Purpose: The purpose of the study was to examine whether self-esteem can be affected by unemployment and whether social support, self efficacy and perceived control have any effects on self-esteem during unemployment.

Method: The study was of a quantitative and descriptive character and a convenience sample was used. Questionnaires were distributed to 64 unemployed males and females at a job-centre inEast Midland,England. The questionnaire consisted of 12 questions about the participant’s age, gender, education, length of unemployment, social support (meaning emotional support and help from friends and family), coping (meaning a person’s ability to handle a stressful and emotionally demanding situation).Rosenberg's self-esteem scale was also added into the questionnaire and the results were then analyzed by using a Likert scale.

Results: The results showed, that the majority of the unemployed scored 30 or higher on the self-esteem scale which indicates a low self-esteem according toRosenberg's self-esteem scale. Regarding social support from friends during job loss or unemployment, the majority of the unemployed with a low self-esteem, felt they didn't have social support from friends during unemployment. A small part of the unemployed who had high self-esteem, felt they had social support from friends during unemployment.

Discussion: Self-esteem is complex, and it was difficult to generalize the results in this study. However, it seems that social support, self efficacy and coping were important aspects regarding self-esteem.