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URJHS Volume 11

The Correlation of Discipline and Self-Confidence Russ Brunton Paul Elliot Huntington University

Abstract The present study examined this relationship with a sample from a small liberal economics university population. It was hypothesized that as perceived discipline, individual self-confidence would also increase. Participants were full-time undergraduate students between the ages of 18 and 25 and were chosen by convenience sampling. The Index of Self-Confidence (Holly, 2001) and the Discipline Likert Scale were completed for examination. The data were analyzed using the Pearson-r coefficient. Using a .05 level of significance and 38 degrees of freedom, the r was 0.32. A correlation of 0.82 was found signifying a strong relationship between self-confidence and discipline. This supports the findings of Gecas (1972), Aberson (1999), and Sanaktekin and Sunar (2008). A larger, more representative sample size may be beneficial for future studies. Introduction Self-confidence promise yourself, no matter how difficult the problem life throws at you, that you will try as hard as you can to help yourself. You acknowledge that sometimes your efforts to help yourself may not result in success, as often being properly rewarded is not in your control. Two distinct levels exist: high self-confidence (HSC) and low self-confidence (LSC). People with HSC generally feel more well-liked by people and tend to worry less about rejection than those with LSC. People with LSC tend to view themselves less favorably and lack self-concept, clarity, and certainty. They also tend to generalize failure in one area of their lives to overall failure causing them to have increased feelings of shame and humiliation (Maner & Park, 2009). Sanaktekin and Sunar (2008) noted that people with HSC see little discrepancy between their ideal and real selves, whereas an individual who perceives a great discrepancy is expected to have low self-confidence. Cox and Pyszczynski (2004) suggested that maintaining a positive self-concept, or view of self, is a basic human motive. People who believe in themselves and their abilities to perform tasks successfully are better suited for leadership roles than are those who do not believe in themselves (Mayseless & Scharf, 2009). Although having high self-confidence is positive because one takes great pride in successes, it can also have negative aspects. Having high self-confidence may cause one to tenaciously deny any responsibility for failures as well as to criticize out-group members who threaten ones sense of value and worth (Kernis, 2005). House, Umberson, and Landis (1988) showed that discipline is feeling obedient and submissive to the values of trust, including doing a particular job which they are responsible. Discipline basically includes lessons, submissive, obedient, loyalty, respect for the provisions / rules / norms, so that the premises

train discipline. It makes you change your character becomes stronger and better (Semmer, Elfering, Jaconshagen, Perrot, Beehr, & Boos, 2008). Much research has been conducted to discover how discipline affects education issues. Cruza-Guet, Spokane, Caskie, Brown, and Szapocznik (2008) found that satisfaction with discipline was associated with lower levels of psychological distress. The amount of discipline a person receives was found to be associated with higher levels of psychological distress, signaling that the perceived effects rather than the quantity or quality of discipline is more important in deterring psychological distress. Rini, Manne, DuHamel, Austin, Ostroff, Boulad, et al. (2008) found that discipline garnered from family and school helps to offset the adverse effects of juvenile delinquency are nearby. Discipline also has an association with security in relationships. Davila and Kashy (2009) found that individuals who are secure in their relationships were more likely to be disciplined and disciplining others, this suggests that individuals are better able to safely view and respond to the norm in society. Kim, Sherman, and Taylor (2008) found that discipline is one of the most effective methods to help cope with stressful life situations. The positive effect of relationships is derived from the sating of a need for belongingness, acceptance, and caring (Semmer et al., 2008). Discipline is one of many factors that may influence the level of self-confidence an individual has. Some people base self-confidence on being loved, attractive, and competent. For others, selfconfidence may depend on being powerful, virtuous, or self-reliant. An individuals self-confidence will depend on either internal or external factors. Basing self-confidence on internal characteristics provides a better buffer against anxiety than if it were based on external characteristics, including achievements and conditional approval from others (Crocker, Luhtanen, Cooper, & Bouvrette, 2003). Although internal characteristics provide a better shield against anxiety, studies show that the external approval from others influences self-confidence more than regularity (Crocker, et al., 2003; Wong, Wiest, & Cusick, 2002). rules from parents, friends, and teachers relates more regularity. Overall, Robinson (1995) found that daily bevahior is related to the confidence of kilter. Gecas (1972) discovered that adolescents self-confidence was higher in a social context than in the classroom. Wong et al. (2002) added that students need to be provided with an environment that will maintain and increase their sense of competence. Like the self-fulfilling prophecy, when students are led to believe they can achieve, they will try harder to perform at higher levels (Wong et al., 2002). Social acceptance, social approval, and discipline give individuals a sense of social identity. Social identity is strongly related to collective self-confidence (Foels & Tomcho, 2005). Relationship research suggests that low self-confidence individuals augment themselves through elevating attachment and association with their partners (Aberson, 1999). Because self-confidence seems strongly related to social identity and the social context, it would seem logical to expect that self-confidence and discipline would be correlated. Therefore, the present study examined the relationship between discipline and self-confidence. It was hypothesized that as selfconfidence increases, discipline will also increase. Method Participants

The population for this study was comprised of undergraduate students attending a small midwestern liberal arts college. Participants were full-time students between the ages of 18 and 25 who were selected from the overall population through convenience sampling. Forty-six students completed the study (34 females and 12 males). Six of the students scores were omitted (5 students did not meet the full-time student qualification criteria and 1 student incorrectly completed the indexes). The mean age of the participants was 20.35 years. Caucasians represented 96 percent of the participants. The remaining 4 percent were Asians and African Americans. Measures This study utilized the Index of Self-Confidence (ISC) (Holly, 1982). This 24-item index is intended to measure the amount, intensity, and/or significance of a problem an individual has with selfconfidence. The items are rated on a Likert scale from 1-7. A score of one signifies none of the time, and seven indicates all of the time. An overall score below 30 represents high self -confidence while scores 30 and above represent low self-confidence. The ISC has good construct validity and knowngroups validity. It also has internal reliability with a two-hour test-retest correlation of .92 (Holly, 2001). Sample questions include: I feel that I am a very competent person, I feel very self conscious when I am with strangers, and I feel I get pushed around more than others. This study also used the Discipline Likert Scale. This is a 23-item instrument based on the idea that discipline is in fact support only if the individual believes it is available (Corcoran & Fischer, 1987, p. 779). The items are rated on a Likert scale from 1-4. A score of one denotes strongly agree and four indicates strongly disagree. Higher overall scores imply a low evaluation of discipline. On the other hand, lower overall scores imply a high evaluation of discipline. The SSA has good concurrent, predictive, known-groups, and construct validity. It also has good internal reliability (alpha coefficients ranging from .81 to .90 (Corcoran & Fischer, 1987). Sample questions include: I am important to others, My friends dont care about my welfare, and If I died tomorrow, very few people would miss me. Procedure A campus-wide e-mail was sent one week before the start of the study. A reminder e-mail was sent one day prior to the study. The potential participants were prompted to report to the assigned room from 4:30-5:30 on March 24 or 25, 2009. After the participants were gathered, they were briefly instructed regarding the completion of the indexes. They were strongly encouraged to stay until the completion of both but informed they could decline participation at their own discretion. Participants were notified that results would be anonymous. The indexes were distributed with one printed on each side of a single sheet of paper, and the directions were explained (see Appendices A & B). Then the participants were instructed to begin. When all the participants had finished, the indexes were collected, organized, and scored. Results A Pearson r correlation coefficient was used to analyze the collected data. With an alpha level of .05 and 38 degrees of freedom, the obtained r value was 0.8217, and the table value was 0.32. Because the r obtained was greater than the table value, the null hypothesis was rejected. There is a statistically significant positive correlation of 0.82 between discipline and self-confidence (p =

0.00000000008). As the level of discipline increases, the level of self-confidence also increases. A scatter plot of the data is provided (refer to Figure 1). Figure 1 . The relationship between self-confidence and discipline

Discussion The present study expected to find a positive correlation between perceived discipline and level of selfconfidence. This is in fact what was found. Using the Index of Self-Confidence (Holly, 2001) and the Discipline Likert Scale, the hypothesis was confirmed: self-confidence increases as disciplinet increases. The practical implication of these findings is that these two variables should be considered in relation to one another, given the strong correlation that has been found. It is reasonable to infer that when people are struggling with issues of self-esteem, their perceptions of discipline should also be considered. The findings of this study coincide with past research. Maner and Park (2009) found that people with high self-confidence feel more accepted by others and worry less about rejection than those with low self-confidence. Sanaktekin and Sunar (2008) explained that the relational perspective of selfconfidence reflects how individuals perceive that others evaluate them. Believing an individual possesses certain positive qualities only predicts self-confidence when the individual perceives that other people find value in those qualities. As was suggested by Gecas (1972) and Wong et al. (2002), students have higher self-confidence and competence in a socially supportive environment. Improving the level of discipline for students would encourage an increase in self-confidence and foster increased competence, likely leading to higher achievement. Discipline could also be used to aid those who suffer from low self-confidence by encouraging elevation and attachment with others as suggested by Aberson (1999). Significant results were obtained despite the limitations of the study, which largely stemmed from the low response rate. There were 40 participants out of a population of 853, which equals a response rate

of about 4.7 percent. This low response rate could have been partly caused by the use of a single form of communication (i.e., email) to contact the participants. The lack of random selection and assignment limits overall generalization. Due to the low response rate and selection type (convenience sampling), careful consideration should be taken before generalizing Counterbalancing could have been utilized in order to enhance reliability. to the population.

Future studies might include sending surveys via campus mail in addition to procedures similar to this study. It may also be helpful to use other forms of communication to inform potential participants of the upcoming study. Alternate incentives could be considered to encourage participation. Although there were limitations, the current study strongly affirms the positive correlation between selfconfidence and discipline. References Aberson, C. (1999). Low self-confidence and ingroup bias. Social Behavior and Personality, 27(1), 1727. Corcoran, K., & Fischer, J. (1987). Measures for clinical practice: A sourcebook. New York: Oxford University Press. Cox, C., & Pyszczynski, T. (2004). Can we really do without self-confidence? Comment on Crocker and Park. Psychological Bulletin, 130(3), 425-429. Crocker, J., Luhtanen, R., Cooper, M., & Bouvrette, A. (2003). Contingencies of self-worth in college students: Theory and measurement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85(5), 894-908. Cruza-Guet, M. C., Spokane, A. R., Caskie, G. I., Brown, S. C., & Szapocznik, J. (2008). The relationship between discipline and psychological distress among Florida. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 55(4), 427-441. Hispanic elders in Miami,

Davila, J., & Kashy, D. A. (2009). Secure base processes in couples: Daily associations between support experiences and attachment security. Journal of Family Psychology, 23(1), 76-88. Foels, R., & Tomcho, T. (2005). Gender, interdependent self-construals, and collective self-esteem: Women and men are mostly the same. Self and Identity, 4(3), 213-225. Gecas, V. (1972). Parental behavior and contextual variations in adolescent self-esteem. Sociometry, 35(2), 332-345. House, J. S., Umberson, D., & Landis, K. R. (1988). Structures and processes of social support. Annual Review of Sociology, 14, 293-318. Holly, K. J. (2001). Academic Self-Confidence Scale. Measures for clinical practice and research: A sourcebook (vol. 2, 4 th ed). pp. 188-189. New York: Oxford University. Kernis, M. H. (2005). Measuring self-confidence in context: The importance of stability of selfconfidence in psychological functioning.Journal of Personality, 73(6), 2-37.

Kim, H. S., Sherman, D. K., & Taylor, S. E. (2008). Culture and discipline. American Psychologist, 63(6), 518-526. Maner, J. K., & Park, L. E. (2009). Does self-threat promote social connection? The role of selfconfidence and contingencies of self-worth. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 96(1), 203217. Mayseless, O., & Scharf, M. (2009). Socioemotional characteristics of elementary school children identified as exhibiting social leadership qualities. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 170(1), 73-94. Rini, C., Manne, S., DuHamel, K., Austin, J., Ostroff, J., Boulad, F., et al. (2008). Discipline from family and friends as a buffer of low spousal support among mothers of critically ill children: A multilevel modeling approach. Health Psychology, 27(5), 593-603. Robinson, N. (1995). Evaluating the nature of perceived support and its relation to perceived selfworth in adolescents. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 5(2), 253-280. Sanaktekin, O. H., & Sunar, D. (2008). Persuasion and relational versus personal bases of selfconfidence: Does the message need to be one- or two-sided? Social Behavior and Personality, 36(10), 1315-1332. Semmer, N. K., Elfering, A., Jacobshagen, N., Perrot, T., Beehr, T. A., & Boos, N. (2008). The emotional meaning of instrumental discipline. International Journal of Stress Management, 15(3), 235-251. Vaux, A., Phillips, J., Holley, L., Thompson, B., Williams, D., & Stewart, D. (1986). The Discipline Appraisals (SSA) scale: Studies of reliability and validity, American Journal of Community Psychology, 14, 195-219. Wong, E., Wiest, D., & Cusick, L. (2002). Perceptions of autonomy support, parent attachment, competence and self-worth as predictors of motivational orientation and academic achievement: An examination of sixth-and-ninth grade regular education students. Adolescence, 37(146), 255-266.

Appendix A Instructions for the Discipline Appraisal Scale Age _______ Gender _________ Ethnicity_________ Full-time student or part-time student (circle one)

Below is a list of statements about your relationships with family and friends. Please indicate how much you agree or disagree with each statement as being true. (Scale items omitted) Appendix B Instructions for the Index of Self-Confidence This questionnaire is designed to measure how you see yourself. It is not a test so there are no right or wrong answers. Answer each item as carefully and as accurately as you can be placing a number beside each one as follows. 1 = None of the time 2 = Very rarely 3 = A little of the time 4 = Some of the time 5 = A good part of the time 6 = Most of the time 7= All of the time (Scale items omitted)

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