A Comparative Study of Levels of Self Esteem among Students of Single and Dual Parent Families. the Case of Students in Selected Secondary Schools in Nakuru Municipality, Kenya

Abstract

Children from single parent families tend to be viewed as having low self esteem and challenges associated with it despite the fact that children from duo parent background are not immune to the same challenge. This study therefore aimed at establishing whether there is a comparison in levels of self esteem among students of dual and single parent families from selected schools in Nakuru Municipality, Kenya. It adopted the causalcomparative research design. A total of 4257 Form 3 and Form 4 students comprised the population of the study . The study was carried out in 18 public secondary schools within Nakuru Municipality, Kenya. A sample size of 360 students, from both single and dual parent families took part in the study. Stratified and Purposive sampling techniques were used to obtain the sample. Data was collected by use of a questionnaire that included a self esteem test. Analysis of data was done using descriptive and inferential statistics including the independent t-test statistics. The significance was set at ∝ = 0.05. The analysis was performed using Statistical Package for Social sciences (SPSS) version 17. Findings of the study indicated that there was no statistically significant comparison in level of self esteem among students from single parent families and those from duo parent families (p > 0.05). This suggests the level of self-esteem of a student does not depend on the type of parenthood per se but on a complex interaction of other factors such as the type of relationship between parents and children, the school environment and teaching conditions among others. The study recommended that since self esteem is a concern for children from both single parent and duo parent and teachers, counselors, parents and other educational stakeholders should address the issue from a more holistic position and seek to come up with strategies to boost self esteem that are unique to each student’s situation. Keywords:Self-esteem, single parenthood and dual parenthood.