ABSTRACT
This study investigated the role of civic engagement, personality and sensation seeking on the social well-being of undergraduates. Participants were four hundred and fifty one (451) undergraduates. Their ages ranged between 16 to 35 years, with a mean age of 22.07. Cross sectional design was adopted. Four instruments were used for data collection. Civic Engagement Scale (Dolittle & Faul, 2013), Big Five Inventory (John, Donahue & Kentle, 1990), Arnett Inventory of Sensation Seeking Scale (Arnett, 1993), and Social Well-being Scale (Keyes, 1998). Seven hypotheses were tested. Step wise multiple regression was the main statistic used for data analysis. Results of the regression analysis showed that amongst the studied variables, only civic engagement was a significant predictor of social well-being (p < .001). The five dimensions of Personality; extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness were not significant predictors of social well-being. Similarly, sensation seeking did not also significantly predict social well-being. One good practical implication of the finding of this study is that individuals with patriotic minds and willingness to engage in civic duties are needed at all sectors to change our society for the best.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Appendices
Abstract
Chapter One
Introduction
Statement of Problem
Purpose of Study
Operational Definition of Terms
Chapter Two
Literature Review
Theoretical Review
Top-Down and Bottom-Up Factors
Sensation Seeking Theory
Big Five Personality Traits Dimensions
Astin’s Theory of Involvement
Role Theory
Socio Emotional Selectivity Theory
Self Determination Theory
Empirical Review
Civic Engagement and Social Well-being
Personality Role on the Social Well-being
Sensation Seeking Role on the Social Well-being
Summary of Literature Review
Hypotheses
Chapter Three
Method
Participants
Instruments
Procedure
Design and Statistics
Chapter Four
Results
Chapter Five
Discussion
Implications of the Study
Limitations of the Study
Suggestions for Further Studies
Summary and Conclusion
REFERENCES
Appendix
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction
The rise in social problems experienced by young people has provided an impetus for the development of programs and research to address well-being amongst youths; and research on social well-being (SWB) has increased considerably in the recent times. The study of social well-being in childhood through youth age, as a holistic concept, is still in its early stages. However, many of the more narrowly defined concepts under the broader banner of ‘social well-being’ have been studied for decades (Guttman & Louis, 1982).
The psychological concept well-being is a general term for the condition of an individual or group, for example their social, economic, psychological, spiritual or medical state; high well-being means that, in some sense, the individual's experience is positive, while low well-being is associated with negative happenings (Guttman & Louis, 1982). Social well-being, a psychosocial component of well-being is a multifaceted concept encompassing both individual capacities and social competencies.
In the past, many studies, have operationalized social well-being using objective criteria such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP) that reflect the relative prosperity of communities and societies (Andrews & Withey 1976), these studies describe social well-being as the basis for social equality, social capital, social trust; the antidote to racism, stigma, violence and crime (Aked, Marks, Cordon & Thompson, 2008). In this view, social well-being is seen as an end state in which basic human needs are met and people are able to coexist peacefully in communities with opportunities for advancement. This “end state” is characterized by equal access to and delivery of basic needs and services (water, food, shelter, and health services), the provision of primary and secondary education, the return or resettlement of those displaced by violent conflict, and the restoration of social fabric and community life.
This raises the question; what is the place of the global society especially the contemporary Nigerian society in addressing these challenges that when met, ensures better social well-being? Although researchers such as Aked and colleagues has maintained that it depends on the sum of individual mental well-being in a group, community or society; the quality of government – local, organisational, national and international; the quality of services and provision of support for those in need; the fair distribution of resources including income; the norm with regard to interpersonal relationships in a group, community or society, including respect for others and their needs, compassion and empathy, and authentic interaction (Aked, Marks, Cordon & Thompson, 2008). However, some recent work has operationalized social well-being in terms of behaviours that reflect community and organizational participation and membership (Coleman, 1988; Putnam, 2000).
One foremost socio psychologically based research on social well-being posits that individual-level social well-being can be conceptualized as having two facets: social adjustment and social support (McDowell & Newell, 1987). Social adjustment refers to the subjective satisfaction with relationships or the performance of social roles. Social support refers to the quality and number of persons whom an individual trusts and can rely on, as well as the degree to which one is needed and matters to others and society. Thus, social well-being as a psychological concept can be broadly defined as an individual’s appraisal of their social relationships, how others react to them, and how they interact with social institutions and community.
Measuring social well-being as individual perceptions is of key importance to the field. According to Larson (1996), the key to deciding whether a measure of social well-being is part of an individual’s health is whether the measure reflects internal responses to stimuli—feelings, thoughts and behaviours reflecting satisfaction or lack of satisfaction with the social environment.
The recognition that the way in which an individual relates to others and to their society is a key aspect of their social well-being led the researcher to adopt, for the purpose of this study, a more socially-oriented conceptualisation of well-being as proposed by Keyes (1998), which captures individuals’ appraisals of their own circumstances and functioning in society, along five dimensions: Social integration (individuals’ appraisal of the quality of their own relation with society and community); Social contribution (the feeling of being a vital member of the society, with something importance to offer to the world); Social acceptance (trusting others, and having favourable opinions on the human nature); Social actualisation (the evaluation of the potentials of society and it corresponds to the idea that society has potentials that come true through institutions and citizens); Social coherence (the perception of the quality and the organization of social world).....
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