Pakistan'da Ücret karşılığı çalışan ve çalışmayan ergenlerin özguveni ve yaşam doyumu

The present study is a mixed method study conducted with adolescents. The quantitative part of the study aims to examine the level of life satisfaction and selfesteem of a) working and non-working adolescents b) of adolescents who are forced to work and those who work on their own volition and c) the effect of family interdependence on the life satisfaction and self-esteem of working adolescents. Analysis revealed that working adolescents had higher levels of life satisfaction than non-working adolescents. The interaction between gender and the working status was also significant indicating that working girls had higher levels of life satisfaction as compared to non-working girls, whereas the difference between the life satisfaction scores of working and non-working males was not significant. Although results for self-esteem yielded no significant results, univariate analyses revealed that working girls had significantly higher levels of self-esteem than nonworking girls. The qualitative part aimed to provide an in-depth understanding of the meaning of working adolescents as it is perceived by working and non-working adolescents. The sample included 25 adolescents and thematic analyses revealed positive evaluations such as "enjoying working", "financial benefits" and "assisting family", whereas negative evaluations reflected themes such as "loss of educational opportunities", "heavy work demands", and that "adolescence is not the time to work". Cultural context of Pakistan, the school-attendance of the working adolescents as well as the female empowerment by bringing in money for the household are factors considered when discussing the results. Keywords: working adolescents, life satisfaction, self-esteem, familism