A study on self-esteem and life satisfaction among adolescents aged 14–19 years attending adolescent-friendly health clinic, Medical College, Kolkata

Abstract

Background: Quick physical, social, and cognitive changes occur during adolescence. An individual’s overall good opinion of themselves is referred to as self-esteem and is associated with undesirable outcomes such as depression, substance abuse, and antisocial behavior. “Life satisfaction” is the cognitive assessment of a person’s overall quality of life. Adolescent life satisfaction is correlated with a wide range of psychological, behavioral, interpersonal, and intrapersonal factors. With the prevalence of mental health problems rising globally, it is crucial to assess risk variables. Aim and Objectives: The aim of the study was to study sociodemographic characteristics, level of self-esteem, and life satisfaction among the participants and to find out relationships between variables. Materials and Methods: An observational, cross-sectional study was done over a period of 2 months in an adolescent-friendly health clinic of Medical College, Kolkata, among middle and late adolescents. Participants were selected by systematic random sampling and a pre-designed pre-validated data collection form was used to interview them. Statistical Program for the Social Sciences software, version 20.0, was used to analyze the data. Results: Responses were taken from 129 participants among which 80 belonged to middle adolescence and 49 to late adolescence. About 37.20% of the population were males and the rest were females. Twenty-two of the study participants admitted to substance use in different forms of tobacco. Forty-one (31.80%) participants have low self-esteem, and 50 (38.76%) participants have different levels of dissatisfaction in life. Conclusion: A sizable portion of the participants struggled with low self-esteem and various levels of life dissatisfaction. Participants with mixed families reported being happier with their lives than those with nuclear families.