Association of phenomenon of self-inferiority with self- efficacy and self-esteem

Abstract

The aim of the study: assessment of the association of psychological determinants of personality (self- efficacy and self-esteem) with phenomenon of self-inferiority. A survey of 612 higher education students in Lviv was conducted in October-November 2021 using three questionnaires: the Comparative Feeling of Inferiority Index, Rosenberg’s self-esteem scale, and Schwarzer’s and Jerusalem’s generalized self-efficacy. Respondents were divided into 3 groups: a group with inferio- rity index of self-inferiority phenomenon, a group with superiority index of self-inferiority phenom- enon and a group with an absence of the phenomenon of altered self-esteem (Norma). For each of these three groups, the level of self-esteem and self-efficacy was determined, and then a comparative analysis was conducted between the groups. The research found that the respondents from the group with an index of superiority had reliably (p = 0.04) the lowest median value of self-efficacy (28 [25; 32] points) compared to groups with an absence of the phenomenon of changed self-esteem (Norma) (30 [27; 34] points) and with an index of inferiority (31 [28; 33] points). The obtained value in individuals with a sense of superiority corresponds to the “average” level of self-efficacy, which is an order of magnitude lower than in the groups with a sense of fulfillment and with an index of inferiority, where the level of self-efficacy is interpreted as “above average”. Respondents with an absence of the phenomenon of altered self-esteem (Norma) had the highest median value of self-esteem — 22 points [18; 25], which is interpreted as an average level of self-esteem. On the other hand, the values of self-esteem indicators corresponded to a low level of self-esteem in indi- viduals from the group with an index of inferiority) — 19 [17; 24] points. The lowest self-esteem indicators were in the group with an index of superiority — 18 [15.75; 22] points, which also corresponds to a low level of self-esteem, and is significantly lower compared to the group with an absence of the phenomenon of altered self-esteem (Norma). Being non-pathological in nature, the phenomenon of self-inferiority can become a psychopathologi- cal phenomenon under the conditions when a person is overwhelmed by the experience of inadequacy and inefficacy to such an extent that it does not stimulate productive activity, but makes them incapable of development and prone to regressive reactions. Therefore, the study of feeling of inferiority requires further scientific research of a diverse nature.