Corporal punishment, academic performance and self-esteem among junior high school students in Ghana

Abstract

The study examined the effect of corporal punishment on the academic performance and self-esteem of adolescent students. A total of One hundred and eighty eight (188) Junior High School students from diverse socio-economic backgrounds were recruited to participate in the study. The study used the cross-sectional survey and the participants were randomly selected. The Williams (2000) Brief Self Esteem Inventory was used to collect data on the self-esteem of the students whereas academic performance was measured using the average score of four core subjects including English Language, Mathematics, Integrated Science and Social studies. The results show no significant differences between corporal punishment and academic performance and self-esteem of the students. Whereas self-esteem and academic performance were found to be positively related, there was no significant variation in self-esteem across gender. The implications of the findings are discussed in relation to empirical literature and existing theories.

Keywords: corporal punishment, academic performance, self-esteem, Ghana