PERCEPTION OF STUDENTS ON THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL DEVIANCE ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE (A STUDY OF ND II STUDENTS OF DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT)

ABSTRACT

This study is designed to find out and examine the perception of students on the impact of social deviance on academy performance. A summary method was used for the study. 60 respondents (41 Male and 19 Female) were included in the study and they were student of Kaduna Polytechnic, College of Administrative Studies and Social Science. The first chapter discuses the background of the study, statement of the problem, Objective of the study, research question, significant of the study, scope/limitation of the study, the second chapter deals with literature review, the chapter three deals with method of data collection, the questionnaire is the basic instrument for data collection. The chapter four consists of data presentation and analysis, of the finding which is through the questionnaire. The concluding chapter of the research work which is chapter five, the summary, conclusion and recommendation and advice for further studies as for summary, recommendation will help both the lecturer and the school authority, the parents the government, and the students.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1     Background of the Study

Deviant behavior is a diverse and multidimensional concept. Usually two types of deviant behavior are distinguished: a) externalizing – marked by behavioral problems such as aggression, opposite behavior, conduct problem behavior, vandalism, robbery, and other kinds that may lead to unlawful acts; and b) internalizing – referring to emotional difficulties, such as anxiety, stress, withdrawal, somatic complaints and depression Achenbach (2000). Not only does deviant behavior have a negative impact on children’s psychosocial adjustment and development, but it may also disturb the school environment and disorganize the flow of educational process McNamara (2001).

Academic performance is defined as student’s progress, understood as the level of learning, comprehension and consolidation of the school curriculum Syngollitou (2003). Academic achievement is influenced by many psychological, family, school, and social factors.

Educational attainment is very important to future opportunities and many students look for much higher educational goals (schineider and Stevenson, 1999). Inequality of chances to achieve educational goals. (Hochchildand Scovronicity, 2003) and the school achievement gap associated with religion, raced ethnicity and gender in Africa society.Students who have high academic achievement are less likely to involve or indulge or engage in delinquent behavior than those who have lower academic achievement (Elliott and Voss, 1974; Henggler, 1989).

Students who have unsuccessful experiences in school are more likely to be involved/dingle in delinquent behavior such as dropping out of school (Voelketset al., 1999) there are many risk factors for school dropout. These can be categorized into social and academic risk factors. Students at risk for dropout based on academic risk factors are those who often have a history of absenteeism and grade retention, academic trouble, and more general disengagement from school life. School grade are the most reliable predictors for student delinquent behavior focuses on:

1. Student role performance factors
2. School environment factors
3. Family factors and
4. Peer factors

Student Role Performance (SRP); factor is how well an individual fulfils the role of a student in an education setting. Sex, race, school effort, extra-curricular activities, time spent on homework, deviance disabilities and class preparation are all-important influences on SRP and have been shown to affect test scores.

School Environment Factors; such as school size, school rules and school problems, neighborhood and relationship between teachers and students also influence test scores (Crosnoe, Johnson, and Elder 2004).

Family Factor; One’s family background has also been found to influence student test score. Research has found that socio-economic status, parental involvement, and family size are particularly important family factors (Majorbanks 1996).

Peer Group; Peer influence can also affect student performance. Peer pressure and peer conformity can lead to an individual participating in risk-taking behaviours which have been found to have a negative, indirect effect on test scores (Santor, Messervey and Kusumaker 2000).

Research is still being done to see which comes first, the deviant behavior or low grades. Jessor, Bos, Vanderryn, Costa, et al., (1995) performed a study looking at the risk factors that can affect deviant behavior. When controlling for the demographics of gender, ethnicity, socio-economic status and grade, they found that low GPA is a significant risk factors liked to deviance (P<0.01). This supports the idea that having a low grade point average can be risk factors that leads to problem behavior. In their study of the pathways between self-esteem and academic performance, Liu, Kaplan, and Risser (1992) found that self-esteem had a significant negative impact on deviance, which had an inverse direct effect on motivation.

This is directly tied to academic performance (P<0.05). This deviance has an indirect effect on academic achievement through motivation. Kasen, Cohen, and Brook (1998) found that antisocial behavior, the risk of dropping out, and committing a crime all decline with higher academic achievement.First, a discussion of some of the dysfunctional aspects of deviant behaviour of students in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. These dysfunctional aspects of deviant behaviour can be broken down into four categories:

Students and Examination Malpractices

An example of deviant behaviour exhibited by students in tertiary institutions in Nigeria comes in the shape of examination malpractice. Examination malpractice refers to cheating in examinations designed to get unearned marks and pass examinations.

Students and Secret Cults

Fear is a powerful psychological energizer; it can also be a great demobilizer. Members of secret cults seem to understand and appreciate the impact of this elementary psychology and do indeed use it to the fullest. An important aspect of this operation, therefore, is to strike fear and terror into the minds of fellow students in order to destabilize and demobilize them. Their victims are thus dehumanized and terrorized to submission.

Students and Violence

Violence perpetrated by students in times of students unrest has been a long-standing feature of Nigerian tertiary institutions. A number of reasons can be adduced for students’ resort to violence in pressing their demands. Foremost among them is that there is the thinking among students that ultimatum and violence or threats of it are the only ‘language’ to which the authorities can be compelled to listen.

Students Unrest

Student’s unrest is not a new phenomenon in Nigeria. It began in the 1960s and has remained unabated, with the spate of crises in recent times. It is now more of a yearly phenomenon, a ritual that must be conducted before the end of each academic session. Students’ unrest involves mass rally/ demonstration, boycott of lecturers, barricade of entrances and exists to campus, chanting of war songs, display of placards, confrontation with the police and sometimes destruction of property.

As mentioned earlier, deviant behaviour also has positive values. A look at history confirms this statement. For instance, modem science emerged only when men felt free to question the doctrine of Aristotle and the Church. Socrates challenged the basic beliefs of the Greek society of his time; his particular sin was that he believed that correct action implied correct thought.

This study examines the relationships between deviance and the test scores of Student role performance factor are been seen bellow:

1. Deviant students achieve lower test scores than non-deviant students net of other factors.
2. Minority students are more likely to achieve lower test scores net of other factors.
3. Students who attend extra-curricular activities achieve higher test scores net of other factors.
4. Students who spend more time on homework are more likely achieve higher test scores net of other factors.
5. Students who come to class prepared will achieve higher test scores net of other factors.
6. As school disruptions increase, test scores decreases net of other factors.
7. As school problems increase, test scores decrease net of other factors.
8. As SES increases, test scores increase net of other factors.
9. Students who have fewer numbers of siblings are more likely to receive higher test scores net of other factors.
10. Students who communicate with their parents more often are more likely to achieve higher test scores net of other factors.

This study showed that those who are deviant do not tend to attain test scores as high as those of students who are non-deviant. The research also showed that within high conflict school setting there is a high proportion of deviant youth (P<0.001).

1.2     Statement of the Problem

This study is to investigate the impact of social deviance on academic performance. Deviance in a sociological context, describes actions or behaviours that violate social norms, including formally-enacted rules (e.g, crime), as well as informal violation of social norms e.g, rejecting folkways and mores.

The failure to conform to the customary norms of a community or society is what is known as social deviance. Social deviance is the violation of the societal or organizational norms, expectations, and values. It is the failure to conform to the conventional ways of doing things in the society or an organization. Social deviances are in different dimension. For example, juvenile delinquency, corruption, drug abuse, alcoholism, prostitutions, immorality, crime, dressing code and exams malpractice etc. these deviant behaviours manifestation constitute also major social problems on academic performance. Previous research revealed that deviant students will have lower test scores than non-deviant students who. Elliott and Voss (1994) and Henggler (1989) mentions that students who have high academic achievement are less likely to indulge in delinquent behavior than those who have lower academic achieement.

The upsurge of deviant behaviours in the Nigeria society is a matter of concern to all and has engendered research for its not causes. Some people attributed it to nature and the civil war of (1967-1970) which lives and properties were last thereby rendering some children orphans and homeless exposing them to various types of criminal activities consequently upon the take of parental control.

The deviant behaviour which followed the war among others include abuse of drugs, corruption and stealing and some area where the population was near extirpation due to death and diseases of the time, comities encouraged free interactions of boys and girls for procreation to prevent the communities from being extinct. The problem now arises because some teenager feels that such male and female relationship should remain a permanent norm of life in their communities. Scholars, researchers should have understood and seek out solutions to this ugly trend over the years. The researcher therefore is of the opinion that there are perhaps serious factors that bring about increase in deviant behaviours in Nigerian schools environment.

This is the more so considering the huge investment which both the Federal and State Governance should make in education and health sectors to produce a virile future generation. It is fundamental therefore to determine the influence of deviant behavior on the academic performance of secondary school student.

These acts have in no small measures being responsible for the rate of mental instability of youth who are expected to be good citizens and leaders of tomorrow in the society has been completely ruined in the school in which most o f them (students) acquired or learned it from individual factors such as gender, participation in extra-curricular activities, time spent on homework, and class preparation and behaviors from the peer groups as well as school environment factors such as family socio-economic status, the influence of siblings and family communication.

The questions someone may stand to ask are:

• Is it actually the peer group that makes students to deviate from the school rules and regulations?
• What prompt the students to join such groups?
• How does a particular group mould their behaviours?
• Is it actually the factors/child upbringing that makes students to deviate in the school or society?

To understand the full dynamic of deviant behavior with due emphasis on groups influence, it is necessary to find answers to the following problems/punishment:

• What socio-cultural conditions are most likely to produce social deviance?
• Why do people continue to deviate despite the negative sanctions that are brought to bear on them?
• What benefit or otherwise do they derived?
• How can deviance best be minimized or controlled?

This study therefore, aims at investigating perception of students on the impact of social deviance on academic performance.

1.3     Objectives of the Study

The objectives of the research are on the perception of students on the impact of social deviance on academic performance.

1. To identify the causes of social deviance among students
2. To find out the types of deviance behavioursthat is being practiced by students.
3. Examine how deviantstudents can be helped.
4. To find out the impact of social deviance on academic performance.

1.4     Research Questions

1. What are the causes of social deviance among students?
2. What are the types of deviant behaviours that are practiced by the students?
3. What are the ways to examine how deviance students can be help?
4. What are the impacts of social deviance on academic performance of students?

1.5     Significance of the Study

The significance of this study cannot be over-emphasized because it is belief that the finding will be beneficial to individual parents and institutional agent (e.g teachers, administrators), government and future researchers.

The individual parents will find the finding of the study useful as it will reveal or exposes their weakness on their part and ways to handle their children so as to stop them indulging/involving in any forms of social deviance. And the institutional agent will find it easy to defined appropriate classroom behaviors.

The findings will also help the government agencies to put the necessary infrastructure facilities and to come up with good policies that will eradicate/minimized or controlled the involvement of students in social deviance/deviant acts. The work or study will like to carryout study on the subject matter.

Lastly, the study is in partial fulfillment for the award of Higher National Diploma in social Development department, college of Administrative studies and social sciences (CASSS) Kaduna Polytechnic, Kaduna.

1.6     Scope/Limitation of the Study

The research is therefore, pertinent to point out that because of time, space and financial constraints; the work/study is delimited/ restricted to the college of administrative studies and social sciences (CASSS), department of social development ND II students, Kaduna Polytechnic, Kaduna. And also restricted to perception of students on the impact of social deviance on academic performance.

The study will not cover whole department and as such, it is restricted/delimited to ND II students of department of social development.