Labor and Mental Health: Social Determinants Effecting Mental Health of Working Schooled and Non-Schooled Adolescents

The complex socio-cultural attribution and economics exploitation make Pakistan an especial ground for assessing mental health problems in working children. Younger children who is working and acquiring knowledge at the same time begs a need for current survey to reconnoiter the effects of social determinants on mental health of working schooled and non-schooled children. The purposive sampling technique was used to select the sample comprised of 120 adolescents in equal dissemination with the age range of 12 to 18 years (M=15.11, SD=1.87). Urdu Translated version of Mental Health Inventory (MHI-38) (khan, Hanif & Tariq, 2015) was used along with detailed demographic sheet and informed consent. From the interpretation of statistical analysis, the results signified that the psychological wellbeing of working schooled children was positively associated with the education level, type of occupation, younger working age and more income (r=.87**, r=.20* r=.29**, r=.22*, p<.01, p<.001) while psychological distress was accompanied with extensive working hours, larger family size and low socioeconomic status (r=.54 r=.20*, r=.32**, p<.01, p<.001). Conversely, psychological wellbeing of working non-schooled children was positively associated with less working hours and more working experience while exhibited higher score on psychological distress (r=.81** p<.01). Result also showed social determinants as prominent predictors of mental health with 81% of variance in psychological wellbeing and 80% of variance in psychological distress. This study will provide practical ways to address the psychological and behavioral problems incorporating in late adolescents.