Levels of Self-Esteem of Engineering and Liberal Arts Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Self-esteem has been shown to have a considerable influence on our lives, it impacts our aspirations, personal goals, interaction with others, mental well-being, happiness, adjustment, success, academic achievements, and satisfaction (Mann et al., 2004). The development of self-esteem during childhood and adolescence depends on a wide variety of intra-individual and social factors (Harter, 1999). In this context, self-esteem is defined as the positive or negative attitude toward a particular object, namely, the self (Rosenberg, 1965). This study aimed to understand the variance in the levels of global self-esteem between engineering and liberal arts students in the Indian context. This study was conducted using Rosenberg’s Self Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965) on 100 undergraduate engineering and liberal arts students mainly from the Pandit Deendayal Energy University (PDEU) using random stratified sampling method, and the results were analyzed using independent samples t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results showed that there were differences in the levels of self-esteem between engineering and liberal arts students but these differences were not significant. This study can be further used to explore the development and maintenance of a stable level of self-esteem among undergraduate students in India.