ABSTRACT
The study examined family background as correlate of child
socialization: a case study of selected schools in Mainland Local Government
Area of Lagos State. Descriptive research survey design was adopted in
assessing the opinions of the respondents with the use of questionnaire. Three
hundred and fifty respondents were used as the representatives of the entire
population of the study. Five null hypotheses were generated and tested with
the use of the Pearson Product Moment Correlation for hypothesis one; One-way
Analysis of Variance for hypothesis two, three and four while hypothesis five
was tested with the application of the independent t-test statistical tool at
0.05 level of significance. At the end of the data analyses, the result shows
that:
(1)
there
is a significant relationship between home and children’s social adjustment.
(2)
there
is a significant relationship between the parental socio-economic status and
children’s social adjustment.
(3)
there
is a significant relationship between parental ethnic backgrounds and
children’s social adjustment.
(4)
there
is a significant relationship between parents’ religious backgrounds and
children’s social adjustment.
(5)
there
is no significant gender difference in the academic performance of children due
to home backgrounds.
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
Title Page i
Certification ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgements iv
Abstract v
Table of Contents vi
CHAPTER
ONE: INTRODUCTION 1
1.1
Background
to the Study 1
1.2
Statement
of the Problem 5
1.3
Purpose
of the Study 6
1.4
Research
Questions 7
1.5
Hypotheses 8
1.6
Significance
of the Study 9
1.7
Scope
of the Study 10
1.8
Definition
of Terms 11
CHAPTER
TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 12
2.1 Concept
and Nature of the Family 13
2.2 The
Home and Children’s Socialization 16
2.3 A Review of the Effect of Family Conflict,
Divorce and
Disorganisation on
Adolescent Emotional Development 20
2.4 The
Meaning of Socialization 21
2.5 Types
of Socialization 24
2.6 The Aims of Socialization 25
2.7 The
Agencies of Socialization 27
2.8 Unidirectional
Models of Socialization 33
2.9 Other
Models of Socialization 38
2.10 Adolescents’
Adjustment and Parental Responsibility 43
2.11 Adolescents in the School Environment:
Relationship with Peers,
the School Authorities and
Other 46
2.12 Theories and Problems of Adolescent
Development 49
2.13 Summary of Review 51
CHAPTER
THREE: METHODOLOGY 53
2.1
Design
53
2.2
Population
of the Study 53
2.3
Sample
Size and Sampling Method 53
2.4
Instrumentation
54
2.5
Validity
of Instrument 54
2.6
Reliability
of the Instrument 54
2.7
Procedure
for Data Collection 55
2.8
Data
Analysis 55
CHAPTER
FOUR: RESULTS 56
4.1 Testing
of Hypotheses 56
4.2 Summary
of Findings 60
4.3 Discussion of Findings 61
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS 66
5.1
Summary
of Study 66
5.2
Conclusions 67
5.3
Recommendations 68
References 72
Appendix 80
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background
to the Study
Socialization is a
unique process to childhood. According to the socialization theory known as
symbolic interactionism, socialization is required for each role an individual
acquires over the life-course.
According to Peterson
and Haan (1999), socialization is considered to be more general either
enculturation or acculturation. Enculturation and transmitting a particular
culture from one generation to another (e.g. minority members of the society
teaching their children about minority issues, such as discrimination).
Acculturation on the other hand, refers to the process of acquiring a new or
different culture (e.g. as an immigrant to another country). Ross and Buriel
(1998) described socialization as the process whereby an individual’s
standards, skills, motives, attitudes and behaviours change to conform to those
regarded as desirable and appropriate for his/her present and leaves open the
possibility that adults, an addition to children, can be socialized into new
roles and responsibilities. Thus, the late twentieth century conceptions of
socialization, suggest that parents as well as children are socialized by
others referred to as socialization agents (Pillemer and Mccartney, 1991).
There are many theories that address both the transition to parenthood and
parental involvement, as well as the socialization of children (e.g. social
learning symbolic interactionism). There are however, relative theoretical
models that focus on socialization of parents (Warpmer, 1993), despite the fact
that parenthood has a powerful influence on the development of the adult, to
say nothing on the child. Existing developmental models of parents’
socialization typically use conceptions or the birth of the child as the
starting point in parental development. Furthermore, most approaches focus on
parents-child relations in infancy, childhood or adolescence ignoring on-going
parent-child relations across the life-course.
A popular adage says
“Charity begins at home”. A child is first of all the product of his immediate
environment, which is his/her home. The effect of home factor on the
development of the child and most importantly, his/her social adjustment cannot
be overemphasized (Mundi, 2000). This is because right from conception, when
life begins the embryo develops in the mother’s womb until birth.
A child is affected
positively or negatively by the hereditary qualities which are passed on to him
from his parents at conception, as well as the environmental factor to which he
is exposed before and after delivery. While such physical characteristics such
as height, facial appearance, nose, skin colour etc are conspicuous traits in a
child, other factors like intelligence and temperament qualities are regarded
as being influenced by both heredity and environmental factors (Anyakoga,
1994).
Munonye (2001)
observed that a child who is born into a warm environment as well as a peaceful
loving home is more likely to grow up happily, showing love to others. Whereas,
an unwanted or unloved child who starts to experience frustration and rejection
at an early age is more likely to grow up as an unhappy child. By the time the
child is fully grown or matures into an adolescent, the character is made up
from his childhood experiences. However, it is merely at adolescent stage that
when he/she fails to meet up to their expectation, without thinking of the
background they have provided for the child’s development and socialization.
According to Arnolds
(1994) and Adamson (2000), children who grow up in a hostile home environment,
where there is a lot of nagging, quarelling and fighting are more likely to be
unhappy, wanting to get out of such ugly home environment as quickly as
possible. The adolescent child in such situation, would rather prefer to spend
most of his/her day in the midst of peers where he would be happier and more
relaxed.
Another type of home
background is where parents seem to have no time for the upbringing of their
children and their proper socialization in the society. In such homes, parents
are more pre-occupied with the quest to get rich quickly by racing after money.
They therefore, shift the responsibilities of training their children to the
house maids who themselves had no training (Olayinka, 1987). Such parent always
claim to be pursuing businesses for the upkeep of the children, without knowing
the ugly effect of their deeds. This is because such children eventually end up
creating more problems than the parents envisaged. It is quite surprising to
note that some parents are afraid to talk to their children especially, the
adolescent ones even among the enlightened parents even when they know that the
child has gone wrong and needs to be corrected, just because they do not want
the child to be angry with them (Onwuama, 1988). It is uncommon therefore to
hear most parents comment that most children are bad these days. That it is
better to leave them than to correct and become their enemies. More often than
not, such parents would prefer to ask an outsider to discipline their children
for them, this is rather sad. Onwuama contend that, although the young ones
(adolescents) have the tendency to behave in a way that is contrary to adults
expectation, it is the responsibility of the adults to put them right. Parents
have to correct their children and point out to them the normal and expected
roles to play in the society. Parents ought to direct their children to the
expected societal values and norms that would make them good society members in
their future (Ayo, 2000). This study intends to explore the home background as
correlate of child socialization.
1.2
Statement
of the Problem
These days, most
parents do not know how to bring up their children properly and socialize them
appropriately to the extent of inculcating in them the right values and norms
expected of them in a decent society.
The type of home
background in which a child is nurtured to a great extent, determines the
overall attitude of the child in the larger society. Many parents adopt
negative parenting styles in the upbringing and socialization of their children
and these have affected the social life of the child. For instance, parents who
are authoritarian in their style of bringing up the child, usually rear
children who are wide apart from the conformity to the normal roles and
norms/values for behaviour which are established by culture in a given society.
The bad or inappropriate training given to a child makes him or her to become
socially deformed and socially incompetent adult. When a child is of poor
family upbringing, he/she is not able to interact effectively with other
members of his/her society.
According to Achilles
(1990), parental role is essential in child’s socialization. Many children who
are wrongly brought up, end up having inferiority complex, feeling of quilt,
confused; isolated; being moody and despair and lack the ability to socialize
well among their peers in the community. The above perceived problems motivated
the examination of the family background as a correlate of child socialization
in secondary schools.
1.3
Purpose
of the Study
The purpose of this
study included among others:
(1)
To assess whether there is a relationship
between home and children’s socialization.
(2)
To examine whether parental socio-economic
status has relationship with the social adjustment of children in school.
(3)
To investigate whether there is a relationship
between parental academic background and children’s social adjustment.
(4)
To find out whether there is a relationship
between parental religious backgrounds and children social adjustment.
(5)
To examine whether there is a relationship
between parental ethnic background and children’s social adjustment.
(6)
To find out whether there is gender difference
in academic performance of children due to home background.
1.4
Research
Questions
The following research
questions were raised to guide the conduct of this study:
(1)
Is there any relationship between home and
social adjustment of children?
(2)
To what extent will the socio-economic status
of parents associate with their children’s social adjustment?
(3)
Is there any relationship between parental religious
background and children’s social adjustment?
(4)
Is there any relationship between parental
academic backgrounds and children’s social adjustment?
(5)
To what extent will there be any relationship
between parental ethnic background and children’s social adjustment?
(6)
To what extent will there be a gender
difference in academic performance of children due to their home backgrounds?
1.5
Hypotheses
These hypotheses were
tested in this study:
(1)
There will be no significant relationship
between home and children’s social adjustment.
(2)
There will be no significant relationship
between parental socio-economic status and children’s social adjustment.
(3)
There will be no significant relationship
between parental ethic backgrounds and children’s social adjustment.
(4)
There will be no significant relationship
between parents’ religious backgrounds and children’s social adjustment.
(5)
There will be no significant gender difference
in the academic performance of children due to the home they come from.
1.6
Significance
of the Study
This study will be
beneficial to the following individuals:
(1)
Parents would be able to benefit from the
recommendations and the findings of this study for the fact that parental role
is important to the upbringing of the child especially, his or her
socialization. This study will be an eye opener to parents who would learn that
they need to properly act as socializing agents in the social life of the
children including their academic performance.
(2)
Children would be able to understand that they
need the help of their parents to get properly socialized. Without the parents,
the socialization of the child will be impossible therefore, this study will
play the role of educating and informing the child especially, the adolescent
on the essence of being properly nurtured by the parents. Adolescents or
students, would find the recommendations and findings of this study useful as
they will help make the child have an emotional attachment to his/her parent,
because the study will explore all that is to be known about the home and its
role in child’s socialization and home and the school.
(3)
The society will be able to understand the
essence of socialization through this study, this is because, the
recommendations and findings of this study will provide relevant knowledge to the
public on the relationship between home and social adjustment of children in
the society.
(4)
Also, this study will serve as a reference
material to scholars, new researchers and even old ones, because this study
will be relevant to the matters bothering on home and socialization of the
children.
(5)
Equally, the teachers and school authorities
would see this study as being valuable because it exposes the school as a
socialization agents with the home and mass media. People working in the
newspaper, television and radio would find this study very interesting and
informing because they remain important stakeholders in this study.
1.7
Scope
of the Study
The study covered
selected secondary schools in Mainland Local Government Area of Lagos State.
1.8
Definition
of Terms
Operational
definitions of terms were carried out in this study in the following dimension:
(1)
Socialization
–
This is a term which means, the process through which children develops an
awareness of and conformity to the roles and norms for behaviour established by
their culture, which the end product of the awareness and conformity is a
socially competent adult in a community.
(2)
Parental
Socio-Economic Status – This refers to level of income and quality
of life or living of children’s parents. Socio-economic status of parents is
often measured by the level of the income, education, material possessions,
their occupations, position etc.
(3)
Social
Adjustment – This refers to the level of socialization of child. It
is the way a child or an individual conforms or lives in disagreement with the
usual and expected values and norms in a given social setting.
(4)
Academic
Performance - This means the level or rate at which a
child or student performs after a period of learning through examinations or
tests given to him or her at the end of a learning process.
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