Perceived Ostracism, Self-Esteem, and Social Anxiety among Minority Christian Students in Schools of Faisalabad, Pakistan

Abstract

The main objective of the present study is to investigate the relationship between perceived ostracism, self-esteem and resulting social anxiety among minority students in the schools of Faisalabad district. This study has been undertaken to highlight the problems faced by minority students because of avoidance or being overlooked in light of their religious differences. This leads to a decrease in self-esteem, which makes it hard for minority students to foster a positive self-idea. Diminished self-worth fuels social anxiety, as students expect dismissal and avoidance in future social communications (Christian and Barbarin,2019). The population of the study was 300 respondents, (150 were Male, and 150 were female) minority students. Out of 300 participants, 121 were 9th-class students (40.3%) and 179 were 10th-class students (59.7%).A correlation analysis was conducted between perceived ostracism on self-esteem and resulting social anxiety while using tools Ostracism Experience Scale for Adolescents by Richard Gilman (2013), Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale by Morris Rosenberg (1965), and The Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale by Michael Liebowitz (1987). The effect of perceived ostracism on self-esteem and social anxiety makes a pattern of social evasion and detachment, making it hard for minority students to frame significant associations and participate in social exercises. Minority students might battle to arrive at their maximum capacity because of the adverse consequence on their self-esteem, social anxiety, and scholarly inspiration. Perceived ostracism, in this way, has relation with the self-esteem and social anxiety levels of minority students. The abstract insight of avoidance or being overlooked in light of their racial or ethnic foundation builds up bad generalizations and subverts their healthy identity worth. It is found that there is considerable discrepancy in the perceived ostracism of minority students of different ages. Particularly perceived ostracism is significantly higher in minority students (p<0.01) than in other age groups. Moreover, it is revealed that self-esteem is significantly low in minority students (p<0.01) than in other age groups. To diminish the destructive impacts of perceived ostracism, it is strongly recommended that Instructive organizations ought to focus on establishing comprehensive conditions that celebrate the variety and advance a feeling of having a place for all students, including minority students. Coordinated effort with guardians and the more extensive local area is vital in tending to the effect of perceived ostracism on minority students.