Intelligence and social competence in university adaptation

Abstract

This research paper concerns the influence of intelligence and social skills on the academic adjustment to university. Social demographic data was compiled based on gender, age, social class, and the type of teaching institution. A total of 393 university students took part in this survey, including 167 students under 20 years of age, 101 between 20 and 30, 31 between 31 and 40, and 26 over 40 years of age. Males accounted for 128 of the students, with 55 belonging to social class A, 134 to B, and 94 to classes C and D, and 184 participants attending public institutions. Data collection was performed using the Inventário de Habilidades Sociais, a Questionário de Vivências Acadêmicas (reduced version), and the Raven's test Matrizes Progressivas. The main results achieved presented significant correlations between social skills and academic adjustment, however, no significant results were found between intelligence and academic adaptation.