Effects of College Adjustment on Anxiety and Executive Functioning

Abstract

We are examining college adjustment in undergraduate students due to the lack of previous research done in this area. We hypothesized that students displaying higher college adjustment would have an overall higher wellbeing. This may be due to a psychosocial shift in lifestyle, going from being codependent to independent. Twenty-two undergraduate students from Carroll College were given the College Adjustment Questionnaire (CAQ). The questionnaire consisted of 14 items on a five-point Likert scale (i.e. 1=very inaccurate, 5=very accurate). The questionnaire examined feelings about participants’ experience with college; divided into three subscales: academic adjustment, social adjustment, and emotional adjustment. Individuals with low academic adjustment were scored significantly lower scores on the emotional adjustment scale than individuals with high academic adjustment. Additionally, those with low academic adjustment were significantly lower on the social support total than those with high academic adjustment. Those with lower social adjustment scored significantly lower on the delayed memory portion of the RBANS compared to those with high social adjustment. Finally, individuals with lower emotional adjustment scored significantly lower on the physical concerns than those with high emotional adjustment. These findings suggest that those with higher college adjustment are more emotionally, socially and academically stable, congruent with our hypothesis. Keywords: College, Adjustment, Feelings