ABSTRACT
This study was borne out of concern about the growing statistics of delinquent behaviour amongst secondary school students in Nigeria. The study examines the effect of juvenile delinquent behaviour on the social well-being of secondary school students in Ibadan North Local Government, Oyo State. The study sought to find out how delinquent behaviour affects academic performance, psychological well-being and social well-being of the students.
The research design adopted was the descriptive survey method. The target population comprised of some secondary school students from Orogun Grammar School and Immanuel High School in Ibadan North L.G, Ibadan. The schools were selected using the convenient sampling method. From these two schools, 150 students were selected using the random sampling method. A standardized questionnaire was used to collect the requisite data, and the data was analyzed using the t-test and the analysis of variance (ANOVA).
The results showed a significant relationship between delinquent behaviour and academic performance(r = .166, N= 150, P < .05), a significant relationship between delinquent behaviour and psychological well-being (r = .177, N= 150, P < .05), and a significant relationship between delinquent behaviour and social well-being (r = .343, N= 150, P < .05).
Based on these findings, due recommendations were made on how to educate youths about the ills of delinquent behaviour, and how to provide necessary intervention where needed.
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction
1.1 Background to the Study
One of the serious problems in the society today is juvenile delinquency (Olawoyin, 2017). It has been a national concern since the 1940s though it is too often seen as something ‘new’. Government has found it necessary to give attention to the issue of crime by juveniles just as it has to deal with other forms of crime and violence, which generally disrupt the peace of society. A juvenile is a child or a young person between the age of 7 and 17 years (Fadipe, 2009). The dictionary defines juveniles as ‘young persons no longer babies but not yet fully grown ‘Delinquency on the other hand, is defined as the quality or state of being delinquent; a tendency towards behaviour that is not in accordance with accepted social standard or with the law; having a tendency to exhibit socially unacceptable behaviour. Juvenile delinquency therefore is an anti-social misdeed in violation of the law by a minor that is punishable. The law also defines a delinquent juvenile as a young person who has violated the criminal code.
In every society, there are sets of norms which members are expected to observe, however, not every member of the society abides by those norms. Members who live contrary to the set normsare referred to as delinquents. Juvenile delinquency according to Ben-Yunusa (2008) initially has to do with children’s offences, misconduct or crime for which, it is thought, they are not directly responsible.
Bello (2006) observed that delinquent behaviours have assumed an alarming proportion in Nigeria. Nigerians are disturbed and anxious as they are concerned about the problem of delinquency in which today’s youths involve themselves. The issue of juvenile delinquency is being discussed on television, radio, newspapers and journals and recently on the internet. This cankerworm seems to survive despite efforts made by religious and moral education teachers to eliminate them through the inculcation of moral values in schools. English and English in Ben-Yunusa (2008) defined delinquency as a relatively minor violation of legal or moral code by children or adolescents. However, no delinquent act should be considered as minor because any act of delinquency can result to serious damage.
According to the World Youth Report (2003), the rise in juvenile delinquency has been virtually in all parts of the world since late 1990s and the early parts of the second millennium. This is presumably due to social and economic upheavals and the changes that have recently occurred throughout the African continent. The United Nations, Centre of Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs(UNCSDAHA) report on The global situation of youth in the 1990s: trends and prospects, also tend to attribute these problems to the great number of street and orphaned children, breakdown of family and social structures, rapid and dramatic social, political and economic changes that have taken place in Africa in recent decades (UNCSDHA, 1993). According to Urban Management Programme(2000), delinquency in Africa tends to be attributed primarily to hunger, poverty, malnutrition and unemployment, which are linked to the marginalization of juveniles in the already severely disadvantaged segments of society. Most of the urban poor live in slum and squatter settlements with overcrowded, unhealthy housing and a lack of basic services. All these would make the juveniles vulnerable to delinquent acts.
In Nigeria, juvenile delinquency involves the exploitation of children under the age of 18 in a way that prevents them from obtaining basic education and proper development same children are deprived of their rights, work under hazardous environment and bear burdens beyond their age Olufeagba (1990) noted that juvenile delinquency especially of the male child is so widely spread in Nigeria that it has been accepted by many as part of normal life.The author stressed that juvenile delinquency is an aberration which takes away the innocence of millions of children
According to Gibson et al.(2011), juveniles who grow up in a community where access to culturally approved goals by conventional means is denied, and where a large degree of social disorganization is present, find themselves in situations where social norms governing behaviour are not clearly defined. According to social strain theory the juveniles may discover that delinquent activities supply opportunity to achieve social identity and social status. Therefore, delinquent activities are defined by the perception of others in the society who defines whether an act is delinquent or not. Juvenile delinquency, also known as “juvenile offending”, is participation in an illegal or antisocial behaviour by minors (Siegel and Welsh, 2011). These are individuals younger than the statutory age of majority, which in Nigerian law, is below the age of 18 years. .
Juvenile delinquency according to English and English is such behaviour by a young person (usually 16 or 18 years depending on the state code) that can bring him to the attention of a court .In a broadest sense according to Ben-Yunusa (1998), a delinquent act is any behaviour of a young boy or girl that can be objected to more senior members of a society. Delinquency is basically a legal and relative term which refers to the breaking of the law of a particular country. An act therefore may make an adolescent delinquent in one country, but not necessarily in another. However, there are certain behaviours such as stealing and killing that are considered as violating the social and moral norms of most societies.For quite a long time, the issue of juvenile delinquency has become a great concern to Nigerian secondary schools, especially in Ibadan. Studies have shown that juvenile delinquency is rampant among secondary school students due to a number of causes which, according to Adeshina.(1999) and Sunday(2007) include; parents’ attitudes towards their children, the community,social class, frustration, peer group, foreign ideas,poverty,illiteracy, among others
1.2 Statement of the Problem
One of the major problems that pose a threat to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal number five is, juvenile delinquency. Education aims at enabling the Nigerian child to develop the spirit of patriotism, tolerance and other types of productive qualities of a citizen. Unfortunately juvenile delinquency has constituted a problem that has led to student’s attrition, late arrival at school, and low academic performance.Other related behaviours among students that are also of concern include, aggression, theft burglary, destruction of school property, truancy, rudeness and sexual harassment. These negative behaviours are observed amongst male and female students of different age categories and locations. According to the media report, the adolescents’ involvement in crimes is getting bolder each time. Their involvement was not only in petty crimes, but also includes rape, gangsterism, robberies, and even recruiting new members to commit crimes (Bernama, 2014)
Delinquent behaviours are also linked to quality of teaching and learning in the classrooms. The prevailing delinquent behaviours among students and the effect of these on the society led to the choice of the present research topic to enable the researcher investigate the effect of juvenile delinquent behaviour on the social well-being of secondary school students.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The overall objective of the study is to researcher investigate the effect of juvenile delinquent behaviour on the social well-being of secondary school students in Ibadan North Local Government of Oyo State. The specific objectives include:
i. To evaluate the nature, extent and causes of juvenile delinquent behaviour in secondary schools
ii. To determine the level of perceived social support and the level of psychological well-being among the delinquents
iii. To examine the impact of other personal characteristics in the promotion of delinquent behaviour to lead to low academic performance
iv. To suggest workable measures to minimizing the problem of juvenile delinquency in secondary schools
1.4 Significance of the Study
This type of study would be very useful to the government of Oyo State and Nigeria at large, as it would help facilitate measures and programs aimed at creating awareness about the ill effects of juvenile delinquent behaviour and social well-being of adolescents; and how to curtail deviant tendencies in students in Ibadan north and all students general. It should serve as a resource material for anyone that may want to learn and know more about drug abuse, its causes, and its consequences on health and how to manage drug abuse related issues.
1.5 Scope of the Study
The study is designed to investigate the effect of Juvenile Delinquent Behaviour on the Social Well-being of Secondary School Students. The study will be conducted in Ibadan North Local Government Area of Oyo State, Nigeria.
The study will put into consideration that Ibadan North East and Ibadan North West Local Government Area of Oyo State, Nigeria. The knowledge and awareness levels about juvenile delinquency among adolescent may not be similar to that of their counterparts from other local government. The need for this study was felt considering the fact that many studies on juvenile delinquency behaviour had focused on universities, polytechnics and colleges of education, but none from a secondary schools.
1.6 Operational Definition of Terms
Deviant/delinquentacts: Behaviours which are against societal accepted norms. For this study, these includes stealing, running away from home/school, eloping, rape and defilement, murder, abusing alcohol and drugs, Truancy, bulling and abusing other children.
Factors influencing juvenile delinquency are limited to Individual, Family and Community Factors.
Individual Factors: will refer to those factors that emanate from the individual’s emotional, social and self-control characteristics that are established early in life which in turn may contribute to juvenile delinquency.
Family factors: in this study refers to life situations such as inadequate child parenting styles, maltreatment, family violence, poverty, parentalsocial isolation or lack of sufficient emotional support, and parental supervision, abuse of alcohol and drugs, and lack of parental modelling which can contribute to delinquency.
Community factorswill be defined as factors such as neighbourhood domain like childhood exposure to violence, alcohol and drug abuse, poverty, disorganisations, peer pressure, lack of school bonding and technological which may influences the children negatively.
Juvenile Delinquency: This study defined the term juvenile delinquency as children below the age of 18years whose conducts are out of accord with accepted behaviour or the law.
Juvenile justice system: is a system that provides legal setting in which youth can account for their wrongs or receive official protection. In this study, this will include the Juvenile Remand Home and the courts
Juvenile Remand Home: refers to a temporary detention centre, under the administration of children’s department, to which children are committed by the court pending adjudication and final disposition of their cases.
Adolescent/youth/youngster: a young person that is just past the stage of puberty; in early teenage years or twenties.
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Item Type: Project Material | Size: 51 pages | Chapters: 1-5
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