Effects of Inhibitory Control on Academic Engagement of Tertiary Institutions’ Undergraduates in FCT Abuja, Nigeria.

Effects of Inhibitory Control on Academic Engagement of Tertiary Institutions’ Undergraduates in FCT Abuja, Nigeria.

Aliyu Umar Yanda Ph.D & Giwa Muyibat Omobolanle

Department of Educational Psychology, FCT College of Education, Zuba, Abuja.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.51584/IJRIAS.2024.904015

Received: 30 March 2024; Accepted: 05 April 2024; Published: 09 May 2024

ABSTRACT

The study investigated the effects of control inhibition on academic engagement of Tertiary Institutions Undergraduates in FCT Abuja, Nigeria. The study adopted quasi-experimental design, using pre-test, post-test and Control groups. Three research questions and corresponding hypotheses guided the study. The population of the study consisted of all undergraduates in FCT Tertiary institutions in Abuja (85,188).The sample size of the study consisted of 371 undergraduates who were drawn through multi-stage sampling. The Instrument used for data collection included a self-developed Academic Engagement survey instrument (UAES), it has two sections. Section A contained demographic information of the respondents while section B contained 17 items on academic engagement and psychological well-being. The instrument for the treatment is “Inhibitory Control Treatment” (ICT) adapted and modified. The instruments were subjected to reliability analysis using Cronbach Alpha to determine the internal consistency and reliability index of 0.78 and 0.68 respectively were obtained while the content validity was ascertained by three test experts yielded a consensus coefficient of 0.82 and 0.78. The data was analyzed using inferential statistics of paired sample t-test at α 0.05 level of significance. The study’s findings demonstrated that ICT is significantly effective in improving the academic engagement of the Undergraduates in FCT Tertiary institutions. It was recommended that Educational Psychologist should therefore; apply ICT in improving the academic engagement of the undergraduates.

Keywords: Academic Engagement, Inhibitory control, undergraduate, Control group, Experimental group

INTRODUCTION

Many scholars agreed that Education is a necessity and human right, because education is prominent among the indices of growth and development of a country which everybody must have access to for increasing capacities of individuals to lead a life they value and participate in all socioeconomic aspects of life.

Academic Engagement refers to the extent and intensity with which students participate in and apply themselves to learning and other school activities, as well as the supportive relationships and structures that exist to support student engagement in school work (Newmann, 2016) and Students’ psychological effort and investment toward learning, understanding, or mastering the skills, crafts, or knowledge that the schoolwork is intended to promote.

Undergraduates in all climes including Nigeria and Tertiary Institutions in FCT Abuja in particular, tends to encounter series of problems on how to manage their interpersonal and intrapersonal relationship such as anxiety level, self-esteem, communication, assertiveness, peer pressure, economical issue, school adjustment, learning and studying difficulty among others, as a result, the academic engagement of the undergraduates was affected, reasonable numbers among the undergraduates could not graduate with their levels or mates, while some drop out of school system along the line due to one or more reasons.

Inhibitory Control System is to regulate the affective domain of the students. Educators considered learning related and social behavioral skills that can influence positive attitudes such as self-discipline, listening, cooperating, participating in group activities, communicating and acquiring self-help skills that support independence which is quite related to Inhibitory control system (Dunn, 2012). Lack of interest and un-seriousness among the Undergraduates’ is caused by several factors which anxiety is identified as one among other factors. Gilmore (2013) explained that Inhibitory Control has been described as a process reflecting the ability to inhibit a dominant or proponent response, activate a subdominant response, and stop an ongoing response, control attention, and interference in the pursuit of a goal, This implies that inhibition control is ability of the student to maintain maximum attention during learning.  Poor inhibitory control is often called impulsivity or hyperactive behavior when it relates to motor activity (e.g. high levels of poorly organized activity, loud playing, excessive talking, interrupting, tense and anxiety) and attentional problems when it relates to orienting, shifting of cognitive or visual focus, interference control, or the ability to sustain attention.

Inhibitory control can be defined as resisting distractions, giving a more considered response and avoiding ones first reactions (Eseinberg, 2011). It is the capacity to voluntarily inhibit or regulate proponent attentions or behavioral responses. It summarily focuses on regulating anxiety level of students. It is to improve an undergraduates ability to focus on relevant stimuli in the presence of irrelevant ones e.g. ability to follow the lecturers instructions in the classroom, to override in appropriate behavior tendencies in school such as lack of interest and undergraduates drop out of school. Inhibition Control is viewed as individual’s ability to resist distractions, to be stable and maintain emotional equilibrium in the face of internal and external stressor, giving a more considered response and avoiding ones first reactions (Goleman, 2018). Students who are anxious, angry, or depressed can neither learn effectively nor adjust well. Students who tend not to regulate nor control their inhibition are always sweating profusely during learning process, persistence shaking of leg, compulsive behavior, inferiority complex, phobia among others..

Anxiety is one of the most basic human inhibitory controls. Undergraduates experienced anxiety to some degree and ability to moderate the anxiety can determine their academic engagement. Anxiety responses can vary in their severity from mild uneasiness to extreme panic. A commonly cited definition of anxiety refers to a physiological state characterized by cognitive, physical, and behavioral components (Seligman, Walker & Rosenhan, 2014). These components combine to create the feelings that are typically recognized as fear or worry. Anxiety affects academic engagement through attention processes. It is assumed that anxious individuals allocate attention resources to threat-related stimuli and therefore anxiety impairs attention control, a key function of the central executive (Eynsenck et al., 2012). It is assumed that there is a connection between inhibitory control and moderating undergraduate’s anxiety level, when inhibition control is not in order, academic engagement may suffer and academic success may be difficult to attain. Guarav and james, (2012), buttressed that the extent to which undergraduates are engaged in school, builds a motivational context that enables them to deal with difficulties and failures in school.

According to the field survey of the Tertiary Institutions in FCT, there is an Increase in under graduates school disengagement as confirmed in each school faculty at different levels, this can be traced to lack of inhibition control skill. Iruloh (2018) mentioned some risk factors that can influence undergraduate school disengagement e.g inappropriate classroom behavior such as aggression and impulsivity, poor social coping skills and poor academic achievement. Identifying this, students’ engagement in learning activities will be negatively affected.

Gender issues have been linked with academic engagement of students even though some studies have shown no significant difference in students adjustment in school Bilesanmi-Awoderu and Oludipe (2012), Gender refers to the social meaning associated with being male or female including the construction of identities, expectations, behaviors and power relationship that was derive from social interactions. However Gender is a factor that affects students’ Engagement as observed by Neboh & others (2012), their study showed that males were more controlled than females. The general long held view is that women are weaker being who cannot stand the stress and strain involved in problem or practical work. In Nigeria, in particular and Africa in general, gender bias still exists. It is assumed that the male students are more comported than the females, so they ten d to be more engaged more academically than the girls. According to Danjuma (2015), there is no interaction between student’s comportness and gender on students’ academic engagement and no significant difference between male and female students’ Academic engagement

Academic engagement is a fundamental factor to academic achievement and career attainement. However, individuals engaged in academic studies encounter with many factors within the environment. The dynamics of the multiple factors serves as core determinant of academic engagement rather than individual factors (Vekkaila, 2014). In relation to this, ability of the undergraduate to control their anxiety level might influence the academic engagement because anxiety decreases attention to goals and increases attention to stimuli such as internal worry and external distractors. Therefore, it is imperative for the researcher to investigate undergraduate ‘academic engagement and factors that can assist the students.

In this study the Researcher defined Inhibitory Control as psychological skills the students’ needs to acquire and use to stabilize their anxiety level during teaching and learning process to aid effective learning, enhance interest, boast self-esteem and adjusting well to school environment and situations, As thus the researcher views that Inhibitory Control may have a great influence on the Undergraduates Academic Engagement.

Statement of Problem

It was observed from the field survey to the FCT Tertiary Institutions in FCT Abuja that the rate of Nigeria undergraduates drop out is increasing yearly, while some of them have nonchalant attitude towards academic engagement (field survey 2022). If the menace is not control, it may affect the student’s productivity, mental wellness and society at large.  The menace has increased the rate of psychotics, irrational behavior such as examination malpractices, cultism and truancy among others.  All Undergraduates has ego that needs to be meet, either constructively or destructively. This paper, therefore sought to investigate the Effects of Inhibitory Control on Academic Engagement of Tertiary Institution Undergraduates in FCT Abuja, Nigeria.

Aims and Objectives of the Study

The study investigates the effects of Inhibitory Control on Academic Engagement of Tertiary Institution Undergraduates in FCT Abuja, Nigeria. Precisely, the objectives are to:

1. Determine the difference in the pre-test and post-test Engagement scores of the respondents exposed to Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT).
2. Ascertain if there are significant differences in the pre-test and post-test mean Engagement scores of males and female students exposed to ICT.
3. Ascertain if there are significant difference in the pre-test and post-test mean Anxiety scores of respondents exposed to the Control Group.

Research Questions

The following research questions guided the study:

1. Is there a difference in the pre-test and post-test Engagement mean scores of respondents exposed to ICT?
2. Is there a significant difference in the mean engagement scores of respondents exposed to ICT segregated by gender?
3. Is there a significant difference in the pre-test and post-test mean Anxiety scores of participants exposed to the Control Group?

Research Hypotheses

Based on the above research questions, the following null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study and were tested at 0.05 level significance.

Ho₁: There is no significant difference in the pre-test and post-test mean engagement scores of participants exposed to ICT.

Ho_2: There is no significant difference in the pre-test and post-test mean engagement scores of male and female students given ICT

H0₃: There is no significant difference in the pre-test and post-test mean anxiety scores of participants exposed to Control Group

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

The theoretical framework of this study is hinged on Social Learning Theory (SLT). Social learning theory focuses on the development of cognition in relation to the expected outcome of behavior. The theory suggests that an individual learns by observing the behavior of others and imitating them.  Attitudes formed through direct experiences with attitude object are more predictive of behavior than attitudes formed indirectly. Ability to control our inhibitions will enhance a good attitude and boast the students’ academic engagement. When a learner is psychologically stable, he will be more attentive in class and develop more interest in his study. In Nigerian Universities, the undergraduates that cannot inhibit their emotions in classroom can easily lack adequate school engagement and adjustment to schoolwork and they can be easily cajoled to dropout from school.

Nwadinigwe and Azuka (2016) carried out a research on impact of Control Inhibition on academic achievement of senior secondary school students in Lagos. The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between control inhibition and academic achievement among senior secondary school students. Samples of 156 participants randomly selected from three senior secondary schools were used. The research design was experimental research design. Two research hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The first hypotheses states there is no significant difference in post-test scores on academic achievement of participants in the experimental groups while the second one states there is no significant relationship between control inhibition skills and academic achievement among participants in the experimental groups. The hypotheses were tested using descriptive statistical method, analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) and Pearson product moment correlation coefficient statistics. The study revealed that there is a positive relationship between inhibitory control skills and academic achievement such that developing inhibitory control skills of a student will add to the enhancement of his/her academic achievement. Thus, there is the need to inculcate the development of inhibitory control skills into the school curriculum. This is considered important because of its impact in improving the academic achievement of students. The finding of this study is in line with this present study; the gap is that this study is looking at the academic engagement while the latter focus on academic achievement. This may assist stakeholders in the education sector in developing a better understanding of the effects of inhibitory control on the academic engagement of the tertiary institution in Nigeria.

Alexandros, Dimitrios and Labros (2016), carried out a research to determine the Effects of inhibitory control on Academic Performance of university students of TEI of Athens, Greece. The relationship between inhibitory control (IC) and Academic Performance in Athens although investigated in previous studies, has failed to yield consistent findings raising the need for further study. The researcher’s purpose of the study, illuminate the link between IC and student academic achievements. Furthermore, the gender differences were investigated in regard to possible differences of IC and its facets and their respective relationship to performance. 30-item Likert scale questionnaire was used. The sample size is Six hundred (600) university students. They were asked to respond to the 30 IC-related questions and report their GPA, both the actual and the one they perceived they deserved. A regression analysis was used to determine the explaining power of IC over the student performance. The results indicate that there is a statistically significant relationship between IC, overall as well as two of its facets with academic performance. Furthermore, gender differences were also found in self-control and emotionality. The implications of this study for educators and academic policy makers are considerable, since the systematic fostering of IC in students could lead to greater educational outcomes and more effective institutions.

Moyosola, A.J, Daramola, A.C., & Adedoyin, O.A., (2019) examined the impact of study habits and Inhibitory control on academic performance of secondary school students. Six hypotheses guided this study. A descriptive research design of survey type was employed for this study. The study investigated the impact of study habits and Inhibitory control on the academic performance of secondary school students in Akoko South-West of Ondo State, Nigeria. This study adopted descriptive research design of survey type. The target population comprised students in public secondary schools in Akoko South-West of Ondo State, Nigeria. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select two hundred (200) secondary school three (SSS 3) students [Male = 83 (41.5%); Female = 117 (58.5%)] that participated in the study. The mean age of the sample was 15.44 years (SD = 2.86).Data collected were analyzed using inferential statistics and the hypotheses were tested using t-test at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that study habits significantly influenced academic performance of secondary school students and that Inhibitory control significantly influenced academic performance of secondary school students. It was recommended that teachers and school psychologist should ensure that inhibitory of the students is enhanced through appropriate techniques.

Mervat (2016) study investigate the relationship between inhibitory control, psychological adjustment and academic achievement among female students with and without social learning difficulties in Najran, Saudi Arabia, and to identify if there are statistically significant differences in the level of inhibitory control among normal female students and those with social learning disabilities. To achieve the objectives of the study, the author prepared and applied the inhibitory control scale and Hugh M. Bell Adjustment Inventory (1934). The validity of the two scales were verified on a sample of (120) female students, selected from (5) elementary schools. The study resulted that the level of inhibitory control among normal female students and those with social learning disabilities was above median, the results also showed the presence of positive statistically significant correlation between both inhibitory control, psychological adjustment and academic achievement among the normal female students (without social learning difficulties), with no statistically significant correlation between them among the students with social learning disabilities. The study recommends that designing activities based on life experience for students with social learning difficulties to develop their inhibitory control skills, which have an impact on providing them with useful and important life skills such as emotion management skills, self-regulation, empathy, motivation, and social skills.

Iruloh and Ukaegbu (2018) study was designed to determine the extent to which inhibitory control competencies predict academic adjustment of first year university undergraduates in Rivers State, Nigeria. Correlational design by multiple predictions was adopted for the study. Two research questions and two corresponding hypotheses guided the conduct of the study at 0.05 alpha levels. A sample of 382 first year university undergraduates of Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Port Harcourt, 2015/2016 academic session was drawn from the population through simple and proportional stratified random sampling techniques. Two instruments namely; Mangal inhibitory Inventory and Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire – Academic subscale were used for data collection. Simple and multiple regression analyses were used for data analysis. All data were subjected to analysis using statistical package for social science (SPSS). Results showed that inhibitory control statistically significantly predicted academic adjustment of first year university undergraduates. The study concludes it is therefore recommended that university authorities should introduce personality development programmes that will provide training in emotional skills that will help university undergraduates in their overall adjustment to the new university environment.

Bilesanmi-Awoderu and Oludipe (2012) study investigated the effectiveness of cooperative learning strategies on Nigerian Junior Secondary students’ academic achievement in basic science. Study Design: Quasi experimental pretest-posttest – delayed posttest control group design was used by the researchers to carry out the study. Place and Duration of Study: CSIT department, faculty of education, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye and Basic science department, school of science, tai Solarin College of Education, Omu-Ijebu, South-west, Nigeria, between March 2009 and October 2010. The treatments were at two levels: cooperative learning strategies (learning together and jigsaw II) and conventional lecture method, which was the control group. The moderating variable was anxiety (high and low). Total number of one hundred and twenty students (120) obtained from the intact classes of the three selected Junior Secondary Schools in South-west Nigeria participated in the study. Achievement Test for Basic Science Students (ATBSS), and Basic Science Anxiety Scale (BSAS) were the main Covariance (ANCOVA) were used to analyze the data collected. Also Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA) was used to determine the magnitude of the mean achievement scores of students exposed to the different treatment conditions. The results of this study indicated that there were significant main effects of treatment on all the dependent measures. There were also significant main effects of anxiety on the students’ post and delayed-post academic achievement scores in basic science. Furthermore, there were significant interaction effects of treatment and anxiety on the academic achievement of students at the posttest and delayed-posttest levels. This study revealed that students in the two cooperative learning strategy (Learning Together and Jigsaw II) groups had higher immediate and delayed academic achievement mean scores than the students in the conventional-lecture group. Learning together and Jigsaw II cooperative teaching strategies were found to be more effective in enhancing students’ academic achievement and retention in basic science more than the conventional-lecture. When friendliness is established, students are motivated to learn and are more confident to ask questions from one another for better understanding of the tasks being learnt.

METHODOLOGY

The study is quasi experimental research design. It involves pre-test and post-test design with experimental and control groups while The population for this study consists of all undergraduates in Tertiary Institutions of FCT, Abuja which its total is 85,188

Field Survey 2024

Morgan and krejice sampling techniques was used to select 371 sample sizes from the population Multistage Random sampling was used to select 2 tertiary institutions specifically University of Abuja, and FCT College of Education Zuba. 186 undergraduates was randomly selected from University of Abuja and 185 from FCT College of Education Zuba which make a total of three and seventy one (371) sampled size for the study. University of Abuja was used as control group while FCT COE Zuba was used for experimental group.

Academic Engagemet Survey (UAES) Instrument was adapted and modifield fromUtrreacht Work Engagement scale- Student (UWES-S) (developed by Schaufeli, Martinez Pinto, Salanova and Bakker, 1996 and adapted in 2002). It was used as pre- test for both groups.

Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT) was Adapted and modified from the work of Eisenberg, (2012). It is a behavioral regulation system designed as a treatment used for the experimental group. The researcher trained the students on how to control and moderate level of anxiety. It explores the basic concept of inhibitory control, Types of inhibition, predictor, criterion scale and criterion measures. The training takes place for 10 weeks.

The content validity of ICT and UAES instrument was ascertained by three test experts. Cronbach Alpha statistics was used to obtain a reliability coefficient value of 0.78 and 0.68

Treatment Procedure

The study was done in three stages:

Stage 1:            Pre-test Assessment

Stage 2:           Treatment Assessment

Stage 3:           Post-test Assessment

Stage 1: Pre-test Assessment

The researcher gave Academic Engagement Survey (UAES) instrument to all of the participants in both groups as a pre-test evaluation. This pre-test was the initial step in the pre-treatment evaluation. The goal was to determine the respondent’s degree of academic engagement level and also obtaining their pre-test scores. The information was used to create a baseline proforma against which the post test results were evaluated. Following that, the treatment was administered, followed by the post-test evaluation.

Stage 2: Treatment Assessment

This is the experimental stage, which began 2 weeks following pre-test evaluation, during which the subjects were exposed to treatment package ICT. The Control group received no therapy. For Ten weeks, the treatment groups met. Each week, there were two classes. Each lasting 60 minutes.

Stage 3: Treatment Assessment

After treatment, both experimental and control groups were post-tested by administering same instrument utilized for the pre-test (UAES) after which their results were compared at the end of the procedure. The data collected were analyzed using inferential statistics of paired sample t-test at 0.05 level of significance.

FINDINGS

Hypothesis One: will there be any difference in the pre-test and post-test academic engagement of undergraduate in FCT tertiary institutions exposed to Inhibitory Control Treatment?

Table 1: Paired Sample T-test of Pre-test and Post-test Mean Scores of undergraduate academic engagement among the undergraduate exposed to ICT.

α = 0.05

Table 1 showed a t- value of -5.864 and a p- value of .000 testing. The p-value is less than the alpha level. So the null hypothesis which states that “there is no significant difference in the pre-test and the post- test of undergraduate’s academic engagement” is rejected. Consequently, ICT is significantly effective in restructuring the academic engagement of the undergraduates in FCT Tertiary Institutions.

Hypothesis Two: will there be any difference in the male and female pre-test and post-test academic engagement mean Scores of undergraduates exposed to ICT?

Table 2: Paired Sample of T-test of male and female Pre-test and Post-test academic engagement of undergraduates exposed to ICT.

α = 0.05

The result in table 2 revealed the pre-test / post-test mean and Standard Deviation responses of the male and female academic engagement scores of undergraduates exposed to ICT .The table revealed the pre-test Mean score of 1.4294 with a SD of .57658 and the post mean scores of 1.5588 with SD of .50399 a mean difference of 0.1294 for the female. However, the table showed a pre-test mean score of 3.1176 with a SD of .81431 and a post-test mean score of 3.1176 with a SD of 0.80772 and a mean difference of 1.6764 for the male. so the null hypothesis which states “there is no significant difference in the Pre-test and Post-test academic engagement mean scores of the undergraduates exposed to ICT is rejected. This implies that ICT is more effective in restructuring the academic engagement of the female undergraduates more than the male.

Hypothesis three: will there be any difference in the Pre-test and Post-test anxiety mean scores of respondents exposed to the control group?

Table 3: Paired Sample t-test of pre-test and post-test anxiety mean scores of Undergraduates exposed to Control group.

α = 0.05

Table 3 showed a t- value of 6.239 and a p- value of .000 testing. The P-value is less than the alpha level. So the null hypothesis which states that “there is no significant difference in the pre-test and post-test academic engagement mean scores of Undergraduates exposed to Control group” is rejected. As a result, the pre-test and post-test scores of undergraduates subjected to non-inhibitory control varied significantly

DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS

The findings of the study in research question 1 and the hypothesis showed a significant difference in the pre-test and post-test mean scores of the academic engagement among undergraduates exposed to Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT). Thus, it showed that the treatment was effective in moderating the concentration, focus in classroom, personal adjustment and ability to override unpleasant stimulus and inhibit desirable behavior that is needed to excel in academics this is in line with the work of Iruloh (2018), who mentioned some risk factors that can influence undergraduate school disengagement e.g inappropriate classroom behavior such as aggression and impulsivity, poor social coping skills and poor academic achievement. Identifying this, the Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT), will help to improve students’ engagement in learning activities positively. The study further agrees with the study of Nwadinigwe & Azuka (2016) and Iruloh & Ukaegbu (2018) that also discovered in their studies that inhibitory control is efficacious in improving students’ academic engagement. The researchers concur with the above report as the goal of Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT) is to restructure the thinking and academic engagement of the undergraduates.

Also, the result for research question two and the corresponding hypothesis showed that the Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT) is more effective in reconstructing the academic engagement of the female more than the male. This is in line with the work of Moyosola, A.J, Daramola, A.C., & Adedoyin, O.A., (2019) and Mervat (2016) revealed the relationship between inhibitory control, psychological adjustment and academic achievement among female students with and without social learning difficulties. The researchers concur with the above report as the goal of Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT) is to improve the academic engagement of the undergraduates irrespective of the gender.

The findings of the study in research question 3 and the corresponding hypothesis also revealed that Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT) is a psychotherapeutic treatment that assists the undergraduates identify and change risky behavior that can have negative influence on their academic engagement by learning how to moderate their anxiety level effectively. To buttress the above, the work of Bilesanmi-Awoderu& Oludipe (2012), revealed that there were significant interaction effects of Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT)   and anxiety on the academic achievement of students.

Thus, based on the findings of the study, there is need for professional educational psychologist to propagate the use of Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT)  in assisting the Undergraduates adjusting well to all the psychological, emotional and social factors that can affect their academic engagement negatively to reduce the level of Undergraduates dropouts and not graduating with one’s level or mate.

CONCLUSION

From the findings of this study, it was concluded that Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT) was effective in restructuring the mind-set of Undergraduates to facilitate the needed academic engagement for career attainment and self-actualization.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Based on the findings of this study, the following recommendations were made:

1. Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT) was effective in assisting the under graduates to improve the academic engagement which is the core to career attainment. Therefore, professional Educational Psychologist should propagate its use in tertiary institutions to assist the undergraduates develop healthy personalities necessary for achieving their life goals.
2. Many Nigerian Undergraduates have maladaptive behavior which affects their academic engagement negatively such as personality disorder, aggression, depression anxiety, phobia etc. hence, the use of Inhibitory Control Treatment (ICT) by professional psychologist is pivotal in assisting such undergraduates to achieve psychological well-being.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This is to acknowledge the Assistance of Tertiary Education Trust Fund (tetfund) for sponsoring this research.

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