THE INFLUENCE OF PEER GROUP ON ADOLESCENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE: A CASE STUDY OF SOME SELECTED SCHOOLS IN OGUN STATE

BY OMOTERE TOPE N.C.E., B.A. (Ed)

THE INFLUENCE OF PEER GROUP ON ADOLESCENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE: A CASE STUDY OF SOME SELECTED SCHOOLS IN OGUN STATE

By

OMOTERE TOPE N.C.E., B.A. (Ed).

January, 2011

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 2011 Omotere Tope Published By: EgoBooster Books, Ogun State, Nigeria. All rights reserved. eBook Identification No: 20110122 Project File No: E002
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About the Author

www.omoteretope.com
Omotere Tope attended Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education, OttoIjanikin, Lagos from 2002 to 2006 (N.C.E. in Christian Religious Studies/ History) and holds a B.A. (Ed) in History and Diplomatic Studies from Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State. He has undergone training at the United States Institute of Peace (Online Training Program) with a certificate of course completion in Peace and Conflict Analysis. He is currently a post-graduate student of the National Open University of Nigeria. Omotere Tope is an online publisher. He conducts researches (both online and offline) to produce academic works that students can use for their long essays, theses and dissertations. With access to his online project database www.omoteretope.com , students in Colleges of Education, Polytechnics and Universities can download full texts of related works prepared by him and other researchers. This will enable them to read literature reviews, check for empirical evidences from data analysis and understand the methodology used.

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THE INFLUENCE OF PEER GROUP ON ADOLESCENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE: A CASE STUDY OF SOME SELECTED SCHOOLS IN OGUN STATE

ABSTRACT This study investigated the influence of peer group on adolescents academic performance. Descriptive research methodology was used. Ramdom sampling technique was also adopted to select about one hundred and fifty in-school adolescents from four secondary schools in two Local Governments Areas of Ogun State. Questionnaire was developed to collect data. The data collected was analyzed using the using t-test and Pearson. The findings of this study revealed that peer group could either positively or negatively influence the academic performance of in-school adolescents. This research recommends that parents and teachers should provide adequate guidance to adolescents to help them understand how the friends they keep can either positively or negatively influence their academic performance in school.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE Title page Abstract i ii

CHAPTER ONE Introduction Background to the Study Statement of the Study Purpose of the Study Research Hypotheses Significance of the Study Scope of the Study Limitation of the Study Operational Definition of Terms. CHAPTER TWO Literature Review Theoretical Framework and Review Adolescence Period and its Characteristics Developmental Stages of Adolescent Challenges and Development Task of Adolescent Adolescent and Peer Peer Pressure and Peer Influence 12 12 14 17 21 23 1 7 7 8 8 9 9 10

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Peer Influence and Academic Performance Effect of Peer Influence on Academic Performance EMPERICAL REVIEW

26 30 33

CHAPTER THREE Methodology 3.0 Research Methodology 36 36 37 37 37 38 38

Research Design Research Population Sample and Sampling Technique Research Instrument Method of Data Collection Method of Data Analysis

CHAPTER FOUR Presentation of Result and Data Analysis Introduction Data Analysis 39 39

CHAPTER FIVE Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation

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Discussion of Findings Conclusion Recommendations Implication for Counselling Practice Suggestion for Further Studies REFERENCES APPENDICES

43 44 45 45

47 50

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CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the Study

In ways similar to the community, the peer group becomes an agency of enculturation and learning. Even very young children develop a sense of self from their perceptions of important people in their surroundings, including relatives, teachers, and peers. Socioeconomic status, ethnic identity, and parents occupations affect how families view themselves and the process by which they socialize their children (Bornstein, 2002). Later, as children leave the home setting, their self-perception and socializing skills become influenced by how their peers view them. When children move out from family to child-care centers, school, and the community at large, they begin to form attachments, and friendships emerge through their play. These relationships influence behavior. Even infants and toddlers are observed reacting to other infants by touching them, by crying when others cry, and later by offering nurturance or comfort. By about age three, early friendships

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begin to form and childrens peers begin to have a more lasting influence (Parke, 1990). Peer influence on behavior gradually becomes more dominant. Harris (1998, 2002) and Rowe (1994) maintained that peer groups have an even stronger influence than that of parents, although that extreme position has been refuted by other researchers (Berk, 2005). Gradually, children discover that others can share their feelings or attitudes or have quite different ones. The perspectives of others will affect how children feel about their own families. Children usually have a family view of their own and of other cultures. So, when confronted with other perspectives, they often need to rethink their own viewpoints. It is often difficult for children to adjust to the idea that other families can function radically differently from their own and yet hold many of the same attitudes and beliefs and be equally nurturing and secure. The peer group serves as a barometer for children examining themselves and their feelings about self and family. The peer group also influences development of childrens socializing skills. These early friendships help children learn how to negotiate and relate to others, including their siblings and other family

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members. They learn from peers how to cooperate and socialize according to group norms and group-sanctioned modes of behavior. The peer group can influence what the child values, knows, wears, eats, and learns. The extent of this influence, however, depends on other situational constraints, such as the age and personality of children and the nature of the group (Harris, 1998; Hartup, 1983). Socialization is particularly important for children with disabilities, and it is the reason many programs include peers who are typically developing in special education programs or include children with disabilities in general education classrooms. In its most acceptable form, the peer group is a healthy coming-ofage arbiter, by which children grasp negotiating skills and learn to deal with hostility and to solve problems in a social context. In its most destructive mode, the peer group can demand blind obedience to a group norm, which can result in socially alienated gangs with pathological outlooks (Perry, 1987). Despite so much change in today's society, the fundamental tasks of growing up still endure - to find a place in a valued group that gives a sense of belonging; to identify and master tasks that are generally recognized as having value and therefore can earn respect by

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acquiring skill to cope with them; to acquire a sense of worth as a person; and to develop reliable and predictable relationships with other people, especially a few close friends and loved ones (Hamburg, 1992).

Conceptualization of the Term Adolescence The term adolescence is derived from Latin word adolescere which means growing up. It is a period of transition in which the individual transforms from childhood to adulthood. It is also regarded as the physical and mental human development that occurs between childhood and adulthood. The transition involves biological (i.e puberty), social and psychological changes. Adolescence can be seen as a stage in the life span through which individual pass before adulthood. It is also a period of great emotional stress. Whatever happens during this developmental stage goes a long way in affecting the individual positive or negative. These changes are associated with involvement with ones peers. As children grow, develop and move into early adolescence,

involvement with peer and attraction of peer identification increases. Adolescent are socialized by the people they associate with. Through

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daily interaction over the course of many years, acceptable social customs are taught and accepted by adolescents as the right norms. Understanding the way social interaction affect academic

achievement adolescents is important for parents, educators and policy makers. Peer group influence, especially during adolescence and early adulthood is a powerful force for both pro-social and anti-social development. Wentzel (1989) and Lingrett (1995) found out that as children grow and move to adulthood, involvement with and influence of peer identification increase as modeling value of the family decreases. In most cases, peer tends to replace the modeling value of the family context during early childhood. As a result of the social acknowledgement that adolescents look for, they are under a certain amount of pressure that drives them to abide by the peers convictions or rejections. The influence of peer group on adolescents academic performance has also been a subject of intense study. Catttern (1998) came up with the finding that strong relationships do exist between school adjustment behaviour and peer acceptance. It was also found that strong and quality peer associations are related

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to poor or good academic performance and successful school transition. Peer influence is one of the most frequently referred to forms of negative peer influence it is particularly common because most adolescent are forced to spend large amount of time in fixed groups (schools and sub groups within them) regardless of their opinion of these groups. In addition to this, they lack the maturity to handle it. Also adolescents naturally wish to behave negatively towards those who are nor members of their own peer groups. However, adolescent can also have positive effects. For example if one is involved with a group of people that are ambitious and working to succeed, one might feel pressured to follow suit to avoid feeling excluded from the group. In this way, the adolescent is influenced positively. Positive peer influence on academic performance depends on adolescent self-identity, self-esteem and self-reliance. Peer influence can mobilize adolescents energy and motivate for success. Peer can and do act as positive role models. Negative behaviour that his or her values might otherwise reject. If an adolescent is influenced negatively from peer, it affects their academic performance. Stronger adolescents do have an impact on

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their peers and actually help improve the overall academic performance. If adolescents are friends to secondary school dropouts, they have tendency to be absent from school, have lower grades and less positive attitudes towards schools, they are less popular and less likely to plan to attend higher institutions. If dropout maintains contact with friends who have stayed in schools, however, these friends may provide moral support for returning to school. Attitudes and aspiration of peers as well as peers expectations and standards affect individuals efforts and achievement in school. For many secondary school students, achieving in school is in direct conflict with peer acceptance. For many adolescent, friendships are critical interpersonal bridges that move them towards psychological growth and maturity, allowing social compassion, influences the development of selfevaluations. However, it is through the peer group that adolescent are most likely to be introduced to problem behaviour such as drinking, smoking, delinquency and low academic performance (Hadlen 1994).

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An abundance of literature has suggested that there is considerable individual variation regarding cognitive skill development during adolescents as it relates to peer influence. Adolescents who have positive peer influence generates more alternative solution to problem, proposed more mature solution and are less aggressive than adolescent who are influenced negatively. Adolescents are attracted to join peer groups because such groups provide them with sources of information needed to be empowered academically, vocationally, psychological or otherwise and give the feed back about the appropriateness of their emotions especially when adolescent are highly stressed or under stressed (Schachter 1989).

1.2

Statement of the problem

During adolescence, the amount of influence that peer group have on ones academic achievement is enormous. The ways and manners by which peer influence affects adolescents academic performance needs to be researched and documented. This will assist parents and counselors to understand the pattern of peer influence and ways to curb negative influence.

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1.3

Purpose of the Study The purpose of this research work is to achieve the following

objectives: i. ii. iii. Examine the concept and nature of peer group Discuss the challenges associated with adolescent stage Analyse means by which peer group influences in-school adolescents iv. Discuss the effects of peer group influence on academic performance of adolescents 1.4 Research Hypothesis

The following null hypotheses were tested in the study: H01: There is no significant difference between peer group pressure and academic performance of adolescents H02: There is no significant different between those in private and government secondary schools as regards peer influence on adolescents academic performances. H03: There is no significant difference between bad peer group and negative influence on adolescents behavior.

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H04: There is no significant difference between male peer group and female peers on students academic performance. 1.5 Significance of the Study

This study is important for several reasons. First, the findings will help adolescents to choose their peers with caution. Second, it will provide comprehensive information for counsellors, educators, and parents on how they can assist adolescents to deal with peer pressure. Third, this research work will lead to further in-depth study on influence of peer pressure on adolescents academic performance. Lastly, it will serve as a contribution to knowledge on adolescents in Nigeria. In this regard, it will be useful for other researchers who might want to carry out research in related areas. 1.6 Scope of the Study

This research work focuses on the influence of peer group on adolescents academic performance. This research work covers adolescents in Ogun State using two Local Government Areas ( Ijebu-

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North Local Government and Ijebu-Ode Local Government) as case study. 1.7 Limitation of the Study

Apart from time frame and shortage of finance, the major limitation to this research is the inability of the researcher to cover the whole Local Government Areas in Ogun State as the title suggest. 1.8 Definition of Terms

Peer group: are children or adolescents who are of the same age or maturity, level and have regular contact with each other. Peer influence: peer influence can be described as the pressure adolescents feel from their peers. Adolescence: refers to the transitory period where a child moves to adulthood. The adolescent years fall within 12-18 years. In-School Adolescents: refers to adolescents who are still in the formal school system as opposed to those who have dropped out of school. Academic performance: refers to the intellectual ability of an individual when it comes to academic or education.

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