CHATPER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Adolescence is a time of great change, when young people take on new roles and responsibilities, reorganize their time, renegotiate relationship with adults, peers, community and experience adult life. Adolescence is the period of transition between childhood and adulthood that involves biological cognitive and socio-emotional changes (Eke 2004). These developmental tasks are accompanied by the adoption of risk-taking behaviours that compromise health.
Risk behaviours are any behaviour that impedes successful adolescent development and that may compromise a sense of competency, skill development, or acquisition of socially approved roles (Baldwin 2008). Risk behaviours are those behaviours that can have adverse effects on the overall development and well-being of adolescents or might prevent them from future success and development. Euginia (2009), Sees risk behaviour as those behaviours that can significantly interrupt the successful live of adolescents and those around them.
Risk behavior is a behavior that puts adolescents at risk for negative consequences, like future poor health, injury, or death (Modestus 2008). According to him also it is behaviours that cause a large number of deaths and injury among adolescents or have negative impacts on the society. Risk behavior is behaviours that contribute to immediate injury as well as long term damage on adolescents (Adozuwe 2009). She future described that drinking and drug use have been linked to motor accidents fighting/violence, problematic relationships and social interactions and various diseases.
Inquiries into risk behaviours among adolescents are prominent in the social, behavioural and health sciences and range from examination of some particular risk factor conditions (Perking and Hartless, 2002). Risk behaviours such as marijuana smoking, alcohol use, cigarette smoking, drug use and sexual acts like coitus, orogenital and prostitution are not only problems in the present but may interact to send an adolescent on a path of increasing personal and social difficulties (Bogenschneider, 1996). These include behaviours that cause immediate physical injury like fighting as well as behaviours with cumulative negative effects such as drug use, drinking alcohol, cultism, prostitution, Marijuana smoking, and robbery. Ogara (2008) reports that three adolescent students (cultists) were killed in Nsukka. Drinking alcohol and drug use have been linked to motor accidents, fighting/violence, problematic relationship and interactions, and various diseases.
Risk behaviours such as Marijuana smoking, cigarette smoking, rubbery prostitution and drug use can also affect adolescents by disrupting their normal development or preventing them from participating in typical experiences for their age group. Engagement in sexual behaviours is considered as another group of high risk behaviours for adolescents because of the potential physical and socio-emotional risk they present. Adolescents may or may not be ready for the social and emotional implications of sexual activity and many sexually active adolescents do not use safe contraceptive. Unprotected sex is risk behaviour because of the potential for developing HIV/AIDS, STIs and the potential for unwanted pregnancy. Adolescent pregnancy is both a possible effect of risk behaviours as well as a risk factor in itself. Adolescent pregnancy has been linked to higher rates of school dropout, as well as other socio-emotional risks. Adolescent pregnancy can prevent events such as developing a close relationship with peers (Onyemueze 2008). In view of this pregnancy can also prevent the success and development of an adolescent. Ugwuja and Ugwueze (2006) report that female student in one of the secondary schools in Nsukka engaged in sexual behavior with her school principal,
Eccles and Gotlman (2002) report that a number of risk behaviours can impede successful development. Among them are changing relationships with parents that result in alienation of adolescents and their family, changing relationship with peers, lack of civic engagement experience so that adolescents do not develop skills to participate in the community and alienation that comes from mainstream society. Risk behaviours had caused a lot of harm to many adolescent students as they engaged in robbery. Ugwueze (2006) reports that five adolescent students were nabbed for robbery while Uchendu (2006) reports that Nsukka police men killed five adolescent robbery suspects.
Scholars like Kendoziora and O’leary (1993) identified several factors like poverty, and peer influence that predispose adolescents to risk behaviours. At the individual level, adolescent that has low self-esteem, negative peer group and low school engagement or low educational aspiration is more likely to engage in risk behaviours. Longress (2000) describes risk behaviours of adolescents as virulent, and pervasive. However family factors which include poor parent-child communication, low parental monitoring, such as, parents being unaware of their adolescents where abouts, and lack of family support can contribute to risk behaviours. Kendoziora and O’Leary further say that adolescents engage in risk behaviours when parents do or fail to do things that may affect their children which include caring for the physical needs, discipline, teaching and establishing a pleasant emotional environment. It is therefore not surprising that when parents themselves engage in risk behaviours, adolescents are more likely to imitate. Poor school climate, low socio-economic status and poor or no relationship with non- parental adults can constitute a risk.
According to National Health interview survey (NHIS) in Baldwin (2008), high proportions of United States school students engaged in behaviours that place them at increasing risk for the leading causes of death and morbidity. Since 1991, prevalence of several injury-related behaviours and sexual behaviours has improved among high school students throughout the United States. Too many high school students nationwide continue to practice behaviours that place them at risk for serious health problems.
According to the office for National Statistics in Chobokoane and Budlender (2002), Britain has the worst record of adolescent pregnancy in Europe. Each year in United kingdom (UK), approximately 90, 000 adolescents become pregnant, 8, 000 are aged 16 and over 2, 000 are aged 14 and under. The most recent statistics have revealed that, the rate of conception in under 18 in England and Wales is 42 per 1000.
Furthermore, it has been reorganized that adolescents risk behaviours are linked with a cycle of poverty and poor socialization. Kendoziora and O’Leary (1993) identifies that those living in poor areas are at increased risk of early pregnancy, a situation associated with not been in care, being a child of a teenage mother, having educational problems, and involvement in drug use and crime.
However, there are also gender differences on adolescent risk behaviours. Gender means the fact of being male and female. The level of engagement on risk behaviours depend on their norms, socio-cultural perception and socio-economic status of an adolescent.
Larson and Verma (1999) described that Males typically demonstrate more externalizing (showing your feeling) behaviours than females including aggression, cruelty, delinquency, substance use and hyperactivity, while Females tend to exhibit more internalizing (making your feelings part of the way you behave) behaviours.
Freud in his psychoanalytic theory would feel that a conflict between the id and super ego would cause the adolescents to engage in risk behaviours. Buikhuisen and Mednick (2000) opined that the single best predictor of adolescents risk behaviours conforming is the behaviour of peers and close friends because they observe and imitate their behaviours. For the purpose of this study, risk behaviours are those behaviours that interrupt the success and development of an adolescent such as rubbery, Marijuana smoking, prostitution, cigarette smoking, and drinking alcohol.
It is therefore difficult to identify why adolescents should engage in various risk behaviours without a point of reference to their structured time-use and their interpersonal connections.
Structured time-use is a structure activities broadly oriented and reflects the social and institutional contexts which activities occur (Claribel 2005). She further says that it is based on splitting program into sub-sections, each with a single time. Modestus (2008) sees structured time-use as a total reversal from conventional approaches where the knowledge is gathered first and structured to be made available to support the unstructured. According to Iheakahope (2006), structured time-use is defined as a definite and highly organized time in order to achieve a goal. He further refers it to all of the practices that individuals follow to make better use o f their time. For the purpose of this study, structured time-use is particularly arranged activities that involve personal organization in order to be successful in life. Such activities are sports, paid job, hawking, meeting friends, domestic work and combine reading. Structured time-use also reflect community involvement and involve connections with others in an intentional manner (Mahoney and Stuttin 2000). Structured time-use is often of higher social complexity and may involve peer cooperation, support from unrelated adults (Domo and Acock 1996)
Borden, Donnermejer and Scheer (2001) report that peer influence was a primary determinant of marijuana smoking, rubbery, and drinking alcohol. Agnew and Peterson (1989) report that smoking and drug use are associated with time spent in unsupervised peer activities. Eccles and Barber (1999) report that adolescents who participate in team sports are likely to drink more often and to have friends who tend to drink more. Hawkins and Catalano (1985) report that higher activities in leisure pursuits are associated with reduced use of drugs and alcohol.
