Influence of Traumatic Events on Adolescents’ Self-Esteem A Case Study of Kangui Village in Murang’a County, Kenya
Main Article Content
Abstract
Adolescence is often a time of development, the discovery of one’s true self, the determination of personal values, and the determination of social and vocational direction in life. However, in Kenya, adolescents have shown antisocial behavior. This has been linked to low self-esteem. The focus of this research was to establish the influence of traumatic events on adolescents’ self-esteem in Kangui Village, Murang’a County, Kenya. A descriptive research design was used in the study. The study population consisted of 229 adolescents living in Kangui Village, Murang’a County, at the time of the study. The population was small; hence, census sampling was used. Data for the study were collected using self-administered questionnaires. Self-esteem was measured using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. The reliability of the research instrument was established using Cronbach’s Alpha. All items in the questionnaire had coefficients greater than 0.7. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation analysis, and regression analysis. It was established that the association between traumatic events and self-esteem was negative and statistically significant, as implied by r=-0.403, p-value 0.000. The regression results showed that traumatic events had a negative and statistically significant effect on self-esteem.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
I/We agree to transfer the copyright of this manuscript to the International Journal of Professional Practice (The IJPP) in the event that the manuscript is published in the Journal.
I/We give the undersigned authors of the manuscript have made the following declaration:
(a) That I/We have made substantial contribution during the conception and design, or acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of the data,
(b) That I/We have participated in drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content,
(c) That I/We have read and confirm the content of the manuscript and have agreed to it,
(d) That I/We have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content of the paper,
(e) That I/We give guarantee that the content of the manuscript is original, and has not beenvpublished elsewhere and is not currently being considered for publication by another journal.
References
Acosta-Gonzaga, E. (2023). The effects of self-esteem and academic engagement on university students’ performance. Behavioural Science, 13(4), Article 348. Doi: 10.3390/bs13040348 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/bs13040348
Ainamani, H., Weierstall-Pust, R., Bahati, R., Otwine, A., Tumwesigire, S., & Rukundo, G. (2022). Post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and the associated factors among children and adolescents with a history of maltreatment in Uganda. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 13(1), 2007730. Doi: 10.1080/20008198.2021.2007730 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2021.2007730
Allen, B., & Waterman, H. (2024, April 29). Stages of adolescence. HealthyChildren.org. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/teen/Pages/Stages-of-Adolescence.aspx
Ashfaq, S. (2024). Correlation between stress, self-esteem, and anxiety in young adults. International Journal of Novel Research and Development, 9(7), 1–16. https://share.google/W6UtD0N6p8Nuw8VN8.
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215.
https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191
Bhatt, S. (2020). Importance of self-esteem and self-efficacy for college students. Indian Journal of Community Psychology, 14(2), 404–419. https://share.google/Wx4VpdgyXDvFqAoiZ
Branje, S. (2022). Adolescent identity development in context. Current Opinion in Psychology, 45, 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.11.006 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.11.006
Cherry, K. (2023, December 5). What is self-esteem? Your sense of your personal worth or value. Very well mind https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-self-esteem-2795868#:~:text=Self%2Desteem%20is%20your%20subjective,your%20overall%20quality%20of%20life.
Chu, B., Marwaha, K., Sanvictores, T., Awosika, A., & Ayers, D. (2024). Physiology, stress reduction. Stat Pearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK541120/
Daines, C., Hansen, D., Novilla, M., & Crandall, A. (2021). Effects of positive and negative childhood experiences on adult family health. BMC Public Health, 21(651), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10732-w DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10732-w
Davies, P. T., Parry, L. Q., Bascoe, S. M., Martin, M. J., & Cummings, E. M. (2019). Children's Vulnerability to Interparental Conflict: The Protective Role of Sibling Relationship Quality. Child development, 90(6), 2118–2134. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13078 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13078
Gao, Y., Liu, X., Liu, J., & Wang, H. (2023). The effects of self-criticism and self-compassion on adolescents’ depressive symptoms and non-suicidal self-injury. Psychology Research and Behaviour Management, 16, 3219 – 3230. https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S417258 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S417258
Gu, H., Zhang, P., & Li, J. (2024). The effect of self-esteem on depressive symptoms among adolescents: The mediating role of hope and anxiety. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 11(932), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03249-1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03249-1
Kibuthu, J., & Muasa, W. (2023). Strategies for enhancing self-esteem among students in mixed secondary schools in Soweto Embakasi East County, Nairobi, Kenya. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 7(8), 960 – 969.https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2023.7872 DOI: https://doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2023.7872
Lanius, R., Terpou, B., & McKinnon, M. (2020). The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: Lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 11(1), 1807703 https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2020.1807703 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2020.1807703
Liberation Healing. (2023). How trauma affects your self-esteem. https://www.liberationhealingseattle.com/blog-trauma-therapist/how-trauma-affects-your-self-esteem.
Mastorci, F., Lazzeri, M., Vassalle, C., & Pingitore, A. (2024). The transition from childhood to adolescence: Between health and vulnerability. Children, 11(8), 989. https://doi.org/10.3390/children11080989 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/children11080989
Melamed, D., Botting, J., Lofthouse, K., Pass, L., & Meiser-Stedman, R. (2024). The relationship between negative self-concept, trauma, and maltreatment in children and adolescents: A meta-analysis. Clinical Child Family Psychology Review, 27(1), 220 – 234. doi: 10.1007/s10567-024-00472-9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-024-00472-9
Ministry of Education. (2019). Mentorship policy for early learning and basic education. Government of Kenya. https://www.education.go.ke/sites/default/files/2022-05/Mentorship-policy.pdf.
Mutiso, V., Ndetei, D., Muia, E., Musyimi, C., Masake, M., Osborn, T., Sournder, A., Weisz, J., & Mamah, D. (2023). Students' stress patterns in Kenya's socioculturaland economic context: Toward a public health intervention. Scientific Reports, 13(580), 1–14. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-27608-1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-27608-1
Ministry of Health. (2020). Suicide prevention strategies. Government of Kenya. http://guidelines.health.go.ke:8000/media/SUICIDE-PREVENTION-STRATEGY-2021-2026.pdf.
Murang’a County Government. (2024). Murang’a County Children Policy 2024. Government of Kenya. https://muranga.go.ke/resources/public/001.pdf.
Muraya, J. (2021, October 19). New drive launched to get 250,000 out-of-school children back to class in 16 counties. UNICEF. https://www.unicef.org/kenya/press-releases/new-drive-launched-get-250000-out-school-children-back-class-16-counties.
Muris, P., & Otgaar, H. (2023). Self-esteem and self-compassion: A narrative review and meta-analysis on their links to psychological problems and well-being. Psychological Research Behavioural Management, 3(16), 2961 – 2975. Doi: 10.2147/PRBM.S402455. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S402455
Muthuuri, J. (2021). Influence of selected psychosocial challenges on academic performance amongst first year students in Kenyatta University, Nairobi County [unpublished master’s thesis]. Kenya Methodist University.
Ndungu, R. (2024). Academic self-concept and achievement motivation as predictors of academic achievement among form three students in secondary schools in Kirinyaga County, Kenya [unpublished master’s thesis]. Kenyatta University.
Perica, M., & Luna, B. (2023). Impact of stress on excitatory and inhibitory markers of adolescents’ cognitive critical-period plasticity. Neuroscience & Bio-behavioural Reviews, 153, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105378 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105378
Phuong, N., Truong, N., Le, V., & Nguyen, X. (2024). The relationship between academic performance, peer pressure, and educational stress as it relates to high school students’ openness to seeking professional psychological help. Journal of Curriculum and Teaching, 13(1), 1–19. doi:10.5430/jct.v13n1p83 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5430/jct.v13n1p83
Ross, D. A., Hinton, R., Melles-Brewer, M., Engel, D., Zeck, W., Fagan, L., Herat, J., Phaladi, G., Imbago-Jácome, D., Anyona, P., Sanchez, A., Damji, N., Terki, F., Baltag, V., Patton, G., Silverman, A., Fogstad, H., Banerjee, A., & Mohan, A. (2020). Adolescent Well-Being: A Definition and Conceptual Framework. The Journal of adolescent health: official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine, 67(4), 472–476. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.06.042 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.06.042
Sataloff, R., & Vontela, S. (2021). Response rate in survey research design. Journal of Voice, 35(5), 683 – 684. DOI:10.1016/j.jvoice.2020.12.043. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvoice.2020.12.043
Selye, H. (1975). Confusion and controversy in the field of stress. Journal of Human Stress, 1(2), 37–44. DOI: 10.1080/0097840X.1975.9940406. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/0097840X.1975.9940406
Smith, K., & Pollak, S. (2020). Early life stress and development: Potential mechanisms for adverse outcomes. Journal of Neuro-developmental Disorders, 12(34), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1186/s11689-020-09337-y. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s11689-020-09337-y
Srivastava, P., Kumar, P., & Kiran, M. (2015). Perceived stress and self-esteem among school-going adolescents: A gender perspective. Journal of Disability Management and Rehabilitation, 1(1), 38 – 41. https://share.google/v4wLJnOo4nqmRtvPi.
Taherdoost, H. (2021). Data collection methods and tools for research: A step-by-step guide to choosing data collection ttechniquesfor academic and business research projects. International Journal of Academic Research in Management, 10(1), 10 – 38. hal-03741847, HAL.
Tuna, R., Keles, D., & Keles, F. (2025). The effect of perceived stress, bio-psycho-social response, and stress coping behaviours of nursing students on professional self-esteem. Teaching and Learning in Nursing, 20(2), 478 – 484. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.teln.2024.12.013 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.teln.2024.12.013
Tullius, J., De Kroon, M., Almansa, J., & Reijneveld, S. (2021). Adolescents’ mental health problems increase after parental divorce, not before, and persist until adulthood: A longitudinal TRAILs study. European Child Adolescent Psychiatry, 31(6), 969 – 978. doi: 10.1007/s00787-020-01715-0. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-020-01715-0
United Nations Children’s Fund. (2022). Adolescents. https://data.unicef.org/topic/adolescents/#:~:text=There%20are%201.3%20billion%20adolescents%20in%20the%20world,adulthood%20and%20with%20it%2C%20significant%20growth%20and%20development
Umija, M., Aloka, P., & Wachianga, W. (2021). Relationship between awfulising irrational beliefs and stress among orphaned students in Kenyan public secondary schools. Asian Journal of Sociological Research, 4(1), 176-187. hal-05192189. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15700/saje.v41ns2a1996
Wasonga, T. (2021, November 25). Acts of violence or a cry for help? What fuels Kenya’s school fires? The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/acts-of-violence-or-a-cry-for-help-what-fuels-kenyas-school-fires-172410. DOI: https://doi.org/10.64628/AAJ.vvfhjkp6x
World Bank. (2024). Kenya secondary education equity and quality improvement program (P501648). https://education.go.ke/sites/default/files/2024-05/Kenya%20Secondary%20Education%20Equity%20and%20Quality%20Improvement%20Program-Environmental%20and%20Social%20System%20Assessment.pdf.
World Health Organisation. (2024). Mental health of adolescents. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-mental-health