Self-Esteem of Elderly Individuals in Bangkok's Elderly Schools

Abstract

The objectives of this research were: 1) to study the self-esteem of the elderly in Bangkok Elderly Schools; 2) to compare the self-esteem of the elderly based on personal factors; and 3) to explore guidelines for promoting self-esteem through Buddhist psychology among the elderly in Bangkok Elderly Schools. This study employed a Mixed Methods Research design. The quantitative phase involved a sample of 240 elderly individuals from Bangkok Elderly Schools. The research instruments included a general information questionnaire and a self-esteem questionnaire based on Coopersmith’s framework. Data were analyzed using frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, t-test, and One-way ANOVA. The qualitative phase utilized in-depth interviews with 16 key informants. The interview guide achieved a Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient of .887. Qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis.

The research findings were as follows: 1) The overall self-esteem of the elderly in Bangkok Elderly Schools was at a high level (  = 4.00, SD = 0.53). When considering each dimension, Virtue had the highest mean score, followed by Competence, Significance, and Power, respectively. 2) The comparison of self-esteem based on personal factors revealed that elderly individuals with different educational levels had significantly different levels of self-esteem at the 0.05 level. However, no significant differences in self-esteem were found among elderly individuals with different gender, age, marital status, current living conditions, or source of income. 3) Guidelines for promoting self-esteem through Buddhist psychology consisted of three main approaches: (1) balancing the mind through Brahmavihara IV (Four Holy Abidings); (2) enhancing social interaction through Sangahavatthu IV (Four Bases of Social Solidarity; and (3) living with wisdom through Sappurisadhamma VII (Seven Qualities of a Good Person).