The Influence of Mothering Style on the Social Adjustment of Female Adolescents in the Central Education Zone, Cross River State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between mothering style and the social adjustment of female adolescents in the central education zone of Cross River State, Nigeria. 150 senior secondary school (SS2) students were used as the target population. Five null hypotheses were formulated on the basis of identified major independent variables of authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, single and married, working class and non working class respectively. A 25-items questionnaire was developed and used on the 150 female adolescents from 6 out of the 18 girls public school in the study area using the cluster, purposive and random sampling procedure to select schools and respondents for the study. data analysis by the Pearson product moment correlation and independent t-test  statistical procedure revealed that authoritative and permissive mothers parenting exert averagely high influence on female adolescents social adjustment than the authoritarian mother parenting style. It was also revealed that high differences exist in the social adjustment of female adolescents raised between  married and single; and between working class and non working class mothers. It was therefore concluded that mothering style significantly influence the social behaviour of female adolescents in the central education zone of Cross River State, Nigeria. It was thus recommended among others that mothers should show a high level of involvement in their female children’s social adjustment.  Some counselling implications were also proffered as the way forward.

Key words: Adolescents, adjustment, female, influences, mothering, social, style