A Study of Learned Helplessness and Irrational Beliefs among Boys and Girls College Students

Abstract

The present study investigates the levels of learned helplessness and irrational beliefs among male and female college students, with a focus on gender-based differences and the correlation between the two variables. Drawing upon Seligman’s (1975) theory of learned helplessness and Ellis’s (1962) Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy framework, the research aims to understand how these psychological constructs influence students’ emotional and academic functioning. A sample of 100 college students (50 males and 50 females) aged 18 to 24 from Kolhapur, Maharashtra, was selected using a non-probability random sampling method. The Learned Helplessness Scale (Srivastava & Patro, 2006) and the Personal Belief Inventory (Hartman, 1968) were used as primary assessment tools. The data were analyzed using t-tests and Pearson product-moment correlation. The findings revealed that female students scored significantly higher than males on both learned helplessness and irrational beliefs. Furthermore, a significant negative correlation was observed between learned helplessness and irrational beliefs. These findings highlight the need for gender-sensitive psychological interventions and suggest that cognitive restructuring and resilience-building programs may help mitigate the impact of these maladaptive patterns on students’ well-being and academic success.