Self-Esteem, Personal Characteristics and School Performance

Abstract

The prevalence of low self-esteem amongst teenage students appears quite high, with female students being much more affected than male students. This notwithstanding, the girls still manage to produce better results in school than boys, a situation which requires greater attention for enhancement and valorization.

Objective: To analyze the influence of some personal characteristics on self-esteem and the impact of the latter on the school performance of teenage.

Method: Prospective and analytical study, carried out in 2015 on 206 students in a denominational secondary school in Cotonou, using Coppersmith’s self-esteem inventory.

Results: Self-esteem, which is either positive or negative, is influenced by sex, age and other family and environmental factors which globally the feeling of satisfaction or dissatisfaction with life. 38.3% and 61.7% have a positive and negative self-esteem, respectively. 70.9% of the girls have a negative self-esteem as against 49.4% of the boys. However, despite the higher prevalence of negative self-esteem amongst girls, their academic output is still better than that of the boys. Negative self esteem is found to regress with age for girls, while in instead increases with age for boys. 61.7% of students had a negative self-esteem while 70.4% were dissatisfied with life, with a significant correlation between self-esteem and global satisfaction with life.

Conclusion: Although the prevalence of low self-esteem amongst teenage is quite high, girls appear to manage the situation better than boys and produce better results in school, which needs to be harnessed and enhanced.