Nnamdi Azikiwe University Journals
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Effect of Cognitive Restructuring Technique on Test Anxiety among Secondary School Students in Anambra State
No full textThe quest for a permanent solution to decreasing test anxiety among young people necessitated the study on the effect of cognitive restructuring technique on test anxiety among secondary school students in Awka- South L.G. A of Anambra State. two research questions and two null hypotheses tested at 0.05 level of significance guided the study. The study adopted a quasi- experimental design, specifically the pretest posttest non randomized control group. five hundred and eighty students constituted the population. The sample for the study comprises of one hundred and sixty four senior secondary year one and two (SS1 and SS2) students who are test anxious sampled from three government owned co – educational schools in Awka-South L.G.A of Anambra State. The sampled students were assigned to experimental and control groups respectively. The instrument used for data collection was an adopted Speideger test anxiety inventory. The reliability of the instrument was that of internal consistency established using Alpha Cronbach. The experimental group were taught cognitive restructuring technique for eight weeks while the control group were given the conventional counselling. Mean was used for answering the research questions while analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used in testing the null hypotheses. The findings of the study revealed cognitive restructuring technique were effective in modifying test anxiety behaviour among secondary school students. Moreover, the findings further revealed that cognitive restructuring technique was more effective in reducing female secondary school students’ test anxiety behaviour. It was therefore recommended that school counsellors, teachers and psychologists should employ appropriate psychotherapies, particularly cognitive restructuring technique in modifying test anxiety of students, teacher training colleges and institutions should emphasize and adopt cognitive restructuring technique in training pre-service guidance counsellors. Seminars, symposia, workshops, and conferences should be organized for guidance counsellors by the government, education stakeholders and professional bodies like Counselling Association of Nigeria (CASSON) to familiarize guidance counsellors with this innovative technique that can help reduce test anxiety behaviour among student
Factors Responsible for Kidnapping, Psychological Effects on Victims, and the Need for Guidance and Counselling Interventions
No full textKidnapping remains a pervasive and traumatic crime that has far-reaching consequences for victims, their families, and society at large. This paper explores the multifaceted factors contributing to the prevalence of kidnapping, including poverty, insecurity, corruption, and drug abuse, which serve as underlying causes of this crime. The analysis further examines the profound psychological effects on victims, such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), emotional trauma, acute anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and suicidal ideation. In light of the mental health challenges faced by victims, the paper emphasises the critical role of guidance and counselling interventions in mitigating these effects. Trauma-informed psychological support, along with family and community-based counselling programmes, is essential to address the emotional and psychological distress experienced by victims and their families. The paper therefore highlights the concept, types, and prevalence of kidnapping, the factors responsible for its occurrence, its psychological effects, the impact of trauma on victims, and the need for guidance and counselling interventions. Based on the suggestions provided; government and relevant agencies should prioritise poverty reduction, enhance security, and implement community-wide education campaigns on personal safety, while making psychological counselling services accessible to victims of kidnapping to facilitate their recovery and reintegration
Influence of Small Group Tutorial on Communication Skills among Second-Year Students of Kogi State Universities, Nigeria
No full textThe study examined the influence of small group tutorial on the communication skills among second-year students Kogi State Universities, Nigeria. The study was guided by three research questions and three hypotheses. Descriptive research design was used for the study. A sample of 368 respondents was randomly drawn through the use of multistage sampling technique. The data collected were analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions, one way Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study among others revealed that small group tutorial always influenced communication skills of second-year students of Kogi state Universities, Nigeria; that one-on-one tutorial always influence the second-year students` communication skills; that online tutorial often and always influence the second-year students` communication skills; small group tutorial influence the second-year students` communication skills among second-year students of Kogi State Universities. The study concluded that small group tutorial influence the communication skills among second-year students of Kogi State Universities, Nigeria. Based on the findings above, the study recommended that; Institutions should emphasize on interactive and participatory tutorial to achieve more and greater improvements in students\u27 communication abilities
Zangbeto Festival and Ritual Realities: A Study of the Efficacy in the Ritual Performances of Ogun West, Nigeria
No full textFestivities go with their peculiar rituals. Owing to this belief, this study explores the roles of ritual realities in the performance of Zangbeto Festival among the Ogu people of Ogun West, Nigeria. As one of the longest standing traditions in Nigeria, the festival brings communities together annually to honor ancestral spirits and deities. However, little research has comprehensively examined how rituals enhance the festival over the years. Through a qualitative research design, using secondary data sources from academic sources directly documenting Zangbeto rituals and related festivities through observational fieldwork and ethnographic inquiry, this research sought to address that gap. This design was also employed in order to provide context to the study, secondary data collection method was employed in the study. The objectives of the study were to; analyze the role of ritual realities in enhancing the cultural significance of the Zangbeto Festival, to assess the impacts of ritual realities on community engagement and participation during the festival, and to provide historical context to the Zangbeto Festival with coverage to Ogun West for preservation of the tradition. The findings highlighted that Zangbeto Festival rituals\u27 role in preserving cosmology, reinforcing social hierarchies, and expressing cultural identity is huge. They also foster collective energy and intergenerational learning. The study concluded that, ritual practices are integral to perpetuating the Zangbeto Festival as a locus of social cohesion and heritage transmission across generations. The study therefore, recommends that further long-term, emic research could provide deeper insights into rituals\u27 community functions amid changing contexts
Digital Activism among Girls in War Zones: A Focus on Bana Alabed’s Dear World
No full textThis paper explored the area of digital activism with a focus on the narratives of girls as exemplified in Bana Alabed’s memoir, Dear World. The world is experiencing an era where online platforms serve as powerful avenues for self-expression and advocacy. This study aimed to explore how young girls utilize digital spaces to share their stories, thereby amplifying their voices, and engaging in activism. The research employed a qualitative approach, analyzing the content of Bana Alabed\u27s Dear World to understand the experiences and expressions of the girls in War-Torn Syria. By examining the varied dimensions of digital activism, the paper sought to unravel the impact of these virtual platforms on shaping narratives among young girls who are facing adversity. Through an in-depth analysis of the text and drawing on the Post-Colonial Feminist theoretical framework, the research aimed to contribute to the understanding of the connectedness between digital activism and the empowerment of girls. The findings of this study provided more knowledge about the ways in which technology can serve as a tool for engendering social change and amplifying the voices of marginalized individuals, especially girls
Proverb as a Literary Technique in Nigerian Literature and Oral Communication: A Deconstruction of Ola Rotimi’s The Gods Are Not to Blame
No full textThis is an evaluation of the proverbs in Ola Rotimi\u27s The Gods Are Not to Blame. It investigates the significance, implications, framing language and agenda setting functions of the proverbs in the promotion of oral communication in the play and the Nigerian society. Using the thematic descriptive qualitative content analysis (TDQCA), the proverbs are coded by categorising them according to thematic agenda, frames, and sources. Two theories (deconstruction and agenda setting) and two research objectives control the research. The proverbs are further deconstructed to show why the author and the gods are to blame for Odewale\u27s tragedies. Findings show that the play is laced with 77 African proverbs with such narrative frames and thematic agenda as incest, patricide, danger, blame, dramatic irony, identity crisis, causality, leadership quagmire, warning, conflict of interest, and attack. Using the proverbs, Rotimi sets agenda for the audience to enhance oral communication in the play and society. In addition, it is discovered that both the playwright and the gods are to blame for the tragedies in the play. This paper recommends that Nigerian literary artists should frame and set their agenda on relevant contextual and situational proverbs in their works to promote oral communication and Nigerian cultures. Secondly, communication, cultural and literary researchers in Nigeria should engage in the deconstruction of the proverbs in the play to further demonstrate that the playwright (by using proverbs depicting dramatic irony and predestination) and the gods (by predetermining Odewale\u27s fate) should be blamed for the tragedies in the play
The Marital Disputes of Nigerian Celebrities: Emotional Cues in Nonverbal Communication
No full textNonverbal communication provides valuable insights into individuals\u27 emotional states and communication patterns, and it is at the heart of every message conveyed or received. The study aimed at identifying nonverbal cues that Nigerian celebrities use to communicate their emotions during marital conflict, and examining the types of emotions these nonverbal cues depict. It is very significant, as nonverbal communication can reveal unintentional information, as well as cause your communication to be misinterpreted. Through this study, second language learners will know how to infer meanings that are not verbally communicated and interpret them accurately. The study was guided by the following research questions: (1) What nonverbal cues were used by Nigerian celebrities to communicate their emotions during marital conflicts? (2) What types of emotions do these nonverbal cues depict? Data for the study was collated primarily through online media platforms such as Facebook, blogs, Instagram, Twitter and newspapers such as Vanguards, Daily Post, Daily Trust, Premium Times and so on. The collated data was given a qualitative analysis using Albert Mehrabian’s Contextual theory of emotions. The findings showed that such nonverbal cues as cap lock, initial capitalisation, small letters, punctuation marks, emoticons, emojis, asterisk and formatting featured in the narratives of Nigerian celebrities. These identified nonverbal cues depicted such emotions as emphasis, contemplation, hesitation, uncertainty, incomplete thought, interruption, profanity, a short answer, smile or laughter, begging, death, intensity and so on. This study was recommended to be carried out among non-Nigerian celebrities to ensure the findings are adequate for generalisation. 
The Archetypal Fall from Grace: Figures of Hubris and Decline in Chinua Achebe\u27s Things Fall Apart and Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus
No full textThis paper examines the archetypal fall from grace of two central characters—Okonkwo from Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart and Eugene Achike from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus—through the lens of Archetypal Literary Theory and Joseph Campbell’s concept of the Hero’s Journey. While both characters initially occupy positions of power and respect within their respective cultural spheres, their rigid ideals, authoritarianism, and unchecked hubris catalyze their eventual decline. This study argues that Okonkwo and Eugene are archetypal tragic heroes whose inability to evolve with their changing environments leads to personal and symbolic ruin. By positioning their narratives within Campbell’s monomyth and classical archetypes, this paper reveals how these figures reflect broader cultural, moral, and psychological collapses in postcolonial African contexts
Reimagining Yorùbá Oral Tradition: An Exploratory Study of AI-Generated Storytelling
No full textThis study explores the cultural authenticity, narrative fidelity, and epistemological implications of AI-generated stories reimagining Yorùbá oral traditions and mythology. With the rising adoption of artificial intelligence in creative domains, questions of cultural ownership, representation, and accuracy have become increasingly urgent, particularly for indigenous traditions grounded in spirituality, performance, and oral transmission. Employing an exploratory qualitative approach, the study conducts a comparative textual analysis of AI-generated stories against canonical Yorùbá myths, focusing on key narrative elements such as deities, cosmology, motifs, linguistic features, and thematic structure. The research interrogates how AI models interpret and reconstruct culturally significant symbols, characters, and settings, such as Ọ̀ṣun’s sacred grove, Ṣàngó’s axe, and Ọbàtálá’s staff, and examines the extent to which they preserve or distort the epistemic foundations of Yorùbá cosmology. Findings reveal that while AI storytelling exhibits creative potential and narrative coherence, it often fails to incorporate key cultural markers, religious structures, tonal language complexity, and indigenous knowledge systems. The absence of community-led input and culturally competent frameworks results in narrative outputs that, although engaging, risk cultural dilution, misrepresentation, and appropriation. Furthermore, the study highlights the ethical and educational implications of promoting such narratives as representative of Yorùbá mythology. This research contributes to broader debates on the intersection of AI, heritage preservation, and decolonial knowledge practices. It offers recommendations for integrating indigenous expertise into AI training processes and for developing culturally responsive evaluation models that honour the integrity of traditional African storytelling systems
Impoliteness Strategies in Medical Staff-Patients Encounter in Zamfara State Public Health Facilities
No full textThis article focuses on the impoliteness strategies by medical staff of selected public health facilities in Zamfara state. The study interprets and analyses the excerpts of discourse strategies of some medical staff and patients using Culpeper’s (2005) model of impoliteness theory. The data collection methods employed were participant observation and paper recordings. Data were collected from twelve discourse encounters of medical staff and patients from nine (9) public health facilities across the three senatorial zones in the state. Three hospitals were selected from each zone. The data consists of eye-witness events involving the medical staff and patients in the selected health facilities. This research reveals that the language used by some medical staff portrays impoliteness behaviour at varying degrees. The study equally shows that staff of health facilities in the cities mostly employ negative impoliteness strategies while semi-urban hospital staff employ sarcasm or mock politeness in their language use to the patients. The bald on-record impoliteness strategy is employed by health personnel in the rural hospitals while the other impolite strategies are rarely used. Their responses to the patients show an attack on the patients’ face. The article recommends that medical staff shall learn to be polite by using expressions that show sympathy in their talk with the patients who attend public hospitals