Facultad de Medicina · 2025

Level of development of life skills in adolescent students from public schools in the Sabana Centro province

Resumen

Aim: To describe the level of development of life skills in adolescent students from public schools in the Sabana Centro province, Colombia. Methods: This was a descriptive, cross-sectional quantitative study conducted with 116 high school students from four public schools in the Sabana Centro province, aged 14 to 18 years, using convenience sampling. The instrument used was the Life Skills Test, which consists of 10 dimensions and 80 items. Descriptive statistical tests were performed. Results: The highest percentage of students across all 10 life skills dimensions was at the low average level, ranging from 43.1% in the Problem and Conflict Resolution dimension to 61.2% in Critical Thinking. The dimensions with the highest scores were Creative Thinking (42.2%) and Stress Management (36.2%). The skills with the highest percentages at the lowest level were Emotional and Feeling Management (91.4%) and Problem and Conflict Resolution (80.2%). In the analysis by gender, women performed better than men in 7 life skills dimensions. In the Stress Management dimension, the results were the same for men and women, with 18.1% each at the highest level. Men performed better than women in the Effective and Assertive Communication and Emotional and Feeling Management dimensions. Conclusions: The participants' below-average developmental level serves as a wake-up call for all professionals working in the school environment. Strengthening these skills during adolescence, and even in earlier stages of life, fosters protective mechanisms and promotes a healthy life, preventing avoidable risks, illnesses, and premature deaths. Developing these skills requires intersectoral collaboration that facilitates shared social responsibility.