DIFFERENCES IN LEVEL OF SELF-ESTEEM AND AGGRESSION AMONG MEDICAL STUDENTS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Abstract

The pattern of relationship between level of self- esteem and various dimensions of aggression in adolescents and young adults is unclear. This study investigated the difference of different dimensions of aggression in medical students with different level of self-esteem. A total of 200 medical students (male medical students n=100 and female medical students n=100) with an age range of 19 – 22 were selected through convenient sampling strategy from different public and private hospitals of Lahore. ‘Buss & Perry aggression questionnaire’ and ‘Self-image profile (SIP-AD)’ was used for assessment of aggression and self-esteem respectively. The findings revealed that physical aggression was high in males with medium level of self-esteem in comparison with low and high level of self-esteem group. Moreover, anger was positively correlated with self-esteem in females. In males, there was no correlation between self-esteem and different dimensions of aggression. The study has significant implications for further studies on self-esteem and aggression in young adults.