EFFECTS OF SYSTEMATIC DESENSITIZATION AND SELF INSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES ON GENERALIZED ANXIETY AMONG ADOLESCENTS IN ENUGU STATE

SOURCE:

Faculty: Education
Department: Guidance And Counselling

CONTRIBUTORS:

Obi, J.S. C.
Anagbogu, M. A.
Nwankwo, C. A.

ABSTRACT:

The study is on the effects of Systematic Desensitization Technique and Self Instruction Technique on generalized anxiety among secondary school adolescents in Enugu East Local Government of Enugu State. Six research questions and six hypotheses guided the study. Theoretical studies and various empirical studies were reviewed under, Systematic Desensitization Self Instruction techniques, and prevalence of generalized anxiety in secondary schools. The research design is quasi experimental design. The target population for this study was made up of 203 students with generalized anxiety in all the secondary schools in Enugu East L.G.A. The sample for the study was 91 secondary school students with generalized anxiety in the three purposively selected secondary schools. The Beck anxiety inventory (1990) (BAI) with 21 items was adopted for this study for data collection. The data collected were analyzed using mean scores for research questions and ANCOVA in testing the null hypotheses. The findings of the study showed that Systematic Desensitization was effective in reducing generalized anxiety in secondary school adolescents. Also that Self Instruction Technique was effective in reducing generalized anxiety of secondary school students. Findings of the study also indicated that Systematic Desensitization and Self Instruction Technique were retained twelve weeks after treatment. Furthermore, the findings revealed that neither Self Instruction technique nor Systematic Desensitization technique was more effective than the other in reducing generalized anxiety of the adolescents. It is recommended among others that guidance counsellors should use Systematic Desensitization Technique in reducing generalized anxiety, as well as Self Instruction Technique among secondary school students. Furthermore workshops and seminars should be organized for teachers by guidance counsellors, to enable them embrace such techniques like Systematic Desensitization and Self Instruction Techniques in modifying behavioural problems like generalized anxiety.

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