The role of self-esteem on development of mental health among secondary school students in Kirinyaga and Nyeri counties in Kenya

Abstract

Self-esteem is crucial to the development of mental health for better learning. Self-esteem has a great importance as a protective factor in mental health. High self-esteem can lead to better mental health and social behavior, and that poor self-esteem is associated with a broad range of mental disorders such as depression, suicidal tendencies, eating disorders and anxiety, violence and substance abuse. This study was guided by Maslow’s theory of hierarchy of needs and Bowlby’s theory of attachment. The objective of the study was to assess the level of self-esteem between orphan and non-orphan students among secondary schools in Kirinyaga and Nyeri counties in Kenya. The problem statement was that orphans suffer emotional needs, physiological needs and psychological needs that would affect their self- esteem. Self-esteem would too impact on development of mental health for better learning thus the need to assess the self-esteem levels of orphans and non-orphans to reflect their mental health. The study was a survey, which utilized casual comparative research design. According to county education offices in the two counties, the total population of students was 58,448. Stratified and purposive sampling methods were used. Out of 58,448, 426 students constituted the sample of this study. A questionnaire was used to collect the data. In data analysis, descriptive (frequencies, percentages) and inferential (t test) statistics were used. The major finding in this study indicated that most orphans and few non-orphans registered low self-esteem. In conclusion, the overall self-esteem levels of orphan students and non-orphan students have a difference and these points to mental health issues of students. The recommendation is that the government should come up with comprehensive policies to promote the well-being of the students registering low se