Abstract

Understanding self-esteem, leadership and resilience among at risk youth who are involved in illegal motorbike racing is a crucial issue prior to starting any intervention programs. It may provide an indication of their profile in order to change this negative behavior. This study aimed in examining the relationship between self-esteem, leadership and resilience among illegal motorbike racers and its comparison with normal adolescents. The study employed survey research involving the administration of three standardized psychological tests namely the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE), the adapted Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) and the Resilience Questionnaire (RQ). A total of 140 respondents participated in this study. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and t-test analysis. Results showed that there were significant correlations between self-esteem, leadership and resilience dimensions among normal adolescents. However there were no significant correlations between self-esteem, leadership and resilience dimensions among illegal motorbike racers. In addition, there were significant differences of self-esteem, leadership and resilience between normal adolescents and illegal motorbike racers. In conclusion, normal adolescents had higher self-esteem and leadership and they showed higher resilience while illegal motorbike racers showed lower self-esteem and leadership and in turn they were less resilient. This implied the need for continuous intervention programs in order to empower at risk youth. It was recommended that future studies explore other variables such as family and school variables that can influence resilience.

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