Abstract of

Lost in the Middle: An Examination of the Effects of an All-girls Support Group on the Self-esteem of Middle School Girls

by

Wendy Herrrick

Spring 2006

California State University, Sacramento

Statement of the Problem

Middle school is a time where girls are filled with nervous anxiety from the time they enter campus until the final dismissal bell rings at the end of the day. These girls are pressured to “fit in” by media, pop culture, society, parents, and peers. The American Association of University Women Report: How Schools Shortchange Girls (1992) states that “[e]nvironments where students do not feel accepted are not environments where effective learning can take place” (p.74). Girls enter middle school feeling vulnerable to all of the pressures, thus raising their affective filters and decreasing their academic achievement and potential (AAUW, 1992; Wiseman, 2002).

Sources of Data

The decrease in self-esteem, confidence, and the loss of voice in middle school girls as researched by The American Association of University Women (1992), Brown and Gilligan (1992), Dr. Mary Pipher (1994), Peggy Orenstein (1994), Drs. David and Myra Sadker (1994), and Snyderman and Streep (2002). Rosalind Wiseman’s (2002) definitions of relationships, groupings, and cliques were reviewed to understand how the school climate and dynamics of groups affect the self-esteem of adolescent girls.

Conclusions Reached

Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Survey was administered as a pre and post survey in order to measure any increases and/or decreases in the overall self-esteem of the participants. The quantitative data from this study shows a significant improvement in the overall self-esteem and self-worth of the girls who participated in GIRLPOWER. Four of the 10 statements showed a significant increase in scores on the four-point Likert scale that reflects the positive influences GIRLPOWER had on the overall feelings of sense of self of the girls.