CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF ADOLESCENT ATTITUDE TO PARENTAL DISCIPLINE IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1      Background of the study

A thorough understanding of adolescence in society depends on information from various perspectives, including psychology, biology, history, sociology, education and anthropology. Within all of these perspectives, adolescence is viewed as a transitional period between childhood and adulthood, whose cultural purpose is the preparation of children for adult roles (Karson& Wilson, 2004).

It is a period of multiple transitions involving education, training, employment and unemployment, as well as transactions from one living circumstances to another. Hence, the end of adolescence and beginning of adulthood varies by country and by function. Adolescents Attitude

Furthermore even within a single nation, state or culture there can be different ages at which an individual is considered mature enough for society to entrust them with certain privileges and responsibilities. Such milestones includes driving a vehicle, having legal sexual relations, serving in armed forces or in a jury, purchasing and drinking alcohol, voting, enticing into contracts, finishing certain levels of education and marriage.Adolescents Attitude

Adolescence is usually accompanied by an increased independence allowed by the parents and legal guardians, including less supervision as compared to pre adolescence. Adolescence is a search for risk taking, without risk-taking, teenagers would not have the motivation or confidence necessary to make a change in society from childhood to adulthood. Risk taking potentials have lead so many to new found sexual attractiveness, drinking, drug use/addiction, negative attitudes or responses to elders, delinquency, depression, aggressiveness and examination malpractices. Adolescence makes a rapid change in one’s role within a family. Young children tend to ascertain themselves forcefully, but are unable to demonstrate much influence over family decisions until early adolescent (Grotevant, 1997) when they are increasingly view by parents as equals.Adolescents Attitude

The adolescent faces the task of increasing independence while preserving a caring relationship with his or her parents (Rawlins, 1992). When children go through puberty, there is often a significant increase in parent-child conflict and less cohesive familial bond. Arguments often concern minor issues of control, such as curfew, acceptance, clothing and the adolescents’ right to privacy (Steinber, 2001) which adolescents may have previously viewed as issues over which their parents had complete authority. Parentsadolescent disagreement also increases as friends demonstrate a greater impact on one another, new influences on the adolescent that may be in opposition to parents’ values. Social media has also played an increasing role in adolescent and parent disagreement (Social Networking, 2012). A thorough understanding of adolescence in society depends on information from various perspectives, including psychology, biology, history, sociology, education and anthropology. Within all of theseperspectives, adolescence is viewed as a transitional period between childhood and adulthood, whose cultural purpose is the preparation of children for adult roles (Karson& Wilson, 2004). It is a period of multiple transitions involving education, training, employment and unemployment, as well as transactions from one living circumstances to another. Hence, the end of adolescence and beginning of adulthood varies by country and by function. Furthermore even within a single nation, state or culture there can be different ages at which an individual is considered mature enough for society to entrust them with certain privileges and responsibilities. Such milestones includes driving a vehicle, having legal sexual relations, serving in armed forces or in a jury, purchasing and drinking alcohol, voting, enticing into contracts, finishing certain levels of education and marriage. Adolescence is usually accompanied by an increased independence allowed by the parents and legal guardians, including less supervision as compared to pre adolescence. Adolescence is a search for risk taking, without risk-taking, teenagers would not have the motivation or confidence necessary to make a change in society from childhood to adulthood. Risk taking potentials have lead so many to new found sexual attractiveness, drinking, drug use/addiction, negative attitudes or responses to elders, delinquency, depression, aggressiveness and examination malpractices.

1.2      STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Nowadays, the home seems to have failed to a certain extent to provide maximum interaction that would enhance “positive” personality characteristics of the adolescents, therefore leaving these adolescents to imbibe peer culture, which sometimes are detrimental to the adolescents, and the society at large. Home environment is made up of many factors (physical and psychological) that influence the personality characteristics of the students. Parents are believed to be the first primary agents of socialization of their children, so have significant roles to play in the personality development of their wards. These days, some parents who should be role models rather perpetuate societal vices in different forms in their homes from where the adolescents are exposed to. It is against this backdrop that the researcher intend to investigate adolescent attitude to parental discipline in Nigeria.

1.3      OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The main objective of this study is to critically analyze adolescent attitude to parental discipline in Nigeria. Other specific objectives include:

i)             To ascertain the effect of parental discipline on the character of the child

ii)           To ascertain the impact of polygamous home on the character of the child

iii)          To investigate the role of parent in character building of the child

iv)         To suggest possible solutions to the identified problem

1.4      RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

To aid the completion of the study, the following research hypotheses were formulated by the researcher:

H0:parental discipline has no significant effect on the character of the child

H1:parental discipline has a significant effect on the character of the child

H02:parent does not play any significant role in the character building of the child

H2:parent does play any significant role in the character building of the child

1.5      SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Potency of the prediction power of the home environmental factors on the personality characteristics of students pose concerns to the generality of people, particularly psychologists, sociologists, educators, parents and school administrators. It has been observed that home environment plays significant roles in the development of personality. This is because home is the first social environment of an individual when he or she enters the world by birth. The early years of a child‟s life are critical for the development of personality (Freud, 1933; Bandura, 1977; Hurlock, 1978). Theoretically, the study has provided useful empirical evidence on the predictive power of home environmental factors on personality characteristics of adolescent students. It was established in this study that home factors like family relationship, parenting style and SocioEconomic Status (SES) of parents have high predictive power on secondary school adolescents‟ personality. The findings imply that anykind of experience an individual had during his/her childhood especially in the home determines in large part what the individual could be later in life.

1.6      SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The scope of this study covers critical analysis of adolescent attitude to parental discipline in Nigeria, but in the cause of the study there were some factors which limited the scope of the study:

Availability of research material: The research material available to the researcher is insufficient, thereby limiting the study.      

Time: The time frame allocated to the study does not enhance wider coverage as the researcher has to combine other academic activities and examinations with the study.

Finance: The finance available for the research work does not allow for wider coverage as resources are very limited as the researcher has other academic bills to cover

1.7      DEFINITION OF TERMS

Parents

A parent is a caregiver of the offspring in their own species. In humans, a parent is the caretaker of a child (where "child" refers to offspring, not necessarily age). A biological parentis a person whose gamete resulted in a child, a male through the sperm, and a female through the ovum. Parents are first-degree relatives and have 50% genetic meet.

Discipline

Discipline is the suppression of base desires, and is usually understood to be synonymous with self-restraint and control. Discipline is when one uses reason to determine the best course of action regardless of one's desires, which may be the opposite of excited. Virtuous behavior can be described as when one's values are aligned with one's aims: to do what one knows is best and to do it gladly. Discipline is very important in our lives.

Adolescent

Adolescence from Latin adolescere, meaning 'to grow up  is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to legal adulthood (age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the teenage years.

1.8      Organization of the study

This research work is organized in five chapters for easy understanding as follows Chapter one is concern with the introduction which consist of the (overview, of the study), statement of problem, objectives of the study, research question, significance or the study, research methodology, definition of terms and historical background of the study. Chapter two highlights the theoretical framework on which the study it’s based thus the review of related literature. Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.  Chapter five gives summary, conclusion and recommendations made of the study.