An Investigation into Gender Differences in Self-Esteem by Julie Conlon - Research Paper Example

 An Investigation into gender Differences in Self-Esteem by Julie Conlon Abstract The study investigated gender differences in self-esteem of 10 male and female undergraduate university students aged 18 to 49. A ten-item Rosenberg Self-esteem scale (RSE) with four possible answers ranging from Strongly Agree (1) to Strongly Disagree (4) was utilized in this study. RSE measures the respondents’ general feelings about themselves – their level of satisfaction, their self-worth, and their perception of their abilities among others. Prior to the administration of the RSE questionnaire, the respondents were oriented about the nature of the study, given a consent form and assured of the confidentiality of the research findings. Results of the study based on descriptive statistics revealed that males scored lower in RSE scale compared to females, which means that males had higher self-esteem than females. However, no significant difference was noted in the self-esteem of both male and female undergraduate university students based on test statistics. Introduction Self-esteem plays a significant role in our academic endeavours, in the choice of a career, and in our functions in various social contexts. But how does our self-esteem develop? What are some factors which contribute to personal development and self-esteem? Genetics (our biological make-up), our cognitive development and maturation, and our interaction with parents, teachers, peers, and friends among others affect the development of our self-esteem. Self-esteem is an offshoot of our knowledge of self. Cooley, 1902, Jone & Gerard, 1967) in Borderns’ (2001) mentioned three sources of self-knowledge. First is how others react to us. These assessments based on their reactions shape our self-concept, which in effect, build our self-esteem. The second social source is the comparison we make with other people regarding our abilities and attributes (Feslinger, 1950 in Borderns’ 2001). The third source is observing our behaviour (Daryl, 1967 in Bordens” 2001). Being aware of our own attitudes, interests, and abilities will help us appraise our own self-esteem. Hence, self-esteem is the product of experiences. However, experiences vary according to gender and age. Studies reveal that adolescent girls are more likely to have lower self-esteem and more negative appraisals of their physical characteristics and intellectual abilities compared to boys. In Borders’ (1995) study, she examined the differences in the self-concept levels of sixth- through eighth-grade students in relation to gender. Data for this study were obtained from the raw self-concept scores obtained by students on the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale. The Piers-Harris survey was administered to 222 students who attended a public middle school in the middle Tennessee area. Findings of the study reveal no significant gender differences exist in the self-esteem levels of adolescents. Existing evidence also supported the finding that a decrease in the self-esteem levels of students is more acute for females than for males. The present study aims to investigate gender differences in self-esteem of two groups of respondents comprising of university students with 10 males and 10 females aged 18 to 49. Specifically, the study hopes to answer these two research questions: a. How does the self-esteem of male respondents compare with that of female respondents? b. Is there a significant difference in the self-esteem of males and females? This study on gender differences in self-esteem is a contribution to the vast knowledge in Psychology. The findings may provide insights to scholars on variables to work on to come up with extensive research. Results of this study may also prove valuable to educators and counsellors alike to understand the complexities of human development which includes the development of self-esteem in particular. Hypothesis There is a significant difference in the self-esteem of male and female respondents. Method This descriptive study investigated gender differences in self-esteem of two independent groups of undergraduate university students – 10 males and 10 females aged between 18 and 49. The independent variable was gender and the dependent variable were the scores on the self-esteem scale. Rosenberg Self-esteem scale (RSE) was used to collect data for this study. RSE comprised of 10 items with 4 possible answers from strongly agree (1) to strongly disagree (4). Each question had a value of 1 to 4. Questions deal with respondents’ general feelings about themselves, their level of satisfaction, their perceptions of their good qualities, self-worth, abilities and positive attitudes toward themselves among others. Each participant was asked to sign a consent form, advised of their rights and told they could withdraw any time. They were advised that the results would be anonymous. Each participant was brought into a room given the RSE questionnaire and asked to fill it out in silence. As soon as they had finished, they were thanked for their time. Results The findings of this study indicate that males do have a higher self-esteem as their scores were lower than females. Ordinal data show these results: mode for males is 23, whereas for females, mode is 25. Range for males is 7 while that of females is 11. Males’ average mean is 9.90 lower than that of females by 1.20 points with 11.10 mean rank. However, the result of test statistics (z-test) shows no significant difference on the self-esteem of male and female respondents (2-tailed sig. of 0.684) at p> 0.05. This implies that male and female respondents demonstrate similar level of self-esteem. Hence, gender in a way does not have a bearing as to the level of one’s self-esteem. Generally self-esteem can be measured regardless of gender since gender may not be a causal factor for one’s development of self-concept. Descriptive Statistics Table 1 Comparison of Male and Female Respondents’ Self-Esteem Rating Gender N Mode Range Male 10 23 7 Female 10 25 11 Table 2 Inferential Statistics of Males’ and Females’ Self-Esteem Scores Ranks Gender N Mean Rank Sum of Ranks Score Male 10 9.90 99.00 Female 10 11.10 111.00 Total 20 Test Statisticsb Score Mann-Whitney U 44.000 Wilcoxon W 99.000 Z -.461 Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) .645 Exact Sig. [2*(1-tailed Sig.)] .684a a. Not corrected for ties. b. Grouping Variable: Gender Discussion Based on the findings of the study, using descriptive statistics, females’ scores in Self-esteem inventory were higher compared with that of males. This clearly shows that males agree of their positive appraisal of their self-esteem as indicated by their mean ranks. On the other hand, using the more sophisticated inferential statistics to determine whether a significant difference exists in the self-esteem appraisal of male and female respondents, findings reveal that the results were not significant. This only proves no significant difference in the male and female respondents’ self-esteem. Results of this study support findings of some researches while negate others’. Borders’ (1995) noted in her study the no significant gender differences in self-concept. Yu (1993, p.1), in his study in gender differences of 99 male and 90 female undergraduates from mainland China, found out “little evidence of a gender difference in the level of overall self-esteem, but gender differences were evident in the subjects' ratings of the importance to their self-concept and their self-satisfaction.” Coopersmith (1967) and Wylie, (1974) in Sultana, Bibi & Rehman (n.d.) discovered that boys have a significantly higher self-esteem than girls. Sheriffs and Mckee (1957) (PP.326-37) in Sultana, et al (n.d.) in an intensive survey reveals males have higher self-concepts than their female counterpart. In a study of adolescents, Connell and Johnson 1970 (p.268) and Aims (1978) in Sultana, et al (n.d.) noted that male have greater self esteem than females. Society definitions of the male role emphasize mastery and competence, where as society defines the female role negatively as dependent and submissive. Furthermore, Lamke (1982) in Mullis & McKinley (1987) examined the gender role orientation and self-esteem of 12-15 year-old adolescents and found out that male adolescents had higher levels of self-esteem compared to their female counterpart. While most studies show that males have higher levels of esteem compared to females, the findings of the present study revealed otherwise. One reason for this is perhaps the size of the sample. In most studies reviewed in this study, the sample size ranged from 90 to 5,000 plus, whereas the present study had only 20 respondents. In statistics, the bigger the sample size, the more valid and reliable the study is. Another weakness of the study is the age bracket of respondents. Students aged between 18 to 49 definitely would have different perceptions of their self-esteem since they came from different age groups. Furthermore, since self-esteem is the product of one’s experiences, undoubtedly, more mature adults will have higher self-esteem compared with the younger adolescents. If the respondents taken are more or less of the same age or of the same stage like adolescence or late childhood for instance, then findings could have been more valid. However, considering the descriptive data, males show higher self-esteem than female based on mean ranks and mode. But, when tested using inferential statistics, no significant difference was noted. Had the sample been expanded to 50 or 100, then perhaps, a significant difference might have occurred. Sample size is a great factor to consider in conducting any study. It should represent the perceptions of the entire population. That’s why Sloven’s formula is a good gauge whether the sample is enough to obtain valid and reliable results. From all the studies reviewed, the dominant finding is that males do really have higher self-esteem compared to females. And this present study is leaning on similar finding had the respondents been increased. Why is that so? Why are males satisfied with themselves more compared to females? Why do they have higher regard of themselves compared to their female counterpart? Researches support the theory that men’s roles in society are a significant factor for their high self-esteem. Men are presumed to be leaders, managers, goal setters, possessing leadership qualities as logical, analytical and critical; whereas females are relegated to inferior roles, having traits as submissive, emotional, interactive and fickle-minded. These perceptions of society put the females’ perspective in the box. Generally, this influences or shapes women’s lower level of self-esteem appraisal compared with that of men. Our society has never changed in its conservative view of men being relegated leadership roles. In this modern age, the age of globalization, where every one has access to the vast knowledge in various fields, there is a need for a paradigm shift. Women empowerment is imperative. It should start from the books we read. We need books that will highlight women’s roles in society and their contributions to good governance, both in public and private sectors. It is only through female students’ exposure to heroines in our society that females’ perspectives might change, and this includes their level of self-esteem. References Bordens, K. & Horowitz, I. (2001). Social Psychology. Erlbaum associates: New Jersey. Borders, Mira Jane. (1995) "Gender differences in the self-esteem levels of adolescent students" (January 1, 1995). Dissertation Collection for Tennessee State University. Paper AAI9806592. Retrieved May 3, 2009 from http://e-research.tnstate.edu/dissertations/AAI9806592 Connell, D.M. and Johanson. K (1970) Relationship between sex-role identification and self-concept in early adolescents, American Journal of Developmental Psychology, 3. in Sultana, Razia, Aisha Bibi and Abdur Rehman. (n.d.) Gender Differences in Self-esteem of the Student at Secondary Level. Retrieved May 3, 2009 from http://www.gu.edu.pk/GUJR/PDF/pdf%20dec%202006/No.12-Razia-Gender%20Diff.pdf Coopersmith S.(1967) A method for determining types of self-esteem. San Francisco: Freeman. in Sultana, Razia, Aisha Bibi and Abdur Rehman. (n.d.) Gender Differences in Self-esteem of the Student at Secondary Level. Retrieved May 3, 2009 from http://www.gu.edu.pk/GUJR/PDF/pdf%20dec%202006/No.12-Razia-Gender%20Diff.pdf Kearney, Cooke A. (n.d.) Gender difference and self-esteem. Retrieved may 3, 2009 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11252852 Mullis, Ronald and Kathleen McKinley. (1987). “Relations between Adolescent Gender Role Orientation, Self-esteem and Social Conformity.” Paper presented at the Annual Conference on Family Relations (49th, Atlanta, GA, November 14-19, 1987). Payne, K. (2001) Different but Equal: Communication between the Sexes. Greenwood Publishing’s: USA. Sultana, Razia, Aisha Bibi and Abdur Rehman. (n.d.) Gender Differences in Self-esteem of the Student at Secondary Level. Retrieved May 3, 2009 from Yu, Watkins Jiayuan. (1993). Gender differences in the source and level of self-esteem of Chinese college students. The Journal of Social Psychology   ISSN 0022-4545. Vol. 133, no3, p. 347. Retrieved may 3, 2009 from http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=4836141 Wylie, R. C. (1974). The Self-Concept. Revised Edition. Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press. In Sultana, Razia, Aisha Bibi and Abdur Rehman. (n.d.) Gender Differences in Self-esteem of the Student at Secondary Level. Retrieved May 3, 2009 from http://www.gu.edu.pk/GUJR/PDF/pdf%20dec%202006/No.12-Razia-Gender%20Diff.pdf Appendices Read More