THE IMPACT OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PARENTS AND THEIR CHILDREN WELL BEING IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

This research examined the impact of effective communication in the relationship between parents and their children well being in Nigeria. The survey research was used in this study to sample the opinion of respondents. This method involved random selection of respondents who were administered with questionnaires. Relevant conceptual, theoretical and empirical literature was reviewed. The target population of the study comprised residents in Ogun State, Nigeria. The questionnaire administered was three hundred and ten (310) copies and three hundred copies (300) retrieved which constitute the sample size. The descriptive and analytical approach was adopted using Chi-square to test and analyze the hypotheses earlier stated. The result revealed that there is a significant impact of communication in the Parent-Child Interaction in Nigeria. The finding of the study also reveals that communication can strengthen the bond between parents and children. The findings of the study also revealed that communication can support children’s development. The findings of the study further reveal that there is a significant relationship between communication and Parent-Child Interaction in  Nigeria. The finding of the study also reveals that the quality of the parents’ relationship is one of  the factors that influence Parent-Child Interaction in  Nigeria. The findings of the study reveal that creating a special name or code word for your child is one of the ways of improving parent-Child Interaction in  Nigeria. It was therefore concluded that communication significantly have impact in the parent-child relationship in Ogun State, Nigeria. It was advised that Parents should be more proactive and intentional in initiating and maintaining open and honest communication with their children on various topics, especially those related to sexual and reproductive health, which are often neglected or avoided in Nigerian culture.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1. Background of the Study

The parent–child relationship is one of the most influential relationships in a person’s life. Young children rely on their parent(s) to provide them with basic needs, and parents provide for their children in order to sustain them and build toward future generations (Floyd & Morman, 2014). In accordance with evolutionary psychology, humans’ motivation to love, protect, and provide for their children has evolved from the principles of natural selection (Floyd & Morman, 2014). Most parents invest in their children through providing resources such as time, affection, finances, education, and health care. This investment and subsequent interdependence fuels an important interpersonal bond between parents and children, socializes them into adulthood, and molds their communication skills (i.e., Afifi, Granger, Denes, Joseph, &Aldeis, 2011).

Due to the life-long attachment between parents and children, this dyad has received much attention from scholars and still has ample room for future research. Fingerman and Hay’s (2002) meta-analysis of articles published in family and relationship journals between 1994 and 1999 reported that 25.6% of articles focused on relationships with young children, and only 16.6% of the articles studied relationships with parents. Further, in their content analysis of communication-focused family relationship research between 1990 and 2003, Baxter and Braithwaite (2006) found that 35.6% of scholars focused on parent–child communication. Yet, children (i.e., those younger than 18 years old) are not often studied in family communication research and deserve more scholarly attention (Miller-Day, Pezalla, & Chestnut, 2013). Thus, there is a strong body of research parent–child communication that scholars can build upon when investigating the of the ever-changing landscape of parenting in the 21st century.

The role of communication to levels of relational satisfaction has been well documented (Dindia, 1994). Certainly the principles of Relational Dialectics as first proposed by Leslie Baxter and W.K. Rawlins regarding the “knots of contradictions” and the “unceasing interplay between contrary or opposing tendencies” holds true within the framework of parent -child relationships (Baxter, 1988) (Rawlins, 1988). In the family dynamic, fathers and daughters can feel the most detached by natural elements beyond their control and these opposing tendencies can serve to merely cause a lack of communication or complete avoidance. But there is hope within the realms of communication research that indicates these challenges need not remain the status quo.

Years of communication research has demonstrated that family communication between parents and adolescents plays an important role in the development of psychosocial adjustment (Rueter & Koerner, 2008). The idea of “open communication” where a daughter feels safe to talk to her father for example, has shown to have numerous benefits including lowering levels of risky behavior among adolescent girls, and acting as a “protective” factor directly effecting disclosure among fathers and their daughters. (Liu, 2003) (Guilamo-Ramos, Jaccard, Dittus, & Bouris, 2006). Certain communication characteristics of the father-daughter relationship lead to satisfaction. Buerkel-Rothfuss, Fink, and Buerkel (1995) found that both daughters and sons reported satisfaction with their fathers based on the father’s time spent with them, observing their listening skills, and sympathy skills. A noted college professor, perhaps the only teacher in the country with a class specifically dedicated to parent child-relationships has consistently urged fathers and daughters to share more private time while the daughters are living at home indeed emulating if not in exact content, but the time allocation of mothers and their daughters who spend far more private time together (Nielsen, 2006). Despite studies on the role of communication on parental-child relationship has been studied in Nigeria, there is still s dearth in literature portraying this rationale. It is based on this background that the present study aims to determine the impact of effective communication in the relationship between parents and their children well-being in Nigeria.

1. Statement of Problem

It is worrisome to note that children tend to face a lot of emotional and psychological problems arising from irregular school attendance, lack of personal and interpersonal skills to cope with school work. Poor communication have negative perception about schooling because it interferes with their freedom as they prefer to spend most of their time with friends. From our cultural perspective when a child fails to attend school, the parents are usually blamed. However, many students struggle with personal issues that relate to lack of personal, interpersonal and problem-solving skills, which manifest as behavioural problems that could most likely result to truancy.

In addition, some parents neither assist their children in the homework or assignment nor participate in the school programmes Uwakwe (1998). Such parents do not monitor the progress of their children thereby abdicate their responsibility to the school. Also, some students explained that they do not have writing materials such as textbooks, pencil, biros, school bags and sandals, hence prefer to be outside while the lessons are going on. Such students’ cannot benefit from the various programmes that the school offers. This means that poor communication affect parent-child relationship and it their wellbeing. It is based on this backdrop that the present study seeks to determine the impact of effective communication in the relationship between parents and their children well-being in Nigeria.

1. Objectives of Study

The main objective of this study is to determine the impact of effective communication in the relationship between parents and their children well-being in Nigeria. Specific objectives of the study include;

1. To determine the impact of effective communication in the relationship between parents and their children well being in Nigeria
2. To outline factors that influence parents and their children well-being in Nigeria
3. To examine the relationship between effective communication and parents and their children well-being in Nigeria
4. To ways of improving parent-child interaction in Nigeria
   1. Research Questions

The following questions guided this study;

1. What is theimpact of effective communication in the relationship between parents and their children wellbeing in Nigeria?
2. What are factors that influence parents and their children well-being in Nigeria?
3. What is the relationship between effective communication and parents and their children well-being in Nigeria?
4. What are the ways of improving parent-child interaction in Nigeria?
5. Research Hypotheses

The following were hypothesized;

Hypothesis One

H1: There is a significant impact of communication in the Parent-Child Interaction in Nigeria

Hypothesis 2

H0: There is no significant relationship between communication and Parent-Child Interaction in Nigeria.

H1: There is a significant relationship between communication and Parent-Child Interaction in Nigeria

1. Significance of the Study     

The study will be of immense benefit to the children who are at risk of poor parent-child relationship because they will acquire vital skill for coping with personal, interpersonal, problem solving, self-assertiveness and self-management skills that will ensure emotional and psychological wellbeing. This study would enable the parents to encourage their children by providing pro-social skills such as active participation in their children’s school work. These include assisting the students to complete their assignment, attending Parents’ Teachers” Association (PTA), regular visits to the school to find out about the academic performance of students during the Open Day activities.

This study would be of significant effect to the school, counselor and education administrators by organizing seminars and workshop for regular school attendance behavior. It would also broaden the knowledge of counselors on the use of Social Learning and Cognitive Behaviour Therapies.

The study would provide literature for Federal government, State ministries of Education and researchers in Nigeria and other countries for policy formulation. Furthermore, the society will be happy and peaceful in that there will be a reduction in rate of crime and other vices which are the products.

1.7 Scope of the Study

        This study is limited to the impact of effective communication in the relationship between parents and their children well-being in Nigeria. This study was conducted specifically in Ogun State and participants for are made up parents living around the facility.

1. Operational Definition of Terms

Communication: Communication is the act of transferring information by speaking, writing, or using some other medium. It involves a sender, a message and a recipient. The sender encodes the message, the recipient decodes it, and feedback is given.

Parent:A parent is someone who has a biological, legal, or social relationship with a child. 

Child:A child is a person who is below the age of 18, according to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child

Parent-Child Relationship:A parent-child relationship is the bond that exists between a parent and their child. It involves the parent’s responsibility to care for, protect, and guide the child, as well as the child’s need for love, acceptance, and security from the parent.

Parent-Child Interaction:Parent-child interaction is the process of exchanging information, feelings, and meanings between a parent and their child through verbal and non-verbal communication.