ERIC Number: ED270637
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1986-Apr
Pages: 61
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Realism of Occupational Training to Vocational Preference of Nigerian Youths.
Nwachuku, Daisy N.
A correlational model based on vocational development theory was constructed to analyze the implementation of crystallized occupational preference and goal attainment projections of high school graduates in Nigeria. Data were collected from 180 male and female final year occupational trainees at the University and Polytechnic. The primary focus was to establish realism of occupational preference in regard to the training obtained, deriving realism from congruence between the expected (crystallized interest) and the actual (current training). Chi square statistics and correlation coefficient techniques were applied to data. Findings indicated that school graduates actually do make rational choices even if not implemented, and youths are aware of reality factors that face them. The variables of ability, self-image, interest, finance, and labor sector situations were found to be most influential in the decision process for vocational preference implementation. The study contradicted the assertion of indiscriminate and haphazard occupational entry among Nigerian youths. Although high school crystallized preferences were changed in more than two-thirds of the cases at the implementation state, it could be concluded that the training entry decisions were rationally considered based on point-in-time influencing factors and subject's perception of goal impedance. Implications of this research for Nigerian society include the need to seek solutions to the discongruence of vocational interest and job market opportunities, and improvement of the integration of counseling, labor market situations, and manpower development programs. Three pages of references, a table of data on student enrollment at Nigerian universities, and a copy of the questionnaire are appended. (Author/KC)
Descriptors: Career Choice, Career Counseling, Career Development, Career Planning, Developing Nations, Economic Development, Education Work Relationship, Goal Orientation, High School Graduates, Job Training, Labor Market, Labor Needs, Occupational Aspiration, Postsecondary Education, Vocational Interests
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Nigeria
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A