SELF-ESTEEM, LIFE SATISFACTION AND NEED FOR ACHIEVEMENT AMONG PEOPLE IN EARLY ADULTHOOD

Abstract

One of the most widespread theoretical concepts in psychology and psychotherapy is the rational-emotive theory. It provides explanations of how the individual evaluates the things that happen to him or her through the system of beliefs, and this makes it different in relation to other cognitive-behavioral theories and psychotherapeutic directions. The system of beliefs can be rational and irrational. Rational beliefs are characterized by: logical consistencies, flexibility and correspond with reality, while irrational beliefs are characterized by: logical inconsistencies, absolutism and do not correspond with reality. Self-esteem is often seen as a conditional concept which implies that a person is respected on the basis of the good things that he or she has done. A healthy alternative is unconditional self-acceptance. The need for achievment has its own irrational component because a person has a constant tendency toward personal achievements that will reflect his value as being. People in their early adulthood have a number of challenges that they face in everyday life, and they are very often related to the degree that reflects the respect towards oneself, the way in which life lives and how satisfied they are, as well as the intrinsic need for achievement. What was important to determine is how irrational beliefs affect the self-esteem of an early-aged person, the connection of self-esteem with life satisfaction, as well as gaining insight into whether the need for achievment with its irrational nature influences positively or negative for people who are in early adulthood. The survey included 100 respondents aged 30 to 40, of whom 50 male and 50 female. The following measuring instruments were used: Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Life Satisfaction Scale and General Attitude and Beliefs Scale. From the obtained results, we can see the following: self-esteem is in a negative significant correlation with irrational beliefs (p < .01); self-esteem is in a positive correlation with life satisfaction (p < .01) and self-esteem is in a negative significant correlation with the need to achieve (p < .05).