Self-esteem among persons with severe mental illness

There has been little research to substantiate the nature and degree of self-esteem among persons with mental illness. The results reported here are from a study involving 92 clients with severe mental illness. The study explored the relation between work status and quality of life, drug attitudes, and self-esteem. In this analysis, positive self-esteem was found among all subjects and was significantly higher in workers than in nonworkers. In stepwise multiple regression analysis, feelings regarding functioning, valuing of work, social relationships, and activities with family explained 50% of the variance in self-esteem. Mental health professionals should not assume that clients with mental illness experience low self-esteem.