ROLE OF CIVIC ENGAGEMENT, PERSONALITY AND SENSATION SEEKING IN SOCIAL WELL-BEING OF UNDERGRADUATES

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page                                                                                                        i

Certification                                                                                                    ii

Dedication                                                  iii                                           

Acknowledgement                                                                                          iv

Table of Contents                                                                                           vi

List of Tables                                                                                                  vii

List of Appendices                                                                                         viii      

Abstract                                                                                                          ix        

Chapter One

Introduction                                                                                                   1

Statement of  Problem                                                                               10

Purpose of Study                                                                                            11

Operational Definition of Terms                                                                     12

Chapter Two

Literature Review

Theoretical Review                                                                 13                         

Top-Down and Bottom-Up Factors                                                               13

Sensation Seeking Theory                                                                               15

Big Five Personality Traits Dimensions                                                          16

Astin’s Theory of Involvement                                                                       20

Role Theory                                                                                                    22

Socio Emotional Selectivity Theory                                                               24

Self Determination Theory                                                                             26

Empirical Review                                                                              27

Civic Engagement and Social Well-being                                                      27       

Personality Role on the Social Well-being                                                      30

Sensation Seeking Role on the Social Well-being                                          42    

Summary of Literature Review                                                                      47

Hypotheses                                                                                                     49

Chapter Three

Method

Participants                                                                                                     50

Instruments                                                                                                     50

Procedure                                                                                                        53

Design and Statistics                                                                                      53  

Chapter Four

Results                                                                                                            54

Chapter Five

Discussion                                                                                                      58

Implications of the Study                                                                               64

Limitations of the Study                                                                                 65

Suggestions for Further Studies                                                                     66

Summary and Conclusion                                                                               67

REFERENCES                                                                      69

Appendix A                                                  

Appendix B

Appendix C

Appendix D

List of Tables

Table 1    Mean, Standard Deviation and Correlations for the study variables.

Table 2            Table of coefficients for civic engagement, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, openness, sensation seeking and social well being.

List of Appendices

Appendix A:  Civic Engagement Scale         

Appendix B:   Big Five Inventory

Appendix C:   Arnett Inventory of Sensation Seeking Scale

Appendix D:  Social Well-being Scale

Appendix E:    Computer printout showing SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social     Sciences) analysis results

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the role of civic engagement, personality and sensation seeking on the social well-being of undergraduates. Participants were four hundred and fifty one (451) undergraduates. Their ages ranged between 16 to 35 years, with a mean age of 22.07. Cross sectional design was adopted. Four instruments were used for data collection. Civic Engagement Scale (Dolittle & Faul, 2013), Big Five Inventory (John, Donahue & Kentle, 1990), Arnett Inventory of Sensation Seeking Scale (Arnett, 1993), and Social Well-being Scale (Keyes, 1998). Seven hypotheses were tested. Step wise multiple regression was the main statistic used for data analysis. Results of the regression analysis showed that amongst the studied variables, only civic engagement was a significant predictor of social well-being (p < .001). The five dimensions of Personality; extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness were not significant predictors of social well-being. Similarly, sensation seeking did not also significantly predict social well-being. One good practical implication of the finding of this study is that individuals with patriotic minds and willingness to engage in civic duties are needed at all sectors to change our society for the best.

CHAPTER ONE

Introduction

            The rise in social problems experienced by young people has provided an impetus for the development of programs and research to address well-being amongst youths; and research on social well-being (SWB) has increased considerably in the recent times. The study of social well-being in childhood through youth age, as a holistic concept, is still in its early stages. However, many of the more narrowly defined concepts under the broader banner of ‘social well-being’ have been studied for decades (Guttman & Louis, 1982).   The psychological concept well-being is a general term for the condition of an individual or group, for example their social, economic, psychological, spiritual or medical state; high well-being means that, in some sense, the individual’s experience is positive, while low well-being is associated with negative happenings (Guttman & Louis, 1982). Social well-being, a psychosocial component of well-being is a multifaceted concept encompassing both individual capacities and social competencies.