SPIRITUAL WELL-BEING AS A PREDICTOR OF SELF-ESTEEM

Abstract

The objective of the study was to analyze whether the dimensions of spiritual well-being explain self-esteem. The method chosen for data analysis was multiple linear regression. The sample consisted of 273 university students from a higher education institution in the Federal District. Of these students, 72% are female. The mean age was 26.97 years (SD = 8.82). For data collection, three instruments were used. Rosemberg Self-Esteem Scale, adapted to the Brazilian population by Hutz and Zanon (2011). Spiritual Well-being Scale, adapted to the Brazilian population by Marques, Sarriera, and Dell'Aglio (2009) and a questionnaire to collect social data. The results showed that about 35% of the variability in self-esteem can be explained by spiritual well-being. The variable that most strongly impacted the levels of self-esteem was existential well-being, explaining 34.2% of the predicted variable. The other predictor variable (religious well-being), in turn, was related to only 1.4% of the self-esteem variance. In this way, we can say that believing in a purpose for life contributes more to self-esteem than adopting a divine religious reference.