The aim of this study was to examine the relationship of intrapersonal and environmental factors with emotional problems of Moroccan-Dutch, Turkish-Dutch and native Dutch youth. The research sample...Show moreThe aim of this study was to examine the relationship of intrapersonal and environmental factors with emotional problems of Moroccan-Dutch, Turkish-Dutch and native Dutch youth. The research sample consisted of 181 Moroccan-Dutch students, 149 Turkish-Dutch students and 211 native Dutch students in the age of 12 to 18 years. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to assess whether the students had emotional problems. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was used to measure self-esteem and the Family Affluence Scale to measure the socio-economic status. The results show that emotional problems are most frequently reported by girls, except for Moroccan-Dutch students in which no difference is found between boys and girls. There was no difference in emotional problem between the younger group (12 to 14 year) and the older group (15 to 18 year). In general, students with low self-esteem seem to experience more emotional problems. Furthermore the results show that there are ethnic differences in the correlation between the socio- economic status and emotional problems. For Turkish-Dutch and native Dutch students the results show that a high socio-economic status correlates with less emotional problems. On the other side the results for Moroccan-Dutch students show that a high socio-economic status correlates with more emotional problems. For follow-up research it’s interesting to examine multiple intrapersonal and environmental factors in relation to emotional problems. This insight will help professionals in adjusting their methods more specifically to risk factors for emotional problems in Moroccan-Dutch, Turkish-Dutch and native Dutch youth.Show less
