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 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 oen a significant increase in parent-child conflict and less cohesive familial bond. Arguments oen 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. Parents adolescent 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 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. Furthermore even within a single nation, state or culture there can be dierent 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.