BEHAVIOUR PROBLEMS AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN AWKA-NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF ANAMBRA STATE (GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS)
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study
Behaviour problem is defined as behaviour that is socially defined as a problem, as a source of concern, or as undesirable by the social/legal norms of conventional society and its institutions of authority, and usually elicits some form of control response (Jessor, Graves, Hanson and Jessor, 2008). Behaviour problem among secondary school students are of concern to educators, counsellors and psychologists. This is because of the potential of Behaviour problem at the adolescent stage to undermine the achievement of both personal and national development goals. The danger to achievement of goals stems, largely, from the varying control responses that are often elicited with regard to Behaviour problem.
Behaviour problems are broadly classified into two categories: externalizing problem behaviours, and internalizing problem behaviours. Externalizing problem behaviours are characterized by emotions, feelings and actions that are aggressively outwardly expressed, usually toward other persons. These include: physical aggression, property damage, violation of the rights of others and of social norms as well as a disregard for authority. Internalizing problem behaviours, on the other hand, are characterized by actions, emotions, and feelings that are inwardly directed at the individual. These include: overwhelming anxiety, depression, and loneliness. Both forms of Behaviour problems are recognized as being prevalent among secondary school students the world over.
Adolescents have varying degree of behavioural problems such as indiscipline, truancy, bullying and examination malpractice ranging from indiscipline, truancy, bullying to alcohol consumption. Indiscipline is a multifaceted phenomenon regarding its displays and causes as well as its meanings and functions in the social, psychosocial and pedagogical fields. Concerning its displays, Freire and Amado (2009) believed that the major situations are framed in what they point out as the first level of indiscipline and which are those incidents of disruptive nature whose disturbance affects the good classroom functioning. The incidents that might be framed in the second and third levels are conflicts among peers and conflicts within teacher-student relationship which might be taken on proportions of violence and even delinquency.
