Relationship between Types of Parental Attachment, Levels of Self-esteem, and Perceived Academic Performance among Students in Mixed-day Secondary Schools in Masinga SubCounty in Machakos County, Kenya.
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Date
2024-10
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Tangaza University
Abstract
This study investigated the relationship between Parental attachment types, Self-esteem levels and Academic performance among students in Mixed-day secondary schools in the Masinga Subcounty in Machakos County, Kenya. The objectives were: to assess the types of Parental attachment, examine levels of Self-esteem, assess levels of Academic performance, and to establish the relationship between the three variables. The study was informed by Maslow’s theory of need and Bowlby’s attachment theory. The study employed a quantitative research method with a correlational design. From a target population of 4,796 students, a sample size of 356 participants was selected using simple random sampling. Data was collected using the Parental Attachment Questionnaire, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and a demographic questionnaire that included an item on perceived academic performance. With the aid of Statistical Packages for the Social Sciences (SPSS version 25) software, descriptive statistics (frequencies and percentages) and inferential statistics (Pearson’s product-moment correlation analysis) were used to analyse data. The study found that most 53.3%, of the participants scored anxious parental attachment, 25.4% were at avoidance parental attachment, and 21.3% had secure parental attachment. It was also found that 70.5% of the participants scored low self-esteem, 6.7% had high self-esteem, and 22.8% had average self-esteem. Also, 43.6% of the students had an average level of perceived academic performance, 42.9% of participants had low academic performance, and 13.5% had a high Perceived academic performance. The study established a negative but significant relationship between avoidance parental attachment and self-esteem. There was a moderate significant relationship between anxious parental attachment and self-esteem. There was a high positive significant relationship between secure parental attachment and self-esteem. There was a strong positive significant relationship between secure attachment style and perceived academic performance among the students. It was concluded that parental involvement is essential in students' academic lives. Recommendations include implementing counselling programs to promote parental engagement and foster the development of student self-esteem.