Self Esteem Among Street Children in Chennai City

The Phenomenon of the street children is a recent				subject their children to unreasonable, harsh criticism
one. It is stated that the Latin American countries				and undue and/or inconsistent punishment. Such
were the first to recognize it in their cities being the				actions cause early frustration, defeatism, and a
phenomenon of a magnitude and size which				destructive sense of inadequacy and inferiority.
warranted the attention of all concerned. However				A child being pushed beyond his capacity by the
the problem of street children is global one and exists				parents’ vicarious needs to achieve a sense of
in both, the developed as well as developing				worth and importance through the child’s
countries, with a difference in its size and magnitude.				achievements often causes a deep feeling of
These countries have some kinds of micro levels of				inadequacy and unworthiness in the child.
rehabilitation measures. But much remains to be done				Rivalry and unsuccessful emulation of an extremely
in this field.				bright or gifted brother or sister, or of an
Street children is a trem - shaking uncontrollably as a				exceptionally talented and prominent parent often
result of anxiety, excitement or weakness which				generates a deep sense of hopelessness and
often highlights a certain set of working and living				inferiority.
conditions rather than personal and social				A child’s unflattering physical appearance and
characteristics of the individual children them selves.				or “odds” apparel, plus perhaps physical,
So often, Children in these conditions are victims of				mental, or emotional handicaps damage his sense of
stereotypes such as “Juvenile delinquents				self worth.
“ on the part of the public and authorities . The				A child raised on the basis of “ Reward and
term “street children” should refer to all				punishment”, rather than being motivated
children who work in the street of urban areas				through understanding and allowed to make his own
without reference to the time they spend there or				mistakes and to accept and resolve, so suffer the
the reasons for being there.” (National				consequences develops low self –esteem.
workshop on street children, 29 and 30 August 1998)				Adverse economic, social, cultural, or ethnic position
The other terminologies for street children have been				of parents and family often invite depreciation and
using is,				ridicule.
“children without families”				Over possessiveness, over permissiveness, and
“ high –risk children”				undue control exercise by one, or both parents,
“Unattached Children”				nurtures a feeling of un – importance and lack
“Children in need of care and				of esteem in the child.
protection”				A serious sense of guilt is frequently induced by
“Abandoned children”				one’s material wealth or affluent background.
The UNICEF has called them “children in difficult				High values place on money, achievement and thing
circumstance”.				rather than on the individual and his innate worth, can
Around the part of the world the Terminology of				preclude or destroy one’s self –
street children used in differentways as follows,				esteem.
In Naples ,” SCUGIZZO ” derives from				Repeated defeats and failures can destroy
the work for spinning – top alwaysmore.				one’s sense of self- worth and result in one
In Peru, the “ PAJARO FRUTERO”				or two extremes. The child may become a drop-out
(Fruit bird) earns his name looking out for the police in				from school or society or he may become a
the market place.				compulsive over achiever in a desperate attempt to
In Colombia “GAMIN” (Kid) is Borrowed				“ prove himself”
from the French, but has strongly negative				Procrastination and lack of self – discipline,
connotations. The same world appears in RWANDA in				taking the path of least resistance, tend to demolish
the form “SALIGOMAN” (Sale gamin,				one’s self respect and sense of worth.
Nasty kid).				Lack of sense of meaning and purpose in life, of clear
In Zaire, street children are				goals and objectives, preclude sound self –
“MOINEAUX” (Sparrows)				esteem; Key to High self – esteem.
In Cameroon, “POUSSINS” (Chicks) to				The secret to inner peace lies in self –
field Workers, MOUSTIQUES” (Mosquitoes) to				affirmation.
the police . Others have proposed the term				Need for the study
“twilight children” to suggest their fragile				Bring to the end, many studies have concentrated on
and indefinite status.				street children situational analysis, case studies and
Officialdom, in contrast, tends to be more				one study on street children on the independent
circumspect and refers to street children				variation of sex, age, education relationship between
euphemistically as “children in an irregular				father and mother were conducted.
situation.” So, The street children is a most				But no study was conducted in relation with street
vulnerable and high – risk group in the society.				children’s self – esteem and so I have
According to UNICEF, they can be classified into				taken this problem for my project study. Because
three categories as follows.				the street children are the important component of
Street children on the street (children with continuous				the developing country. but they are not in the main
family contact)				stream of the society. they are neglected from the
Street Children of the street (Children with occasional				family, school and social setup even they are having
family contact)				positive self – esteem about themselves
Abandoned and Neglected children ( children without				which is not recognized by the existing social system.
family)				the street children’s perception towards the
One of the negative consequences of Urbanization in				society is negative one.
the world, particularly in the developing countries , is				SUMMERY AND CONCLUSION
the existence of a large proportion of the urban poor				Many psychologists state that our self –image
living in slums and pavements many families do not				is affected by all type experience. We have
find any shelter. The forces of modernization including				successes , failures, compliments, Put down personal
industrialization and urbanization, coupled with the				experiences, our expectation and others expectation
appalling condition of poverty have adversely				of us.
affected the family life.				In 1657, Augustine Baker, a mystical theologian and
Illiteracy, broken family, III–treatment, parent				Benedictine monk declared “self –
left, Death of parents and orphans and poverty are				esteem, Self- judgment and self – will”
the key factor that forced to runaway from home				to be the there requisites of independence, the term
and living on the street at major metropolitan cities,				had been used by scholars in Latin and Ancient
particularly in chennai. The population of street				Greeks, Plato, Aristotle and others. Thesaurus
children in chennai is around 1,00,000 Most of the				synonyms are “ self- reliance”,
street children are drop-outs from school.				“self- consequence”,
Most of the time they are living on the street,				“poise”, “ confidence”,
without having basic general needs of food, clothing				“ assurance”, “Pride” or
and shelter, psychological needs of love, protection				“self- sufficiency”. Antonyms are
and recognition and social needs of social interaction,				“self – doubt” and “self
acceptance and maturity. They are not able to get				– effacement” to “self-
care and support from family as well as society.				hatred” and “ shame”.
Condition of street children				Therefore , the self- esteem provides an essential
The most vulnerable are the runaway boys and girls				Thread that ties together various aspects of
who live on the railway station, bus station, market				functioning. Low Level of self – esteem have
place, pavements, streets and do odd jobs like rag				been linked to confusion and disorganization with in a
picking cup collecting, coolie, begging, cleaning the rail				construct system. It would appear that low level of
boogies, small hotels etc. These children live on				interrogation derived from grids developed to test
pavements and street with sky as their shelter and				the construction of others do not strongly imply that
no one to care for with love and affection.				low level of interrogation will be found when the grids
The condition of street children is a sad reality that				are based upon the construction of self.
this section of the population are neglected,				No society can afford to ignore the street children
delinquent and are uncared for. They are a new and				.They are society’s future. They are to be
rapidly increasing group of vulnerable, deprived and				integrated with the main stream of social
exploited children in our cities.				development and to be provided with the
Chennai NGO forum for street and working children				opportunities to grow in sound mental and physical
conducted a survey on street children in 1996 with				health in a appropriate social environment.
the support of UNICEF. This survey was conducted				The human resource development approach has to
with the following objective:				be applied while dealing with all team, and it is sure
To enumerate the number of children of children who				that given all opportunities of their development, in
were on the street in the city of chennai.				their turn they can contribute immensely to the all
To find out the conditions of the street children in				round development of the society.
the city of Chennai				This study was conducted to mainly assess the level
On the basis of the survey, it was estimated that				of self – esteem among street and school
the number of street children in the city of chennai				children to ascertain the possible reasons for higher
would be around 75, 000. If one were to include the				or lower self – esteem.
children bellow 6 years and the teenagers on the				Aim
street, the population would be as high as 1.5 lakhs.				Studying the level of self – esteem among
They were covered under survey only 6 to 18 years				street and school children.
children.				Objective
Most of them earn their livelihood doing odd jobs like				To find out the level of self – esteem
picking rags, or recycling garbage, shining shoes,				between school children and street children.
washing cars and the like. Their employers often				To find out the level of self –esteem
exploit them sexually. In addition, most economic				between boys and girls among street children and
activities of the street children are controlled by				school children.
territories, each of which is guarded fiercely by its				To develop and recommend the remedial measures
members, who react violent if threatened . In this				to overcome low elf esteem of street children.
struggle for survival the competition is ruthless and				Hypotheses
only the fittest survive. To survive, They work for				There will be significant difference between school
three hours a day on an average, either in the				children and street children in their level of self
morning or in the evening, and with their earning they				– esteem.
meet their daily expense. Whenever they need				There will be significant difference between street
advance money for their expenses, they get from				boys and girls in their level of self – esteem.
the waste paper shop owners for which they would				There will be significant difference between street
sell their collection of waste only to that particular				boys and school boys in their level of self –
shop.				esteem.
The waste paper shop is also their place of stay				There will be significant difference between street
after their work. During their Leisure hours, they go				girls and school girls in their level of self - esteem.
for movies, regularly take drug, pills and injection and				There will be significant difference between school
at night have sex with local CSWs at a cheaper rate.				boys and girls in their level of self - esteem.
This involves the risk of acquiring AIDS and spreading				Sampling
it. They have homosexual habit also. The drugs they				Using Random sampling method for the study 120
use includes brown sugar.				school and street children were selected among
Family background				these 120 children , 60 were boys and 60 were girls.
Most of the street children are living on the streets				Their age ranged from 12 to 17 years. Justification of
away from their family due to some of the following				age selection is, below 12 years the children are not
reasons, Abuse, violence, poverty, broken family,				able to recognize and express their self –
Peer group pressure, attractions on city life, dislike				esteem properly , so above 12 years has been
towards studies, frustration, orphan and others.				selected for the study .
These street children have no one to care for them				Tool used
except their peer with whom they live on the				The index of self –esteem by walter
streets. As they are away from home and school				W.Hudson was found to be the most suitable tool to
environment , the informal social control could only				measure the self – esteem levels. The total
play a major role in their life in shaping the character				questionnaire is 25
and behaviour of these children.				Statistical Analysis
The above stated variations have been affecting				The Collected date was analysed, the Mean, standard
street children’s Self- esteem very deeply.				deviation, ‘t’ Value was established to
Self esteem refers to the extent to which they				test the hypotheses
expect to be accepted and valued by the adults and				Findings
peers who are important to them. Even though self-				The Level of Self – esteem of school children
esteem has been studied for more than 100 years,				is lower than the level of street children, that means
specialists and educators continue to debate its				street children were having high level of self –
precise nature and development. But they generally				esteem.
agree that parents and other adults who are				There is no gender different in the level of self
important to children play a major role in laying a solid				–esteem of street children.
foundation for a child’s development.				The level of self –esteem of the street boys
What is self – Esteem?				is higher than school boys.
When parents and teachers of young children talk				The Level of self – esteem of the street girls
about the need for good self – esteem , they				is higher than school girls.
usually mean that children should have “ Good				The Level of self – esteem of school girls is
feelings” about themselves. With young				higher than school boys.
children, self-esteem children refers to the extent to				Conclusion
which they expect to be accepted and valued by the				An analysis of data collected being done, the
adults and peers who are important to them.				following conclusion were arrived at. The Level of
Children with a healthy self – esteem feel that				Self – esteem identified by the school children
the important adults in their lives accept them, care				is lower than the level of street children, that means
about them, and would go out of their way to				street children were having high level of self –
ensure that they are safe and well . They feel that				esteem. The level of self – esteem developed
those adults would be upset if anything happened to				by the street children boys and girls is the same. The
them and would miss them if they were separated.				level of self –esteem accumulated by the
Children with low self – esteem, on the other				street boys is higher than school boys. The Level of
hand, feel that the important adults and peers in their				self – esteem indicated by the street girls is
life do not accept them, do not care about them				higher than school girls.
very much, and would not go out of their way to				Limitations
ensure their safety and well –being.				The sample was limited only in the age group of 12
During their early years, young children’s self-				to17 yearsstreet and school children.
esteem is based largely on their perceptions of how				It was done only in Chennai city.
the important adults in their lives judge them. The				The sample size was small.
extent to which children believe they have the				The self esteem questionnaires was given to the
characteristics valued by the important adults and				street children and school children separately.
peers in their lives figures greatly in the development				Implications of the study
of Self – esteem. For example, in families and				One of the first steps in encouraging healthy self -
communities that value athletic ability highly, Children				esteem in children is to : establish good relationships
who excel in athletics are likely to have a high level				with them. Persons in good, relationship is ultimately
of Self – esteem, Whereas children who are				what the world is all about . Relationships which are
less athletic or who are criticized as being physically				mutually loving and caring , honest and supportive
inept or clumsy are likely to suffer from low self				create an atmosphere for healthy human growth and
– esteem.				great self - esteem.
Families, communities, and ethnic and cultural groups				Emotionally, children are easily threatened by anyone
vary in the criteria on which self – esteem in				bigger, older or more confident than they are not yet
based.				possessing the well - developed defended adults
Children with self- esteem				usually have, children’s sense of self is still
Keeping self – esteem alive is necessary to				Fragile vulnerable and easily knocked down. for
every human being. It is the daily food of emotional				example, children often don’t understand the
health. Mother Teresa said that “each of us				significant difference chronological age can make in
has a mission to fulfill, a mission to live, but that it				their performance. younger children may feel stupid
must begin in our homes …. In the place where				because their older siblings appear smarter .they do
we are, with the people with when we are closest,				not realize older children have had more time than
and then spread out, “				they for learning skills, physical growth, greater
Nurturing self- esteem in children, creating				muscle control, more practice and mare experience in
opportunities for success, facilitating a positive self				sports, school, the arts and so on. younger children
– image are all important influences on a				need to understand they may be years behind in
child’s healthy development.				eyepiece but not necessarily in intelligence.
Lack of self- esteem that damages a child’s				When they get threats from others, they think of
self –image could interfere with a child’s				themselves as unlovable, incompetent, unimportant
ability to learn and relate.				and un wanted misfits. threat brings on feelings of
To enhance a child’s self esteem is to be a				insecurity embarrassment ; failure and fear abounds
positive force in a loving relationship and thereby				inside them . So threat is too be avoided.
make a worthwhile contribution to the world.				What Adults can do to boost self - esteem in
Many parents are unwittingly aiding their children to				children?
fail and have low self- esteem.				Acknowledge a child’s right to emotions.
First we must define what every child needs. Every				Provides outlets for strong feelings.allow time for
child needs to get parental approval.for his or her				strong feelings to cool off.connect yourself with their
own sense or personhoodfor his or her sense of				strong emotions.help relieve stress with some thing
proven abilityfor his or her sense of individualityfor				physical.show that you can accept even the
set realistic achievement goalsto provide a				undesirable.encourage children to talk to other
framework of meaningful values				adults.help children by telling them stories.what
Typical sources of low self- esteem in children				parents can do ?
In most cases, low self- esteem in children, stems				Apart from this, in order to build great self - esteem
from unfortunate childhood experiences. The				in children, parents need to.
greatest gift we as parents can give to our children				Be an example of self - value, self - love and self p
is sound self- esteem. When we fail to give it we				celebration.
unconsciously build low self- esteem in our children.				Respect your child as a unique never - to -be-
A Parent’s own low self –esteem is a				repeated miracle of good.
model for the child				Lead your child to feel loved , Valued and respected
A Child’s lack of recognition and appreciation				for his / her own self.
by parents and others as an intrinsically valuable and				Make your child responsible for his/ her actions and
important individual, can mar his self esteem. Phrases				conduct.
like “A child should be seen and not heard,				Help your child to feel capable of accomplishing things
“Mother knows best”, etc. demonstrate				on his/her own.
that the child’s needs, feelings, desires and				Show your child that each day is full of joys and
opinions are not given due consideration.				wonderful experiences.
A child sometimes makes self-deprecating				Give sincere praise and appreciation for every good
comparisons of himself with those of his own age				experience.
whom he admires for their strength and ability , their				Let your child find him self through your guidance.
popularity, self –confidence and achievements.				Don’t make him a robot or rubber stamp of
To make matters worse, his parents, family and				yourself.
friends compare him unfavourite brother or sister.				Invest time and energy to help your child achieve
This overpowers the child with devastating sense of				greatness.
inferiority.				Lead your child to Improve with each event, not
A child feels inadequate because he is not				compete with others who may be more beautiful
encouraged and motivated to be independent, to do				smarter or wealthier . these are False standards of
what he can for himself – to take				greatness and make one all but feel like a loser the
responsibility for his ability as he grows in age and				winner in the one who is doing his best for his own
experience. The child is not taught to think for				sake. Be consistent in your discipline and lead your
himself.				child to agree as to proper conduct. Empress praise
The false concepts, values and reactions of a				for good behavior and don’t destroy the
child’s Parents, Teachers and peers, cause him				value of praise by withholding praise when improper
to identify himself with his actions. For example,				conduct occurs. Teach children not to use self put-
Mohan, whose mother had a severe migraine, is a				downs Teach them how to give tem selves self -
“ bad boy” because he slammed the				support self - value, and self - assurance.
door. Whereas, in reality it was only his natural				Parents can play an Important role in strengthening
exuberance and lack of awareness that caused the				children’s self - esteem by treating them
act. This may load the child with self condemnation,				respect fully , taking their views and opinions
shame, guilt and remorse.				seriously, and expressing appreciation to them above
Harsh and demanding parents set unreasonable				all, parents must keep in mind that self - esteem is
standard, often raising them before the child has				an important part of every child’s
developed the ability to meet them. Parents may also				development.

Noralfa

Self Esteem Among Street Children in Chennai City