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Unit 8: Personal and Group Guidance: Concept, Aims and Methods

Personal Problems Notes
Personal guidance is needed in case of personal problems. It aims at social and emotional well-
being of the pupils. Hence, its need is rooted in the emotional distrubance or emotional imbalance
of the pupils. Just as the focus of educational problems and educational guidance is the matters
related to students education, the focus of vocational problems and vocational guidance is the matters
related to individual’s vocation, the focus of personal problems and personal guidance is the matters
related to his person, his inner life and own behaviours. These ‘problems particularly pertain to his
behaviours which are unwanted and undesirable from the point of view of his adjustment in any
field, his home, school, health, social, etc. The causes of maladjustment may be environmental factors
or his own psychology. Growth needs and development tasks are major sources of personal problems.
While the satisfaction of these needs promotes healthy adjustment, their denial and deprivation are
known to be associated with personal and social problems of students. Various kinds of worries,
anxieties, negative altitudes, excessive shyness, excessive nervousness, lack of confidence, excessive
aggressiveness, excessive rudeness, etc. are a few examples of personal problems. These are
considered problems because they interfere with the development of the individual. Individual’s
social development, educational and vocational developments, his personal development all are
affected adversely if they continue with the individual for long. If the problem is of serious nature
and is not tackled immediately it may upset the whole balance of life. Thus, personal guidance may
be defined as helping students with psychological difficulties, conflicts and problems of daily life,
understanding their behaviour and the factors underlying them and understanding the student’s
needs which determine the kind and the nature of the problem. All these form the very basis and
rationale of the personal guidance services.
It was found that somewhat over two-thirds of the student population believe that they have personal
problems with which they should have help of some kind. Large proportion of the student body
was found to be having one or more personal problems. These were problems which were related
to some aspect of personal life. They indicated that either there was something wrong with the
individual’s self-concept or with his ego-functioning.

Researches conducted by Rao (1967), Riddle (1962), Pasricha (1961), have revealted
that Indian students have a large number of problems which trouble them and interere
with their every day life including their academic achievement.

8.2 Aims of Personal Guidance

The nature and purpose of personal guidance will be clearly understood when we take into
consideration the different stages of child education.
Aims of Personal Guidance at Elementary Stage
Personal guidance at the elementary stage can be described keeping in view the basic needs of
children. The childhood period is the period of growth and development. The basic foundations of
physical, intellectual, emotional, social and other types of personality development are laid at this
stage. The following are the aims of personal guidance at this stage:
1. To help the children to form desirable attitudes towards his self, parents teachers, class fellows
and others. Sympathy and affection should be used for achieving this end.
2. To help the pupils to build a good physique. There should be a regular medical check-up.
3. To help in making emotional adjustments.
4. To help in the development of self discipline.

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