Abstract
The study investigated the claim that parenting styles influences deviant behaviour of secondary school students in Obollo-Afor Education Zone. A purposive sampling method was adopted using four hundred deviant students from twenty selected schools in the Education Zone. Data collected were analysed using frequency counts and mean to answer research questions raised in the study. The hypotheses were tested using analysis of variance.
Based on the analysis, the following findings were made:
- Deviancy in behaviour has negative influence on secondary school students’ relationship and their academic performance.
- The result revealed three types of parenting style, authoritarian, authoritative and permissive parenting style. Parenting styles influence students’ deviant behaviours. Although the rate at which each parenting styles influences varies.
- Gender influences students’ deviant behaviour. However, the rate of involvement in deviant behaviour is higher for male than female.
- School location also influences students’ deviant behaviour. Respondents from urban locations are more involved in deviant behaviour than respondents from rural areas.
Finally, it was recommended among others that since the parenting style adopted by the parents influence deviant behaviour of students, there is need for the parents to adopt authoritative parenting style. This will reduce deviant behaviour among students and ensure, peaceful co-existence.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
The out-cry of the police and the general public on recent involvement of adolescents in deviant behaviours is an indication that all is not well. There has been increasing concern of the police and the general public on the seriousness of adolescent’s crime and conduct problems (Wu, Chia, lee and lee 1998). They reported that juvenile delinquency rate rose from 367 to 538 per 100,000 between 1986 and 1996. They claimed that most of the juveniles arrested in 1996 were arrested for petty crimes such as theft, 38 percent were arrested for shoplifting and 18 percent for simple theft. The outcome of their research also showed that most serious crimes such as rioting, robbery and extortion accounted for 15 percent.
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Deviant behaviours among Nigeria citizen in general and Nigeria students in particular pose a big threat to the smooth running of educational and other related institutions. For quite a longtime deviant behaviours has been a national problems. This was why one time Head of State, Major General, Bulari on attempt to rescue the nation from this social malady in 1984 declared a total war against indiscipline (WAI). The aim of which was to bring back deviant behaviours to normalcy. Inspite of this, deviant behaviours among secondary schools students still abound.
Deviancy in a sociological context describes actions or behaviours that violate cultural norms including formally enacted rules as well as informal violations of social norms of a group Kring, Davison, Neale and Johnson (2007:31) indicated that the diagnostic criteria for antisocial personality disorder (ADP) includes two major components, namely;
A pervasive pattern for the rights of others since the age of 15 and the presence of a conduct disorder before age 15, such as truancy, running away from home, frequent lying, theft, arson and deliberate destruction of property, working only inconsistently, breaking laws, being irritable, physical aggressive, defaulting on debt, being reckless, impulsive, neglecting to plan ahead, showing, little regard for truth and little remorse for their misdeeds.
Bringham, Shope and Raclumathen (2006) refer to such behaviours which are socially proscribed and prohibited as problem behaviour. Any behaviour that falls short of societal norms, values, beliefs and expectations are undesirable behaviours (Okorodudu Okorodudu, 2003). Onyechi and Okere (2007) in their study identified the following as deviant behaviours exhibited frequently and persistently in the classrooms: walking out on teacher, noise making, sleeping in class, pinching, aggression, vandalism, pilfering, lies, truancy, tardiness, irresponsibility, cheating, immorality, alcoholism, use of drugs, cultism, examination malpractice, among others. In the context of this study, deviant behaviours are those behaviours or actions that are different in moral and social standard from what is considered normal and acceptable by society or institution. Some examples of these deviant behaviours as they exist in the schools are truancy, noise making, sleeping in class, walking out on the teacher, pilfering, cultism, examination malpractice, immorality among others.
Problem behaviour among students has become a major issue in secondary schools in Nigeria. There are revised rules and regulations laid down in post primary schools of Enugu State to be observed by both staff and students so as to provide conducive atmosphere for teaching and learning Ndidi (2007). The problem is that students fail to go along with these rules and regulations thereby constituting a stumbling block to the noble ideals of teaching and learning.
Many researchers agree that the foundation of deviant behaviour is rooted in the kind of home the adolescent is brought up (Odebumi, 2007; Otudah, 2008; Okpako, 2004; Utii 2006). The relationship between a student and his or her parents has been noted to have an influential impact on not only the student’s behaviour in school but also in his or her life generally (Mandara, 2006). Numerous studies such as Baumrind, 1991; Maccoby and Martin, 1992; Mandara, 2006; and Micki, 2008, have shown that the parenting style experienced by children, contribute in no small measure to the moulding of the behavioural pattern generally. The basis for good behaviour orientation and good adolescent attitude development is founded on positive parenting (Utti, 2006). Okpoko (2004) stated that parents should be blamed and be made to take responsibility for the misfortune that befalls the adolescents. Hence, this study wishes to examine how deviant behaivours are influenced by parenting styles.
Parenting seems to play crucial roles in adolescent’s transition to adulthood. It is a major vehicle in socializing the child (Utti, 2006). Parenting according to Okpako, (2004) Utti, (2006) is the act of child upbringing, training and rearing or child education. In this study, parenting is a great responsibility and life long activity which involves caring and bringing up of children by parents or guardians. Odebunmi (2007) and Okpako (2006) identified some factors which will make for positive parenting as provision of children’s need, goods, shelter, water, love, warmth, affection, education, control, monitoring, dialogue, supervision among others. However, factors which constitute negative parenting (poor parenting) were equally identified as lack of care, inadequate monitoring and supervision. These and a lot of other conditions may prong secondary school students into deviant behaviours.
Parenting styles are categorized into three major forms. The authoritarian, authoritative or democratic and the permissive or laissez-faire parenting style (Baumind, 1991). The authoritarian parenting style constitute of parents who are strict, harsh (Aug & Groh, 2006). In authoritarian parenting style, children are exposed to a kind of master servant relationship with their parents where overly hash, punitive with no freedom to the children takes places. Parents in authoritarian parenting style are always aggressive. Psychologists like Utti, 2006 Mandera 2006; & Okpako, 2004 showed that authoritarian parenting style has negative connotation in literature because of the negative behavioural outcomes on adolescents and children. Adolescent under this style are always aggressive, and irresponsible (Utti 2006). Authoritative parents according to Ang and Groh, (2006) are flexible and responsive to the child’s needs but still enforce reasonable standards of conduct. Some researchers found that authoritative parenting style has more positive effects on the adolescent behaviours. In authoritative parenting style, adolescents are given the freedom to explore and are in good communication with their parents. Permissive or laissez-faire parents are those who impose few restrictions, rules or limits on their children (Ang & Grol, 2006). According to Ang and Groh laissez-faire parenting is a kind of parenting without well defined or clear cut goals and such parents play a passive role in rearing of children.
Utti (2006) in a research conducted on relationship between parenting style and student’s academic achievement found that laissez-faire parenting had more negative effects to the student’s academic achievement. Chao (1994) and Mandara (2006) on the study conducted on the influence of parenting styles on student’s performance found that children from authoritative parenting style are associated with higher achievement among Europe Americans while those form Hispanic and African Americans win parenting style is authoritarian or uninvolving are on the average lower in achievement compared to their European Americans. Another study conducted on the influence of parenting styles on risk behaviour of adolescents showed that adolescents from authoritarian and permissive parenting style are more involved in risk behaviour than adolescents from authoritative parenting style (Akimola, Yisuf & Okesola 2009). The purpose of this study is to find out the influence of parenting styles on deviant behaviours of secondary school students in Obollo-Afor Education zone.
The issue of deviant behaviour appears to be linked to gender too. According to Bauimann (2000) gender is culturally and socially constructed difference between men and women (as indicated by terms such as gender affairs and gender politics) that varies from place to place and time to time. Gender is a sociological concept used commonly among scholars in the social sciences to refer to the socio-cultural distinction between males and female (Terry and Hogg, 1996). In this study, gender is a distinction between male and female in the society based on their roles and privileges assigned to them by the culture. Notably, human activities throughout the world are organized according to social differentiation that people make between men and woman.
