SELF-ESTEEM DIFFERENCES AMONG PERSONS WITH SPINAL-CORD INJURY

Little empirical research exists to support the claim that the period initially following a spinal cord injury (SCI) is the most critical in maintaining one's level of self-esteem. Sixty-three people with SCI were surveyed in either their first, second, or fifth year post-injury using the Culture-Free Self-Esteem inventory (Battle, 1992). Results indicated that perceived level of self-esteem decreased following the SCI. Fifteen demographic variables considered were age, sex, level of injury, level of education, years since injury, marital status, race, preinjury activity status, postinjury activity status, current living status, shared living, health status, insurance coverage, cause of injury, and attribution of blame regarding the injury.