EFFECT OF ADOLESCENTS’ PERCEPTION AND AWARENESS OF HIV/AIDS ON SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR

EFFECT OF ADOLESCENTS’ PERCEPTION AND AWARENESS OF HIV/AIDS ON SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR

ABSTRACT

The study attempted to examine the effect of awareness of HIV/AIDS on students’ perception of HIV/AIDS infection in selected secondary schools in Surulere Local Government Area of Lagos State. In this study, some relevant literature review was carried out under sub-headings. Also, the descriptive research survey was used in the assessment of the opinions of the selected respondents with the use of the questionnaire and the sampling technique. A total of two hundred and fifty (250) respondents were selected and used in this study to represent the population of the study. A total of four (4) null hypotheses were generated and tested with the application of the independent t-test and Pearson Moment Correlation Coefficient at 0.05 level of significance.

At the end of the data analyses, the following results were obtained:

(1)         Hypothesis showed that there is a significant effect of counselling on students’ perception towards HIV/AIDS infection.

(2)         Hypothesis two revealed that there is a significant gender difference in students’ perception of HIV/AIDS infection.

(3)         Hypothesis found that there is a significant difference between students who have positive perception towards HIV/AIDS and those who have negative perception towards HIV/AIDS infection.

(4)         Finally, hypothesis four indicated that there is a significant relationship between sex education and students’ attitudes towards HIV/AIDS infection.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

The topic of human sexuality is inter-disciplinary in nature. It covers all aspects of becoming and being a sexual, gendered person and includes biological, psychological, social, economic and cultural perspectives. The impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in the country as well as the urgent need to stop its spread, caused a desperate search for a programme of education that will target the scourge. This according to Adara (2002), ushered in the new paradigm on adolescent reproductive health education in which the adolescent is given the opportunities to develop a perspective on sexual health that includes appreciation of self and others or opportunities to express desires and feelings in a healthy context (Anyikwa, 2002).

The Resolutions and Programmes of Action of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) made it imperative that adolescent reproductive health issues among other issues of human population should take centre stage in schools. Moreover, recent scourge of HIV/AIDS in Nigeria brought about the urgent need to deal with adolescent reproductive health issues without further delay. In 1998, for instance, 60% of all reported cases of HIV/AIDS came from the age group 15 – 24 years (NERDC, 2001). Thus, concepts of Sexuality Education (SE) were accepted as critical to helping young people with the acquisition of adequate knowledge, skills and responsible behaviours in order to prevent and reduce Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) including the dreaded HIV/AIDS.

EFFECT OF ADOLESCENTS’ PERCEPTION AND AWARENESS OF HIV/AIDS ON SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR