ABSTRACT: The study was carried out to investigate the influence of parenting styles and students’ academic performance in Business Studies in secondary schools in Ikot Ekpene Local Government Area. The study was provided with the background to the study through a well detailed introduction. Two research questions were formulated in line with specific objectives to guide the study. The significance of the study were stated, limitations and delimitations were also stated as well as operational definition of terms. The study adopted a survey research design. The population of the study consisted of all the junior secondary schools two (JSS2) students in all the seven (7) public secondary schools in the study area. The total population for the study was two thousand eight hundred and seventy three (2,873) students.
A stratified sampling technique was used to select two hundred (200) students from four (4) secondary schools for the study. The instruments used for data collection for the study was Business Studies Achievement Test (BSAT). The method used in analyzing the data collected for the study was independent t-test statistical tool. The result of the finding revealed that authoritative and indulgent parenting styles have more positive influence on academic achievement of students in secondary schools.
INFLUENCE OF PARENTING STYLES AND STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN BUSINESS STUDIES IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Family is the setting in which children gain necessary skills, such as decision-making, responsibility, showing respect to others, showing affection and receiving love, fulfilling social roles and expressing creativity and start their first education. While raising their children, parents all over the world employ different styles in raising their children use According to Bab (2010), parenting style is a psychological structure that represents standard strategies parents use in child rearing which includes parental attitudes and behaviours (Kordi & Baharudin, 2010). Brown and Iyengar (2008), parenting style has an effect on self- efficacy, self-respect, self-development, and academic motivation, as well as the behaviours of the individual (Brown & Iyengar, 2008).
On one hand, a study found out that indulgent parenting style and educational achievement of students has no relationship. (Masafour, 2013). An indulgent parenting style is a bad influence (Odongo, 2016) and negatively affects students’ academic performance. (Beicus, 2014). A study found that students of indulgent parents have lower academic performance (Hong, 2012). More so, a child with indulgent parenting styles have lower level of academic achievement (Talib, 2011), of achievement orientation and self-efficiency. (Ingoldsby, Schanevelelt, Supple, and Bush, 2004). Authoritative parents are sensitive to their children’s needs, encourage their children to express their desires and feeling, firm but nor punitive. (Ashiono and Muvoma, 2013). Several studies have showed that authoritative parenting style is a good predictor of academic performance (Tuner, Chadler and Heffer, 2009: Seth and Ghormode, 2013), and students’ attitude towards leisure time reading.
Parenting style is a major factor which plays an important role in the development of individual’s personality (Baldwin, Mclntyre, & Hardaway, 2017) and is considered to influence different aspects of children’s outcomes ranging from academic achievement, externalizing behavior problems, optimism, motivation, confidence, and attention problems (Gadeyne, Ghesquiere, & Onghena, 2014). It has been seen that parenting styles are different and these vary from individual to individual and is also specific to particular society; culture and locality in which the person is reared.
Parenting styles are beneficial in understanding complex behaviors and attitudes associated with child outcomes (Rodriguez, Donovick, and Crowley, 2009). Parenting is parental behaviors which encompass pleasures, privileges, and profits as well as frustrations, fears, and failures. Thus, parents can find an interest and derive considerable and continuing pleasure in their relationships and activities with their children (Dawkins, 2016). There are nine parenting styles that were suggested by Baumrind (1999). These are; authoritative, demanding, traditional, authoritarian, undifferentiated, democratic, permissive, nondirective, and rejecting-neglecting. However current researchers have found out that parenting styles are often adapted by previous generations (Brown & Iyengar, 2008) and are passed down by culture.
Parenting style is one of the variables that have been studied extensively in human development (Baldwin, Mclntyre, & Hardaway, 2007). It is considered an important determinant of several aspects of children’s outcome (Gadeyne, Ghesquiere, & Onghena, 2014). The notion has been related to children and adolescent academic achievement, optimism, confidence, motivation, externalizing problem behavior and attention problems (Onghena, 2014). Moreover, parenting style depends on the behavior and attitude of parents. Two major variables identified by Baumrind (1991) centered on parenting styles and child outcomes. One of them was the responsiveness of parents to their child’s needs in a reasonable, nurturing and supportive way.
It is generally agreed that parenting style influences self-efficacy, self-esteem, and identity development, which are associated with academic achievement (Brown & Iyengar, 2018). In addition, the progress in children’s achievement is influenced by the decision that is made by both parents and their children to cooperate or confront each other .Furthermore, children’s academic motivation and behavior are directly influenced by family activities and parents’ behavior, which are seen as the external factor. For instance, there is a positive outcome for both parents and children when parents interact in a fun and loving way during children’s homework time (Morawska, 2007).
Baumrind (1991) presented four parenting styles each with a different emphasis on responsiveness and demandingness: First, indulgent parents who are defined as permissive or non-directive. Their valence is more toward permissiveness rather than demandingness. Second, authoritarian parent who are defined as highly demanding and equally high in directive but lower on responsiveness.
Third, authoritative parent who are defined as both responsive and demanding. They set clear standards and equally assertive and non-intrusive. Fourth, uninvolved parents who are defined as low in both demandingness and responsiveness. Parenting styles have also been described as a three-category structure, i.e. authoritarian, permissive and indulgent parenting styles (Dornbusch, Ritter, Leiderman, Robert, & Fraleigh 1997). According to Maccoby and Martin (2013), authoritative parenting is manifested by patterns of warmth, non-harsh behavior, and also uniformity was found in children daily living and adaptive behavior which help them to adjustment. Authoritarian style is manifested by patterns of less warmth, harsh behavior of discipline, and no uniformity, indulgent styles, marked by low levels of look after and supervision.
Parenting style which characterized by warm, supportive and acceptance tend to be associated with higher academic performance, in contrast, parenting style such as authoritarian style which involved high level of control and low level of acceptance tends to be associated with lower academic performance (Park & Bauer, 2012). The early study from Dorn Busch (2007) indicated that parenting practices had influence on school academic performance during adolescence and younger children age.
According to him, authoritative parenting is positively correlated with adolescent school performance, whereas authoritarian and indulgent parenting is negatively correlated with school performance. The foundation for parenting style and academic achievement is formed by the belief systems and attitudes in parents and their children (Brown & Iyengar, 2008). For example, Pastorelli et al. (2001) found that children with authoritarian parents perceived themselves as less efficacious for self-directed learning. In general, children are enhanced by authoritative parents and show higher academic competence, social development, self-perception, and mental health compared to children with authoritarian and permissive parents (Baumrind, 2012)
Parents who are indulgent are described as warm, responsive and have high nurturing abilities but lack parental control and expect little mature behaviour from their children. Indulgent parents are lenient towards their children’s impulses, desires and actions. These parents have few demands and allow their children do whatever they want (Baumrind, 2010; Berk, 2006). Indulgent parents are high on parental responsiveness but low on demandingness.
Tolerance, warmth, and acceptance are characteristics of these parents although they do not exert authority or great control over their children in terms of enforcing rules (Baumrind, 2005). They make few or no demands for responsibility and orderly behaviour (Baumrind, 2015). Indulgent parents are indulgent and passive in their parenting, and demonstrate love to their children by giving in to the demands of their children. The indulgent parent is low on rules and control, but strong on love and affection. These parents tend to spoil their children by allowing them to do as they like. They are quick to forgive, even where this may not be necessary (Roche, Ensminger & Cherlin, 2007).
According to Maccoby and Martin, (2013), authoritarian parents display little warmth and a high degree of control. They are strict disciplinarians and use a punitive and restrictive style. Authoritarian parents expect their children to obey rules and instructions set by them without questioning. Authoritarian parents may use expressions such as “You will do that, because I say so”. These behaviours may cause the child to be dependent and rebellious.
According to Turner (2009) the authoritarian parenting style is like a system of military regime. (Karavalis, 2013). Parents in the restrictive pattern of parenting are identified as authoritarian. Parents in this type attempt to sharpen, control, and evaluate the behavior and attitude of their children which is usually formulated by a higher secular authority (Baumrind, 1999). These parents are high on demandingness and low on responsiveness. This is because rules and orders are not to be explained but are to be obeyed instantly and without question. It is against this background that the study sought to find out the influence of parenting styles and students’ academic performance in Business studies in Ikot Ekpene Local Government Area.
INFLUENCE OF PARENTING STYLES AND STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN BUSINESS STUDIES IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The poor performance of students in Business studies in secondary schools in Ikot Ekpene local Government Area has been of great concern to parents, teachers and the society at large in both internal and external examinations has been a source of worry to teachers, parents and even the educational stakeholders and this has brought about apportioning of blames to the government and the teachers with little attention given to parenting upbringing. The students on their part complain that their parents mostly detect what they do in both in school and at home. The parents blamed the teacher for not taking their job seriously while the teacher turns to blame the government for insensitivity towards the pride of the teachers. However, way it is, this study sought to find out the influence of parenting styles and students’ academic performance in Business studies in secondary schools.