An Analytical Study of the Social Behaviour of Students Studying at the Undergraduate Level

Abstract

Students at the undergraduate level are progressing from adolescence towards young adulthood. During this stage, they develop self-reliance, social identity, decision-making ability, and independent thinking. At this level, family, friends, peers, teachers, the college environment, and modern social communication media are important factors influencing students’ social behaviour. Since students from diverse social, economic, cultural, rural, and urban backgrounds interact with one another in colleges, they gain a variety of social experiences. Group work, discussions, debates, cultural programmes, sports, and other co-curricular activities help develop cooperation, participation, leadership, tolerance, and a sense of social responsibility among students. In the present digital era, social communication media have further broadened students’ social behaviour. Through these media, students exchange ideas and maintain social contacts; however, excessive use may affect direct social interaction. In this context, a scientific study of students’ social behaviour was considered necessary. The present study considered social behaviour as the major variable and compared the social behaviour of male and female students as well as rural and urban students. For the study, 500 undergraduate students studying in colleges of Kanpur district were selected through the stratified random sampling method. The sample consisted of 250 male students and 250 female students, along with 250 rural and 250 urban students. For measuring social behaviour, the Social Behaviour Scale developed by Dr. Ashok Kumar Singh, Irigala, and Dr. Lawrence Kharluni was used. Two null hypotheses were formulated in the study. The first was related to the absence of a significant difference in social behaviour between male and female students, while the second concerned the absence of a significant difference in social behaviour between rural and urban students. The obtained data were analysed on the basis of mean, standard deviation, and critical ratio. The findings of the study revealed that there was no statistically significant difference in social behaviour between undergraduate male and female students and between rural and urban students. This indicates that the present higher education system, college environment, equal educational opportunities, co-curricular activities, group experiences, and modern communication media may play a similar role in the development of students’ social behaviour. Social behaviour is not determined solely by gender or rural–urban background; rather, family environment, educational experiences, peer groups, social interactions, personal experiences, and the college environment also play important roles. The study further indicates that social tendencies such as cooperation, social participation, communication, adjustment, and mutual respect can develop equally among students of both groups. Therefore, for the balanced development of students’ personalities, it would be useful for colleges to promote cooperative learning, group work, cultural and social activities, guidance, and personality development programmes. Thus, the present study provides a useful basis for understanding the status of social behaviour among undergraduate students and for creating an appropriate educational environment conducive to their healthy social development.