INFLUENCE OF RELATIVE DEPRIVATION ON DEVIANT BEHAVIOURS OF YOUTHS IN ILORIN METROPOLIS
Keywords:
Relative deprivation, Deviant behaviour, YouthsAbstract
Youth deviant behaviour is an increasing problem in Nigerian society today. This paper investigated the influence of relative deprivation on deviant behaviours of youths in Ilorin Metropolis. It considered relative deprivation as an important element that influences deviant behaviour among youths in Ilorin. Unemployment, lack of basic needs and income inequality were used to measure the extent of youth deprivation and their involvement in deviant acts. The design of the study was a survey type. The population for the study comprised all youths in Ilorin Metropolis. Total of 200 respondents were sampled for the study using simple random sampling technique. Data were collected from the respondents using an instrument titled “Influence of Relative Deprivation on Deviant Behaviour Questionnaire” (IRDDBQ). The hypotheses generated were analyzed using chi-square statistical analysis at 0.05 alpha level. The findings of the study indicated that there was a significant difference in the influence of unemployment, lack of basic needs and income inequality as a measure of relative deprivation on deviant behaviour of youths in Ilorin metropolis. The implication of this is that deprivation resulting from these measures can cause youth to engage in deviant acts. It is therefore recommended that counsellors should extend their services to include value orientation and self-employment counselling to assist youth in developing right attitude to life in the face of deprivation and to manage their feelings instead of engaging in deviant act which can be detrimental to living a good life.
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