School Children (PWI-SC), the ad hoc academic performance questionnaire, and the Oviedo Scale of Response Infrequency. In all, 7.7% of the adolescents showed a possible mental health risk. Emotional and behavioral difficulties were negatively correlated with emotional wellbeing and Positive Affect, and positively associated with Negative Affect. In addition, students with poorer academic performance reported greater emotional and behavioral difficulties. These results are consistent with those found in previous studies. They have clear implications, in both health and education, for improving the promotion of emotional wellbeing and the prevention of psychological problems in this population sector.