© Journal of the Indian Academy of Applied Psychology

July 2014, Vol.40, No.2, 221-227.

Personality Factors as Correlates of Emotional Maturity among

Adolescents
Sandeep Kumar Mandeep Sharma Rajbir Singh
M.D.University, Rohtak Sirsa, Haryana M.D.University, Rohtak
Emotions play an important role in the life of an individual and one requires a higher
emotional maturity to lead an effective life. We need to study the emotional aspects
of adolescents as they go on with their normal lives. The current study was planned
to analyse the relationship between emotional maturity and personality factors. The
sample consists of 110 adolescents studying in class XI and XII taken from a private
school. Further, the association of emotional maturity with personality dimensions of
these adolescents was analyzed. ‘Emotional maturity scale’ was administered on the
selected sample to assess emotional maturity and ‘NEO- FFI (Form S)’, was used for
measuring various personality dimensions of these adolescents. . The results showed
that (i) Neuroticism has a significant negative correlation with emotional maturity
(ii) Agreeableness and Conscientiousness have significant positive correlation with
emotional maturity, (iii) Openness and Extroversion doesn’t show any significant relation
with emotional maturity and (iv) Stepwise regression analysis revealed two predictors
of emotional maturity i.e. Agreeableness and Neuroticism, jointly account for 19% of
variance in emotional maturity.
Keywords: Emotional Maturity, Neuroticism, Agreeableness, Openness, Adolescents.

In the present world, adolescents, in addition to individual under observation. Botcheva et al.
daily rigors of life, are facing enhanced difficulties (2002) stated that adolescents reported decline
due to fierce competition, peer pressure, parental in optimism, relative stability of depression and
expectations, and so on. These difficulties are problem behavior because of the improvement
giving rise to many psychosomatic problems in social maturity. The psychosocial context
such as anxiety, tensions, frustrations and of adolescents is markedly different to that
emotional upsets in day to day life. Emotions of children and adults. Relationships with
are great motivating forces throughout the span peers, family and society go through distinct
of human life; affecting aspirations, actions changes during this time. Adolescents begin
and thoughts of an individual. Adolescence is to assert more autonomous control over their
a period when the behavior getting influenced decisions, emotions and actions, and start to
highly by the emotions. A healthy emotional disengage from parental control. At the same
development leads to emotional maturity. time, the school context involves an intense
Emotional maturity can be understood in terms socialization process during which adolescents
of ability of self-control which, in turn, is a result become increasingly aware of the perspectives
of thinking and learning. of classmates, teachers and other societal
Emotional maturity and social maturity are influences (Berzonsky & Adams, 2003). It can be
vital for attaining success and happiness in assumed that while emotional maturity enables
life. Social maturity is a term commonly used adolescents to make better decisions for life,
in two ways with reference to the behavior that good social adjustments determine, to a large
conforms to the standards and expectations of extent, his social attitude throughout the adult
the adults and secondly, with reference to the years. In other words, it can be said that at the
behavior that is appropriate to the age of the end of the adolescent period, the adolescent is
222 Sandeep Kumar, Mandeep Sharma and Rajbir Singh

expected to be socially and emotionally mature. major factor especially as a predictor of success
A person can be called emotionally mature if in essay tests among medical students.
he is able to display his emotions in appropriate In the Indian context, a number of studies
degree with reasonable control (Manoharan and have explained the relationship between
Doss, 2007). According to Menninger (1999), emotional maturity and other related variables
“Emotional maturity includes the ability to deal i.e. physical health, academic achievement and
constructively with reality”. Singh (1990) stated mental health. In a recent study by Kohli and
that Emotional maturity is not only the effective Malhotra (2008), it was found that there was a
determinant of a personality pattern but also significant correlation between Type A behavior
helps to control the growth of an adolescent’s pattern and total maturity scores in patients
development. A person who is able to keep his indicating emotional immaturity as compared to
emotions under control, to brook delay and to healthy controls and also CHD (Chronic Heart
suffer without self-pity might still be emotionally Disease) patients had more emotional instability,
stunned. Skinner (2001) defined emotional emotional regression, personality disintegration
maturity as “the degree to which the person has and lack of independence as compared to
realized his potentials for richness of living and healthy controls. Singh (2010) in his doctoral
has developed his capacity to enjoy things, to dissertation found that emotional maturity
relate himself to others, to love and to laugh, his showed no significant relationship with academic
capacity for whole heartedness. Thus, emotional achievement of high school girls and the total
maturity, in short, may also be defined as the sample. In a recent Indian study by Singh (2013),
ability of the person to assess a situation or it was concluded that there exist a significant
relationship and to act according to what is positive correlation between emotional maturity
best for oneself and for the other person in the and self-esteem; emotional maturity and mental
relationship. health. So, the study of emotional maturity is now
According to Walter (1976) emotional gaining recognition.
maturity is a process in which the personality Adolescence introduces a period of significant
is continuously striving for greater sense of transition in family and social role expectations,
emotional health, both intra-psychically and coupled with increases in the range and intimacy
intra personally. Nelson (2005) in his research or social relationship (Buhrmester & Furman,
related to “Emotional Intelligence and Emotional 1987; Selman, 1980). During early adolescence,
Maturity” says that if we want our children to be the emergence of autonomy is an important
emotionally mature, we must focus on their early developmental task (Allen, Joseph, Stuart,
childhood education, which affects certain level Kathy & Thomas, 1994). Adolescence is the
of social and emotional maturity. stage where extreme emotions are expressed
A study by Hiremani, Khadi, Gaonkar and or experienced with the intensity of adulthood
Katarki (1994) indicated that destitute girls but devoid of adult perspective. At no stage this
were emotionally unstable due to socio-cultural emotional energy is as strong and dangerous
and parental deprivation. Kumar (2012) found as in adolescence. It is very difficult for an
that there is no significant difference between adolescent to exercise control over his emotions.
the Emotional Maturity and Life Satisfaction of The sudden functioning of sexual glands and
male and female college students of Education. tremendous increase in physical energy makes
In another study by Jha (2002), it was found him restless. Moreover, adolescents are not
that self-confidence and emotional maturity consistent in their emotions. Emotions during
were positively associated with vigilant style this stage fluctuate very frequently and quickly.
of decision making in case of executives. It makes them moody. Sometimes, they are very
Mankad (1999) observed that the personality of happy and at another time they are extremely
emotionally mature and immature adolescents sad and all this happens in a very short time.
differs significantly. Emotional maturity was a So there is too much uncertainty in the nature
Personality Factors 223

of their emotional states. adolescents.

Aleem and Sheema (2005) have reported a 2. To explore whether personality factors
significant difference between the mean scores significantly predict emotional maturity.
of male and female students on emotional In the present research the following
stability and further found that female students hypotheses were proposed:
are emotionally less stable than male students.
On the other hand, in a study by Sharma (2008) 1. There would be a significant association
girls were reported to be emotionally more between personality factors and emotional
mature than boys. Nanda and Asha (2005) maturity.
has reported that familial variable, family type 2. Some personality factors would significantly
and personal variable, age had an impact on predict emotional maturity.
emotional maturity of urban adolescent girls. In
Method
relation to emotional maturity and intelligence,
Anju (2000) investigated that there exists Sample:
a positive and significant relation between The sample for the study consisted of 110
emotional maturity and intelligence of students students studying in class XI and XII taken from
which implies that the more intelligent the person a private school of Rohtak district from Haryana,
is, the more emotionally mature he is. India. The age range of the subjects varied
A study by McNairs (2004) found that from 16 to 18 years. Both male and female
students with a high level of dedication, participants (54 males & 56 females) were taken
commitment, desire and emotional maturity can in the sample.
make effective learning and learn as much as Tools used:
they want. A small number of studies emphasize
Emotional maturity scale (Singh & Bhargava,
on whether criminals differ from the general
1991). It was used to assess emotional maturity
population in emotional maturity. In another
of adolescents. The scale has a total of 48
study, Stephen (2002) examined the neuroticism
items under five different categories: Emotional
and emotional maturity among college female
Instability, Emotional Regression, Emotional
students and found that the individuals who
Maladjustment, Personality Disintegration and
scored higher neuroticism were having a low
Lack of Independence. EMS is a five point
level of emotional maturity.
standardized scale and items of the scale are
Emotional maturity is not only the effective in question form. The scale was standardized
determinant of personality pattern but it also for adolescents and the interpretation of scores
helps to control the growth of adolescent’s were established as (50-80)-Extremely stable,
development. Considering adolescence stage (81-88)-Moderately stable, (89-106)-Unstable,
as a crucial stage for emotional development and (107-240)-Extremely unstable. Reliability of
because of number of changes that are taking the scale was determined by test retest reliability
place in adolescents, and reviewing the above which was 0.75 and internal consistency for
findings that the role of various personality various factors ranged from .42-.86.
factors on emotional maturity of adolescents is
The NEO-FFI was developed and validated
not unidirectional, present study was conducted
by Costa and McCrae (1989). NEO-FFI consists
to examine the relationship between personality
of only 60 items and takes 10 to 15 minutes to
factors and emotional maturity in adolescents
complete. It is a concise measure of five broad
as well as it focused on predictors of emotional
maturity. dimensions of personality (Costa & McCrae
1992).The five dimensions are- Neuroticism
Objectives: (N), Extraversion (E), Openness (O) and
1. To study the relationship of five personality Agreeableness (A) and Conscientiousness (C).
factors with emotional maturity among The NEO-FFI is available in two versions: Form
224 Sandeep Kumar, Mandeep Sharma and Rajbir Singh

S is for self-reports, and Form R is for observer, and emotional maturity; and to find out the
peer, or significant other ratings. Form S items predictors of emotional maturity. Correlation
parallel those in Form R but are written in the matrix shows that there is significant relationship
third person. The NEO-FFI can be administered between personality and emotional maturity
to men and women of all ages, most appropriately dimensions. The significant correlations between
between 16 and 65 years. The alphas across personality factors and measures of emotional
the five subscales for present study are .74 maturity have range between -.28 and .38.
for Neuroticism, .61 for Extraversion, .50 for
Stepwise regression analysis was applied
Openness to Experience, .62 for Agreeableness, to the data as the objective of the study was
and .77 for Conscientiousness. to obtain the predictors of emotional maturity
Procedure: among adolescents. The analysis revealed that
The participants were contacted individually two significant predictors of emotional maturity
and requested to co-operate for the testing with an overall multiple R of .47.
schedule. Good rapport was established with Correlation reveals that Neuroticism is
participants and they were convinced that negatively associated with emotional maturity.
the result and the information they will give Thus, results show that neuroticism personality
would be kept confidential and will be used for dimension and emotional maturity are negatively
research purpose only. The testing schedule and significantly related (Table 1). This suggests
was conducted by administering the Emotional that there is likelihood that emotionally labile
Maturity Scale (EMS). It was used to check shall have low emotional maturity. The result
the level of Emotional Maturity of the subjects. obtained from this study shows that individuals
Later on, NEO-FFI was administered to assess who scored high on neuroticism have low level of
various personality dimensions of the subjects. emotional maturity (Stephen, 2002). Regression
In order to collect the data, the scales were analysis (Table 2) revealed, Neuroticism a potent
administered individually. Responses on both predictor which entered at step two and multiple
emotional maturity scale and on NEO-FFI from R is .43. Results indicate that 4.6% of variance
both genders were taken. Data of all the subjects in the criterion variable i.e. emotional maturity
was collected by applying the same procedure is explained or accounted by Neuroticism
and were scored as per the scoring patterns personality dimension. The beta value showed
prescribed by their authors and/or manuals. that neuroticism has a significant negative
Results and Discussion relationship with criterion variable.

The present study was conducted to find out Correlation also reveals that Agreeableness
the correlation between five factors of personality showed a positive and significant relationship

Table 1. Intercorrelations between five factors of personality and measures of emotional maturity
(N=110).

Personality Neuroticism Extroversion Openness Agreeableness conscientiousness

Emotional -.28** .032 -.032 .38** .27*

maturity
**p< .01 *p<.05
Table 2 Summary of Stepwise Regressive Analysis Dependent Variable: Emotional Maturity
Step Predictors Multiple R R2 R2 Change Β F p<
1 Agreeableness .38 .141 .141 .38 16.02 .001
2 Neuroticism .43 .186 .046 -.22 5.43 .001
Personality Factors 225

with emotional maturity in current study (Table among youths may fit within the framework
1). The results can also be interpreted in provided by the five factor model of personality
other way i.e. individuals who are high on (Markey, Markey & Tinsley, 2004). Stephen
Agreeableness personality dimension are (2002) found that the individuals who scored
tended to be more emotionally mature and vice- higher neuroticism are having a low level of
versa. From regression analysis, Agreeableness emotional maturity. In Indian context, Sharma,
comes out to be the most pertinent predictor of Sharma and Yadava (2006) who found a
emotional maturity, as it entered the equations negative association between personality
at step one (Table 2). The R value for this factors e.g. extraversion, conscientiousness
variable equals to .38. Results indicate that and emotional stability and dimensions of
“agreeableness” accounts for 14% of variance health. In the current study, there is a significant
in criterion variable (i.e. emotional maturity) relationship between emotional maturity and
among adolescents. The beta value showed personality; and two predictors (agreeableness
that Agreeableness has a positive significant and neuroticism) of emotional maturity come
relationship with emotional maturity. out. So from these results our both hypotheses
From the results it seems clear that have been accepted.
agreeableness and neuroticism have a significant Implications
relationship with emotional maturity and these Findings from the present study are
two variables significantly predict adolescent’s applicable to the selection of employees in
emotional maturity. Both personality factors the institutions where persons required being
(agreeableness and neuroticism) jointly account emotionally mature need to be screened for
for near about 19% (14.1% + 4.6% respectively) low neuroticism and high agreeableness. The
of variance in the criterion variable (i.e. present study would have long term educational
emotional maturity). as well as practical implications. It may help
Further, there is significant and positive teachers and counselors in understanding the
relationship between conscientiousness and relation between personality and emotional
emotional maturity among adolescents (Table maturity and also in identifying emotional
1). Although conscientiousness has a positive immature students. The counselor can have
and significant relationship with emotional deep insight in various areas of emotional
maturity (Table 1) yet it does not comes out as maturity and if required, can identify the causes
a predictor of emotional maturity. We also find of emotional immaturity. The teacher can provide
out that the correlation between extroversion adequate environment in the school by focusing
on early childhood education that will contribute
& openness with emotional maturity is not
to a stronger and more stable personality
significant i.e. neither the extroversion nor the
structure in the adult which may affects certain
openness is related to emotional maturity of
level of social and emotional maturity and can
adolescents (Table 1). A lot of research has
take the help of counselor to guide the parents
been done on relation between emotional to make the students emotionally mature so
maturity and variables like health, academic that they can achieve the maximum from their
achievement and mental health but a few capabilities and strengths. Therefore, different
studies have been published that emphasized ways and practices should be devised inside
the relation between personality and emotional the classroom as well as outside the school to
maturity. The present study was an attempt to foster the desired environment.
study the emotional maturity in relation to big
five personality factors such as Neuroticism, Conclusion
Extrovert, Openness, Agreeableness and From the above obtained results, it is
Conscientiousness. Research in the area very clear that there is significant correlation
of personality and emotional maturity has between emotional maturity and personality
suggested that personality factors identified dimensions. With reference to previous studies,
226 Sandeep Kumar, Mandeep Sharma and Rajbir Singh

the present results are similar in the manner that Englewood Cliffs.NJ: Prentice Hall.
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Openness personality dimensions don’t found to Adjustment of Destitute and Normal Adolescent
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Psychological Risk Factors of Coronary Heart
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Journal of Indian Health Psychology, 1, 67-75. Revised: 01-05-2014
Accepted: 18-05-2014

Sandeep Kumar, Project Fellow, UGC-(SAP-DRS-II), Department of Psychology,

Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak - 124001. Email:- sandeepkumarmdu@gmail.
com
Mandeep Sharma, District Child Protection Officer, Sirsa, Email: mandeeppsy@gmail.
com
Rajbir Singh, PhD, Senior Professor, Dept. of Psychology, Maharshi Dayanand
University, Rohtak - 124001. Email:- rajbirsinghmdu@gmail.com

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