Question

Dimitri went through a lot of hard work during basic training in the army. at times, drill sergeants yelled at him; he was physically exhausted and emotionally distressed. but, at the end of basic training, he felt that joining the army had been a very good decision. the self-esteem explanation for dimitris feelings about basic training is that

Answer 1

Here is the answer: Dimitri has to somehow justify his suffering while maintaining his self-esteem.
Basing on the scenario above, despite having been scolded by sergeants which lowered his self-esteem, he still thinks that being in the Army would be a good thing for him and he maintained this confidence within himself.