Mindfulness and Self Esteem in Emerging Adults

Gladys Anna Sony,Maria Sebastian,Veenus Anna Idicula,Gopika.P.Gopinath,

Krupa Dinah Mathews

PG – MSc Psychology, Kristu Jyoti College of Management & Technology , Changanassery

PG – MSc Psychology, Kristu Jyoti College of Management & Technology , Changanassery

PG – MSc Psychology, Kristu Jyoti College of Management & Technology , Changanassery

PG – MSc Psychology, Kristu Jyoti College of Management & Technology , Changanassery

Assistant Professor, MSc Psychology, Kristu Jyoti College of Management &

Technology, Changanassery

gladjud4@gmail.com,
sandmangirl2002@gmail.com, ,gopikagopinath893@gmail.com,

ABSTRACT

Mindfulness is defined as a form of non judgemental and non reactive awareness of present
moment experiences, including emotions,cognitions,and bodily sensations, as well as external
stimuli such as sights, sounds, and smells(Brown & Ryan,2003).Self Esteem refers to a
person’s general sense of worth.(Rosenberg,1965).The aim of the current study is to find the
relationship between the variables mindfulness and self esteem..
This study was conducted in young adults between the age of 18-25 years. There were a total
of 100 participants with equal numbers of males and females.Data were collected on 20 th
july. Participants completed questionnaires in google form.They were informed that their
responses will be highly confidential and participation was completely voluntary. The
instruments used for the study were Personal Information form,Mindfulness Attention
Awareness Scale and Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale. Data was analysed using SPSS software
version 25. Spearman's Rank correlation was used for analysis. The results indicated that
there is a significant relationship between mindfulness and self esteem .

Keywords- Mindfulness, Self-Esteem, Young Adults

1. INTRODUCTION
Young adulthood generally referred to as 18-25 years is a time of dramatic changes in basic
thinking structures,as well as in the brain. Researchers have defined young adulthood as the
developmental period where crucial developmental shifts take place. It is also referred as
“emerging adulthood” ”novice phase” where the society expects these groups to fulfil all the
adult roles.Mindfulness and Self Esteem have received considerable importance in positive
psychological research.
Mindfulness is defined as a form of non judgemental and non reactive awareness of present
moment experiences, including emotions, cognitions, and bodily sensations, as well as
external stimuli such as sights, sounds, and smells(Brown and Ryan,2003).Mindfulness refers
to living in the present moment,being intentionally more aware and awake to each moment
and being fully engaged in what is happening in one's surroundings with acceptance and not
judgement.Mindfulness, a meditative practice, has been around for thousands of years has
been researched extensively in 1970s( Williams& Kabat-Zinn,2013) .The concept of
mindfulness originates in the traditional Buddhist contemplative practices, where the
development of psychological well-being is regarded as the primary goal (Shapiro,2009).
Most of the contemporary mindfulness based interventions like MBSR,MBCT focus on
reducing or remedying a deficit such as anxiety, depression,aggression,insomnia etc. While
only a few studies have involved positive variables and increasing positive outcomes with
mindfulness based interventions.some of the mindfulness based interventions that focus on
positive outcomes are mindfulness based strengths practice, meditation, unstructured
therapies and trainings.

Self -Esteem was defined as a one-dimensional construct,which refers to a person's general

sense of worth( Rosenberg,1965)self-esteem is an important construct and is related to a
variety of positive psychological outcomes, including psychological adjustment, positive
emotion, and prosocial behaviour (Leary & MacDonald, 2003). Self-esteem can be enhanced
by using well-designed interventions (Robins, Trzesniewski, & Donnellan, 2012). Randal,
Pratt, and Bucci (2015) in a review of mindfulness and self-esteem, found a significant
relationship between mindfulness and self-esteem. Deci and Ryan (1980) suggested that
attention and awareness of mind engage the individual in a behaviour that is in line with their
needs and interest and thus the individual is less likely to get surrounded by harsh and critical
feelings. Increased awareness and description through mindfulness may encourage people to
maintain attention to present experiences, making them less likely to experience negative
beliefs or critical thoughts, further enhancing self-esteem. Some preliminary evidence
suggests that mindfulness is associated with self-esteem (Brown and Ryan, 2003, Michalak et
al., 2011, Rasmussen and Pidgeon, 2011, Thompson and Waltz, 2008).
2. Review of Literature

2.1 Review of related literature

1) Badri Bajaj et.al (2016) conducted a study on self esteem mediates the relationship
between mindfulness and well-being. This study was conducted in an Indian University.
samples of the study were 318 undergraduate students in which 232 were males and 86 were
females. The mean age of the sample was 20.3 years. The results showed that there is a
significant correlation between mindfulness and self-esteem.

2) Srishti Chandna et.al (2022) conducted a study on exploring mindfulness in relation with
self esteem and self efficacy in Indian population.This study was conducted between males
and females, young adults and middle aged adults who belonged to the Indian
population.Sample of the study were 146 participants,66 males and 80 females and 84 in the
young adult group and 62 participants in middle aged adult group. The results showed that
there is a moderate positive correlation between all the five dimensions of mindfulness and
self esteem.

3) Chloe Randall et.al (2015) conducted a study on mindfulness and self esteem: a systematic
review.. A systematic review was conducted using electronic databases, resulting in 32
studies meeting the inclusion criteria. Fifteen studies explored the association between
dispositional mindfulness and self-esteem, and 17 studies investigated change in self-esteem
following a MBI. Cross-sectional studies found significant positive correlations between
dispositional mindfulness and self-esteem, whilst the majority of MBI studies resulted in
significant increases in self-esteem.

4) Michael.K.Rasmussen & Aileen.M.Pidgeon(2010) conducted a study on The direct and

indirect benefits of dispositional mindfulness on self-esteem and social anxiety.Correlational
data were collected from 205 Australian undergraduate students who completed the Mindful
Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), and the
Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (SIAS). Mindfulness significantly predicted high levels of
self-esteem and low levels of social anxiety.

5) Brian.L.Thompson& Jennifer.A.Waltz (2007) conducted a study on Mindfulness, Self-

Esteem, and Unconditional Self-Acceptance.A sample of 167 university students completed
two measures of everyday mindfulness, and measures of self-esteem and unconditional self-
acceptance. Positive correlations were found between mindfulness, self-esteem, and
unconditional self-acceptance.
3. Method

3.1 Objective

The objective of the study is to find the relationship between the variables mindfulness and
self esteem.

3.2 Hypothesis

3.3 Variables and Operational definition

3.3.1 Mindfulness

Mindfulness refers to living in the present moment,being intentionally more aware and awake
to each moment and being fully engaged in what is happening in one's surroundings with
acceptance and not judgement

3.3.2 Self Esteem

Self -Esteem was defined as a one-dimensional construct,which refers to a person's general

sense of worth

3.4 Sample

3.4.1 Sample Size of the Study

The sample consists of 100 emerging adults between the age of 18-25 years.The participants
were from different colleges. Data was collected using a convenient sampling method.

3.4.2 Inclusion Criteria

Emerging adults, males and females pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in
different colleges across Kerala between the age of 18-25 years,

3.4.3 Exclusion Criteria

Emerging adults,males and females above 25 years who are non keralites and psychologically
impaired were excluded from the study.

3.5 Assessment Tools

3.5.1 Personal information form

Personal information forms were prepared to collect the personal details of the
participants:name,age,gender, educational qualifications, area of residence and consent for
voluntary participation in the study.

3.5.2 The Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale

The MAAS assesses individual differences in the frequency of mindful states over time. The
scale is a 15-item (1-6 Likert scale) questionnaire to assess dispositional (or trait)
mindfulness. The measurements from the MAAS tap consciousness related to self-regulation
and various areas of wellbeing.This scale intentionally excludes mood, attitude, and
motivation to keep dispositional mindfulness neutral as a construct. The MAAS measures
one’s tendency toward mindfulness or mindlessness. Scores of the MAAS strongly correlate
with self-consciousness, rumination, and self-reflection.
Those scoring higher in mindfulness tend to report higher levels of pleasant affect, higher
self-esteem, optimism, and self-actualization. Also, lower levels of neuroticism, anxiety,
depression, and unpleasant affectTo score the MAAS, a mean of the 15 items (collected in a
Likert scale) is calculated.The mean equals the sum of the answers divided by the total
number of questions (15). Higher scores reflect higher levels of dispositional mindfulness.
are reported in those scoring higher in mindfulness.The scale has been validated among
college students, community adults, and cancer patients, and it has been translated into at
least five different languages.

3.5.3 Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale

The Rosenberg self-esteem scale (RSES), developed by the sociologist Morris Rosenberg,[1] is
a self-esteem measure widely used in social science research. It uses a scale of 0–30, where a
score less than 15 may indicate problematic low self-esteem.[2]
The RSES is designed similar to the social-survey questionnaires. Five of the items have
positively worded statements and five have negatively worded ones. The scale measures
global self-worth by measuring both positive and negative feelings about the self. The
original sample for which the scale was developed consisted of 5,024 high-school juniors and
seniors from 10 randomly selected schools in New York State. The Rosenberg self-esteem
scale is considered a reliable and valid quantitative tool for self-esteem assessment. [3]
TheItems 2, 5, 6, 8, 9 are reverse scored. Give “Strongly Disagree” 1 point, “Disagree” 2
points, “Agree” 3 points, and “Strongly Agree” 4 points. Sum scores for all ten items. Keep
scores on a continuous scale. Higher scores indicate higher self-esteem. RSES has been
translated and adapted to various languages

3.6 Research Design

Descriptive Research Design was used to study the relationship between mindfulness and
self esteem in emerging adults.

3.7 Data Collection Procedure

The instruments used for the study were Personal Information form, The Mindfulness
Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale.
Data was collected on 20 -25 july,2023. Participants completed questionnaires in google
form.They were informed that their responses will be highly confidential and participation
was completely voluntary. The mean age of the participants, whose ages vary from 18-25
years was determined to be 21. Data was analysed by SPSS software version 25 of correlation
analysis.

3.8 Statistical Technique

The data was analysed using SPSS.Spearman’s rho test was used to find the strength of the
correlation between the variables mindfulness and self esteem. It is a non-parametric test
which was developed by Charles Spearman. This test is also known as Spearman's rank
correlation coefficient.

4. Result & Discussion

4.1 Result

TABLE 4.1

4.2 Discussion

The aim of the study is to measure the relationship between mindfulness and self esteem in
emerging adults.The variables used in this study are mindfulness and self
esteem.Mindfulness is defined as a form of non judgemental and non reactive awareness of
present moment experiences, including emotions, cognitions, and bodily sensations, as well
as external stimuli such as sights, sounds, and smells(Brown and Ryan,2003).Self -Esteem
was defined as a one-dimensional construct,which refers to a person's general sense of
worth( Rosenberg,1965).

5. Conclusion
The aim of the study is to find out the relationship between mindfulness and self esteem in
emerging adults. From findings it can be concluded that there is a significant positive
relationship between mindfulness and self esteem among emerging adults. Increased
awareness and description through mindfulness may encourage people to maintain attention
to present experiences, making them less likely to experience negative beliefs or critical
thoughts, further enhancing self-esteem.

6. References