, Amanollah Soltani *2
, Mitra Kamyabi2
, Najmeh Hajipour Abaei2
Abstract
Background & Objectives: Social responsibility is a fundamental aspect of individual and social development, and it becomes particularly important during adolescence. In this stage, adolescents gradually assume roles and responsibilities toward society and others, which plays a key role in the formation of their social identity. Female students face particular challenges in fostering social responsibility due to the social and cultural roles they play in their communities. These challenges can be due to environmental, cultural, social, and psychological influences. Social responsibility leads to more positive interactions and more effective cooperation in society. However, irrational beliefs, which typically arise from unrealistic or incorrect expectations, can negatively affect social responsibility and hinder the emergence of responsible behaviors. In this context, perfectionism is recognized as a mediating variable, which, when combined with irrational beliefs, can lead to psychological pressure, anxiety, and a decrease in social responsibility. Therefore, the present study aimed to model the structural equation of social responsibility through irrational beliefs, with perfectionism as a mediating variable, among female students in the first course of high school.
Methods: This descriptive correlational study, based on structural equation modeling (SEM), involved all female secondary high school students in Kerman City, Iran (8150 in the academic year 2023–2024). A total of 560 students were selected through a multistage cluster sampling design. The inclusion criteria for participants were being female secondary high school students currently enrolled in Kerman, willingness to participate in the research, and having no physical or mental health issues (based on the available information in their academic records). The exclusion criterion was a lack of cooperation in the study. After selecting the sample group, study questionnaires were distributed among the students in accordance with the ethical principles of research as follows: informed consent of the subjects to participate in the research, explanation of how to answer the questions and the necessity of honest cooperation, good behavior and confidentiality of information, withdrawal from the research if unwilling to cooperate, and avoidance of data distortion and data fabrication. After the participants were familiarized with the objectives of the research, assured of the confidentiality of their personal information, and provided their consent, the subjects entered the research. Data were collected using the Students' Responsibility Questionnaire (Fraser, 1998), the Perfectionism Questionnaire (Terry–Short et al., 1995), and the Irrational Belief Test (Jones, 1969). Data analysis was performed using the Pearson correlation coefficient and structural equation modeling (SEM) in SPSS version 25 and AMOS version 24 software at a significance level of 0.05. In this regard, descriptive statistical indicators, including mean and standard deviation, skewness, kurtosis, and normality assumption, were first calculated using the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test as a research assumption.
Results: Results showed a significant relationship between irrational beliefs and perfectionism (β=0.60, p<0.001). There was also a significant relationship between perfectionism and social responsibility (β = –0.34, p < 0.001). A significant relationship was finally found between irrational beliefs and social responsibility (β=–0.23, p=0.003), and perfectionism mediated the relationship between irrational beliefs and social responsibility (β=0.47, p<0.001). The goodness–of–fit indices indicated a good fit of the model (χ2/df=4.43, GFI=0.926, IFI=0.949, CFI=0.949, RMSEA=0.078).
Conclusion: According to the findings, irrational beliefs, both directly and indirectly (through perfectionism), affect the social responsibility of female students. Therefore, it is suggested that educational and counseling programs be implemented in schools to reduce irrational beliefs and manage negative perfectionism, thereby improving students' social responsibility.
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