Relationship Between Self-Esteem And Personal Development Of Prison Inmates In Jalingo, Taraba State Nigeria

Abstract

This research highlights the relationship between self-esteem and personal development of prison inmates in the Jalingo prison in Taraba state. Additionally, it aimed to identify whether there are differences in self esteem between male and female inmates. The objectives of this study were achieved by sampling two hundred and fifty inmates from the Jalingo prison drawn for the study. The research instruments developed were a twenty- item questionnaire used for the pre-test and post-test. The instruments were tagged Self-Esteem Questionnaire (SEQ) and Personal Development Inventory (PDI). Inmates were randomly selected. The Pearson’s correlation formula and t-test were used for data analyses. The results of the study showed that Self-Esteem and Personal Development of Inmates are positively correlated (0.417). There is a significant difference in the level of personal development between male and female inmates and, no significant difference exists between self-esteem among male and female inmates. The study however, concluded that self esteem of inmates has a direct relationship with inmates’ personal development. Also, personal development of inmates differs according to gender but self esteem among inmates do not differ in terms of gender differential. It was recommended that government and especially, counsellors and prison officers should be aware of the link between self-esteem and personal development in inmates and should employ self esteem strategy as a rehabilitative technique among inmates.

Key words: Development, Counseling, inmates, Prison, Self-Esteem