Relationship Between Social Support And Self-Esteem Among Teenage Mothers Attending Pumwani Maternity Hospital In Nairobi County, Kenya

ABSTRACT

Adolescence (teenage) is the transitional period between childhood and adulthood, characterized by biological, psychological, and social changes. Self-esteem of adolescents is generally low and when an adolescent becomes pregnant, the psychological adjustment of pregnancy is added to the challenges in the transition of adolescence. Self-esteem is self-evaluation of an individual’s worth and it is important for a smooth transition to adulthood. High self-esteem expresses the feeling that one is “good enough”. The person respects herself, considers herself worthy. Low self-esteem, on the other hand implies that the individual lacks respect for the self. During adolescence, teenagers are able to make self-evaluation, and when they are trying to describe who they are, they take both their own and others’ views into account. Teenage mothers therefore look at themselves as failures due to their inability to prevent pregnancy. This is especially worse if they lack social support. Social support is thus critical during and after the teenager’s pregnancy to enable positive adjustment of adolescent mothers. There is paucity of studies that seek to relate perceived social support and self-esteem of teenage mothers in Kenya. This study sought to bridge the gap by finding levels of self-esteem and levels of perceived social support and correlating them to determine the type of relationship that exists. The main aim of this study was to determine the relationship between Perceived Social Support and Self-esteem among teenage mothers attending Pumwani Maternity Hospital, Nairobi County. The study was informed by Transactional Theory of Stress and Coping by Lazarus (1960). The study employed a correlational survey design and used purposive sampling to select the sample. Questionnaires were used to collect data which included Rosenberg’s self-esteem test and Sorensen social support scale. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and correlation analysis. Results showed that teenage mothers in Pumwani hospital had high levels of social support and high levels of self-esteem. 2% of the teenage mothers had low self-esteem, 10% had average self-esteem and 88% had high self-esteem. 2% had low social support, 22% average social support and 76% had high levels of social support. There was also a positive and moderately high relationship between social support and self-esteem. Interventions suggested by the girls involved in the study included desire for greater support to have regular income, the need to be understood rather than judged, and the need to be supported to complete their education.