The Influence on Family Type on Bullying Behavior Among Students of Secondary School Age in Ikwerre Local Government Area
- May 28, 2020
- Posted by: RSIS
- Categories: IJRISS, Psychology
International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume IV, Issue V, May 2020 | ISSN 2454–6186
Iyagba Philemon Wokoma (Ph.D)1, Nwankwo, Gershom Udochukwu2
1,2Department of Educational Psychology, Guidance and Counseling, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria
Abstract:- The purpose of the study was to investigate factors influencing bullying behavior among senior students of secondary school age in Ikwerre local government of Rivers State. Descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. Seven research questions and six hypotheses guided the conduct of the study. The population of this study consists of 2,368 secondary school students from Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State. A sample of 300 secondary school students in SS 2 in the research area was selected for the study through stratified random sampling technique. The instruments for data collection in this study were a self-designed structured questionnaire titled “Bullying Risk Factor Questionnaire ” (BRFQ). Face and content validities of the instrument were determined while test-retest using Pearson product moment correlation method was used to determine the reliability of the instrument. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions while AN OVA and independent t-test were used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 alpha levels. All data were subjected to analysis using statistical package for social science. The following results were obtained; watching violent movies is the highest contributor to bullying behaviour among students of secondary school age; bullying behaviour is higher among students of secondary school age that watch violent movies than those that do not watch violent movies; bullying behavior is higher among students from polygamous families than those from monogamous families; bullying behavior is higher among students bullied by siblings than students not bullied by siblings; bullying behavior is higher among students of secondary school age from Uneducated parental background than those from educated parental background; bullying behavior is higher among students from authoritarian homes, followed by those from permissive homes, and lastly by those from authoritative homes; bullying behavior is higher among students of secondary school age who experience inter-parental violence than those who do not. Based on the findings, five recommendations were made among which are that; parents should also ensure that the home environment is devoid of all form of cumbrances and threats that can impede the good upbringing of children born into it; counseling units should be established in all public secondary schools in Nigeria to enable students seek counseling whenever the need arises; students identified with bullying behaviour should be referred to guidance counselors for professional assistance.
I. INTRODUCTION BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Safety is the state of absence of harm or danger in a process, environment or behavior of an individual. While education tries to bring about a change in behaviour through learning and molding of behavior of young learners, it is important to stress that certain behaviors create unsafe learning environment and have the potentials to impair learning (Gover, 2015). In his finding which correlates with finding from other researchers, Gover noted that students who feel threatened at school have a harder time academically and have a high probability of dropping out of school. Every child and youth has the right to be respected and safe. Bullying is a violation of this basic human right. Children and youth involved in bullying suffer both physical and psychological stress. Bullying and victimization problems begin early in life and for some last a lifetime. (Kandersteg Declaration, 2007).
