Brent
L. Top
Bruce A. Chadwick
Brigham Young University
How important is self-esteem? It is generally understood that
self-esteem or lack of it affects the attitudes and actions
of young and old alike. Whether we call it “self-esteem” or
“self-respect” or refer to a “self-image” it is nonetheless
an important aspect of life and directly linked to what we do
or do not do in life. President Harold B. Lee, in his last General
Conference as President of the Church, taught:
As I have prayerfully thought of the reasons why one chooses
this course [of wickedness] . . . it seems to me that it all
results from the failure of the individual to have self respect
. . . . . . . when one does not have that love for himself .
. . other consequences can be expected to follow. He ceases
to love life. Or if he marries, he has lost love for his wife
and children—no love of home or respect for the country in which
he lives, and eventually he has lost his love for God. Rebellion
in the land, disorder and the lack of love in the family, children
disobedient to parents, loss of contact with God, all because
that person has lost all respect for himself. . . .
Adolescence—those years between being a child an adult—are difficult
times as young people seek independence from parents, despite
not yet knowing who they really are. Self-esteem is an important
factor during those junior and senior high school years. It
will affect not only what they think of themselves, but largely
what they do and how they will respond to peer pressure. What,
then, determines self-esteem among Latter-day Saint teenagers?
Is it the number of friends they have or the stylishness of
the clothes they wear? Is self-esteem dependant upon academic
performance or athletic ability? Is it determined by physical
appearance or popularity?
Undoubtedly,
each of these various factors plays some role in the establishment
of a teen’s self-image. There are other factors, however, that
are also very influential in the development of a positive self-concept.
These other factors are often overlooked. Yet, in many ways
they are more powerfully linked to self-esteem than some of
those things that we traditionally view. Religiosity, for example,
has been virtually ignored, at best, or totally dismissed, at
worst, as a contributing factor to self-esteem. The fact of
the matter is, however, that religion is an important aspect
of life to Latter-day Saints. As a result, any investigation
of self-concept must also examine the role of religion. This
is true for Latter-day Saint teenagers, as well.
We tend to think that the only thing that is going on in the
hearts, minds, and lives of LDS teens is friends, school, and
activities. As a result, there is a temptation to think that
these are the only factors that contribute to a teens’ self-esteem.
Over the last decade we have gathered data from nearly six thousand
LDS high school students in the United States, Great Britain,
and Mexico. We have examined their religiosity, the peer influence
they are exposed to, and the kinds of things that their parents
are doing in the home to help them meet their challenges. The
primary objective of our studies have been to evaluate which
of all of these factors is most powerful in helping LDS youth
to resist temptation, stand strong against peer pressures, and
to better live the standards of the gospel.
As we carefully analyzed the results of the study several significant
findings surfaced—some were anticipated and some were not. We
were not surprised to learn that, despite published conclusions
of some social scientists to the contrary, religion plays an
important role in predicting the involvement of LDS teens in
delinquent and immoral behaviors. It seemed quite logical to
us that, in light of the teachings of prophets and apostles,
the more religious LDS youth are the less likely they are to
engage in those inappropriate and destructive behaviors. Similarly,
we were not surprised to see the power of the family, particularly
the influence of parents, in the lives of the youth. These findings
and their implications to parents, youth leaders, and religious
educators have been published in a wide array of publications,
directed both to the academic community and to the church in
general. Two results, however, were totally unexpected, yet
very positive and gratifying. First, we found that religiosity
is directly linked to academic achievement. The more religious
and spiritual an LDS teenager is, the better he/she will do
in school and the greater will be the desire for additional
education. The second finding was even more stunning. We found
a very powerful relationship between LDS teens’ religiosity
and their self-esteem. The more religious they are, the higher
their self-esteem—the better the feel about themselves and the
more
self-confidence they possess.
MEASUREMENT OF VARIABLES
The independent variable we examined was self-esteem—how
the youth feel about themselves—their self-worth, confidence
in their own abilities, etc. Two independent variables were
also investigated to determine their relationship to self-esteem—religiosity
and family characteristics. The study also looked
at the relationship these two variables also had with each other.
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Self-Esteem was measured by the responses of the
LDS teens on a five-point scale from “strongly disagree” to
“strongly agree.” There were 38 statements concerning the youth’s
orientation toward life in general and how they felt about themselves.
Thirteen statements dealt specifically with self-esteem and
included such sentiments as
• I certainly feel useless at times.
• Sometimes I feel like I am no good at all.
• All in all, I am inclined to feel that I am a failure.
• I am able to do things as well as most people.
• I feel that I have a number of good qualities.
Religiosity is comprised of several different
dimensions or facets of religious life. These included professed
religious beliefs, public religious behaviors, the salience
or importance of religion in personal life, spiritual experiences
and feelings, the social acceptance or integration one experiences
in his/her LDS ward or branch, and family religious activities.
The five point Likert scale measured the level of agreement
or acceptance the youth had with various statements concerning
their religious life. Religious beliefs were measured
by ten statements about traditional Christian beliefs as well
as beliefs unique to Latter-day Saint theology. For example,
we asked to what degree they accepted the following statements:
• Jesus Christ is the divine Son of God.
• Joseph Smith actually saw God the Father and Jesus Christ
• The Book of Mormon is true and the word of God.
• The president of the LDS church is a prophet of God.
Public religious behaviors included five questions
about attendance at church meetings and participation in church
activities. Private religious behavior involved four
questions about the frequency of personal prayers, scripture
study, payment of tithing, and monthly fasting. Importance
of religion was measured by eight questions. For example,
the youth were asked to rate their agreement with the statement,
“My relationship with God is an important part of my life.”
Spiritual experiences were assessed by questions that
dealt with their feelings of spiritual guidance, comfort, and
forgiveness. A sample statement in this category was, “There
have been times in my life when I have felt the Holy Ghost.”
Three items measured the social acceptance by asking
how well the youth felt accepted in church settings by peers,
leaders, and adult members of their LDS congregation. Finally,
family religious behavior was ascertained with three
questions about the frequency of family prayer, family scripture
reading, and family home evening.
Family characteristics dealt with everything from
family structure to specific parenting practices. Family
structure was determined by our asking with whom the teen
lived. Options included two-parent, step-parent, single-parent,
or other type of family situation. Maternal employment
was measured by questions concerning the level of employment
of the mother—full-time, part-time, or none. Family happiness
was assessed by several questions concerning the students’ perceived
happiness of parents’ marriage and general happiness of the
family. Family connection was measured by ten questions
that dealt with the affection and closeness that the youth felt
with their parents. Family regulation was determined
by five questions that asked how much parents know about their
teens’ friends, activities, spending habits, and use of free
time. Psychological autonomy was measured through ten
questions about parents’ use of psychologically controlling
behaviors such as withholding love from a disobedient child
or seeking to control their child’s thoughts, opinions, and
feelings.
As will be seen in Figures 2 and 3, certain of the family characteristics—the
three parenting practices of connection, regulation, and psychological
autonomy—were statistically significant factors in predicting
self-esteem among LDS teens. The focus of this article, however,
is on the relationship between religion and self-esteem. The
family connection will be addressed in subsequent publications.
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS
Two separate statistical methods were employed in analyzing
the data and determining the relationship, if any, between religiosity
and self-esteem. The first statistical test conducted was bivariate
correlation analysis. This allowed us to look at the relationship
of one factor, such as religious beliefs, to another single
factor, such as self-esteem. Bivariate correlations show us
the strength of a variable in predicting a certain outcome (which
in this study was self-esteem) independent of the influence
of all the other factors.
The second statistical test we utilized is known as structural
equation modeling. This allows for multiple factors to be analyzed
simultaneously. This helps determine the relative strength of
the various factor in influencing or predicting an outcome—in
this case, self-esteem. In a way, this simulates “real-world
conditions” where there are many influences or factors working
together, all at the same time, to produce an outcome. In allowing
the various factors to simultaneously “compete” and “cooperate”
with each other, we are better able to ascertain which factors
are most influential or powerful. Another advantage of this
statistical test is that it can show us not only the direct
effects of certain factors, but also the indirect effects.
For example, religiosity may directly influence (predict) self-esteem,
whereas, certain parental influences may only indirectly affect
self-esteem. Those same parental factors, however, may directly
influence religiosity which, in turn, directly affects self-esteem.
Thus, it is important to examine both direct and indirect effects.
From the structural equation model tests that were conducted,
we see that religiosity has a powerful, direct effect
on self-esteem for both LDS young men and young women. Figure
2 reports the direct and indirect effects of both religiosity
and family for the LDS boys and Figure 3 provides the results
for LDS girls. It is important to note that beta efficients
of .149 and .232 respectively, indicate that religiosity, with
all of its various dimensions, is a strong predictor of self-esteem.
In other words, the more committed a LDS youth is to his/her
religion the better they feel about themselves. Interestingly,
the link between religiosity and self-esteem was more pronounced
in the lives of the young women than the young men, although
statistically significant for both groups.
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figure to enlarge
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figure to enlarge
It was especially interesting to note that certain family characteristics,
particularly family regulation and psychological autonomy, were
also statistically significant direct predictors of self-esteem.
In all of our previous research, the family variables (connection,
regulation, and psychological autonomy) were found only to indirectly
predict or influence the outcome through intermediate factors
such as peer influences and religiosity. While this article
is only dealing with the religious factors, it is, nonetheless,
important to point out the powerful influence that parents have
on a teenager’s self-esteem. Likewise, it is significant to
note the influence that emotional connection with the family
and the familial regulation that parents administer have on
the strength of the teens’ religiosity. As seen in figures 2
and 3, beta coefficients for the family connection variable
of .222 and .220 for boys and girls, respectively, indicate
that the religious life of the teens is strengthened by a close
relationship with parents. Similarly, family regulation also
significantly predicts the religiosity of LDS youth. The more
parents establish equitable family rules, know what is going
on in the lives of their children, monitor their behavior and
activities, and dispense appropriate discipline when needed,
the more religion will play an important and positive role in
their teens’ lives.
Interestingly, regulation was a more powerful predictor of religiosity
for boys than for girls; with beta coefficients of .350 and
.213, respectively. On the other hand, family connection was
more important to the girls than regulation, although only slightly.
Although we knew from the structural equation modeling that
religiosity was directly and significantly related to self-esteem,
we desired to determine which specific aspects of religiosity
were most powerful. In order to do that, we conducted two additional
statistical tests. First, from bivariate correlation analysis
we were able to see the one-on-one relationship between the
specific dimensions of religiosity and self-esteem. The results
of this analysis are presented in Table 1. Correlation coefficients
report how closely related the two factors are to each other.
For example, if there was a perfect correlation (or cause and
effect) the coefficient would be 1.0. In this kind of research
where there are so many other factors to be considered, perfect
correlation would be an impossibility and even extraordinarily
high correlation coefficients would be most unlikely. Any correlation
score above .10 would be considered statistically significant
and could be viewed as an important relationship.
It is significant to note that the three strongest correlations
with self-esteem were religious factors that we would characterize
as internal as opposed to those religious behaviors that
could be externally observed. How important the gospel is in
the personal lives of LDS teens was most highly correlated,
with a correlation coefficient of .321. The next significant
correlation (.265) came from the factor we called spiritual
experiences—the degree to which the teens had felt the Spirit
of the Lord in their personal lives, had prayers answered, and
felt a special closeness to God. Private religious behaviors,
such as, personal prayer, individual scripture study, fasting,
etc., had the next strongest correlation of .261. Interestingly,
the factor public religious behavior, such as, attendance at
church meetings and involvement in church programs and activities,
although also statistically significant, showed the weakest
correlation with self-esteem.
IMPLICATIONS FOR PARENTS AND YOUTH LEADERS
So what does all this mean to us as parents and youth leaders
and advisors? First and foremost, we learn that what we do can
really matter in the lives of the young people we serve. We
must understand that we are not merely teaching lessons or helping
the youth better understand the gospel teachings. It is not
just about increasing their informational “data base.” Our goal
must be to inspire as well as instruct—to not just teach about
the Savior, but rather to direct our students to come to know
Him for themselves. The more we can lead them on a personal
journey of gospel internalization the more confident they will
feel, the more spiritually competent they will feel, and the
better they will feel about themselves. Our objective should
be to inspire them to read the scriptures on their own, seek
spiritual guidance in their own lives, and to become familiar
through personal prayer with their Heavenly Father. We can hopefully
edify as well as educate.
The
gospel we teach must not merely enter their heads, but must
powerfully enter their hearts. Ultimately, all that we say and
do, whether in our homes, family home evening, or classrooms,
should be to help them gain their own personal testimony of
who they really are, what the gospel can mean to them right
here and now, and that they are loved by the Savior with a perfect
love. As we accomplish these objectives, we will in turn be
strengthening their self-esteem. With self-esteem resulting
from increased personal spirituality, not the way the world
and pop psychologists would advocate, LDS teens will have the
self-confidence and strength of character to resist temptations
and stand strong against the many negative pressures they encounter.
In reality, our study isn’t all that groundbreaking after all.
We have not discovered anything new or novel. The results of
this study only validate what prophets and apostles have long
taught. It merely demonstrates with empirical evidence what
President Harold B. Lee taught at that memorable General Conference
in October 1973. True spirituality—that kind of spirituality
that comes from internalization of gospel principles forged
with personal testimony—is self-esteem. It is that kind of self-esteem
that evokes spiritual power. It works with youth, as well as,
adults.
What a difference it would make if we really sensed our divine
relationship to God, our Heavenly Father, our relationship to
Jesus Christ, our Savior and our elder brother, and our relationship
to each other. . . .
. . . I trust that I might have given to you and others who
have not yet listened to such counsel, something to stimulate
some sober thinking of your are and from whence you came; and,
in so doing, that I may have stirred up within your soul the
determination to begin now to show an increased self-respect
and reverence for the temple of God, your human body, wherein
dwells a heavenly spirit. I would charge you to say again and
again to yourselves . . . “I am a [son or daughter] of God”
and by so doing, begin today to live closer to those ideals
which will make your life happier and more fruitful because
of an awakened realization of who you are.
