Self-Efficacy as a Predictor of Secondary School Students’ Social Adjustment in Anambra State

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume III, Issue VII, July 2019 | ISSN 2454–6186

Self-Efficacy as a Predictor of Secondary School Students’ Social Adjustment in Anambra State

Ada Anyamene, Esther Chinyere Ejichukwu, Ifeanyi Mathew Azuji
Department of Guidance and Counselling, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Akwa, Anambra State, Nigeria

Abstract: Within the school settings, students are constantly faced with numerous challenges which have been recognized as having some bearing on the way students adjust in schools socially. This study in essence investigated self-efficacy as predictor of secondary school students’ social adjustment in Anambra state. Three research questions guided the study while one null hypothesis was tested at 0.05 level of significance. Correlational research design was used for this study. The population of the study comprise 40,161 SS1 and SS2 students’ from which a sample of 2,400 students was selected using simple random sampling and disproportionate stratified random sampling techniques. Two sets of instruments, namely General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSE) and Social Adjustment Scale (SAS) were used for the study. The instruments are standardized questionnaires which have been previously validated by experts and used in conducting studies in Nigeria. The reliability of the instruments are as follows: The coefficient alpha is 0.87 for General Self-efficacy while the reliability coefficient for Social Adjustment Questionnaire (SAQ) is 0.93. Data collected were analyzed using range of aggregate scores and regression analysis. The findings of the study revealed that self-efficacy significantly predicted the social adjustment of the secondary school students. It was recommended among others that school guidance counsellors should be equipped with necessary tools both material and intellectual to enable them render useful counselling services that would go a long way in helping to build the self-efficacy of students to make up in areas where they need help to adjust socially.

Keywords – Social adjustment, self-efficacy, secondary school, students, predict, Anambra State.

I. INTRODUCTION

Social adjustment of students is an issue of great concern to many, especially parents, teachers, counsellors and psychologists. This is based on the notion that the students social dimension deals with interpersonal or public interactions with other individuals. Hence, the students, especially those in the secondary school system of education are faced with social problems with attendant academic problems that seem to have become part and parcel of the schools. The conditions has become a worrisome phenomenon because of its tendency to affect their academic outputs and the likelihood that they may resort to anti-social behaviours like drug use and abuse, robbery, alcoholism, rape among others as a coping mechanism.

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