Effects of a Communication Workshop on Attitudes Conducive to Modern Development.
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Date
1986-01-20
Authors
Luma, E.L
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Publisher
University of Lagos
Abstract
The march towards progress and modern development is of first priority to most countries of the underdeveloped world. Consequently, it is imperative that inhabitants of these areas begin the search for solutions to this problem based on empirical findings regarding its approach and content.
The purpose of this study is to verify the effects of a communication workshop (CW) on attitudes conductive to modern development. Modern development here is limited to individual psychological modernity because it is considered basic to all other types of modern development. The study also investigates the relationship between certain personality factors (extraversion, reflectiveness, responsibility, ego-centricity, self-esteem) and readiness to change as a whole. Their correlation with modernity components like attitudes toward work, the sexes and children are also examined. Seven hypotheses in all are tested.
A sample of 234 first-year-students of the faculty of Letters, University of Yaounde, Cameroon, aged 17 - 25 years were used for this investigation. The design used for the study was the present-post test experimental and control groups, the IPMQ - (Cameroon) was made up of modified borrowing from Eysenck (1979), Smith and Inkles (1966), Kahi (1968), Doob (1967) and others. It also contained items composed by the researcher herself. Such items were intended to measure attitudes typical of Cameroon. The techniques used in testing the seven hypotheses of this study ranged from the analysis of variance to the Pearson correlation co-efficient and the t-test. The significance level for all the hypotheses was set at 0.05.
The results of the investigation showed that:
1. the CW made a significant impact on the attitudes of the sample in favour of modern development, the results also showed that the attitude change of the experimental groups, that is, those who receive the CW was more significant than that of the control group which did not receive the treatment at all.
2. Extraversion, Reflectiveness; Responsibility, Egocentricity, and self-esteem are all good predictors of modernity and attitudes toward work. Egocentrically is a good predictor of attitudes towards work, the sexes and children. Self-esteem is a good predictor of attitudes towards work and the sexes but not of attitude towards children. Surprisingly, Extraversion, Reflectiveness and Responsibility did not correlate significantly with attitudes towards the sexes and towards children.
3. Ego-centrically does not facilitate change towards modern development.
4. Participants who were in favour of female emancipation (Group 1) had a significantly higher self-esteem (M = 24.487) than those (Group II) who were against female emancipation (M = 23.211).
5. There is no difference between the attitudes of extroverts and introverts towards modernity.
6. There was greater tendency for more favourable attitude change towards children than towards women.
7. Fatalism is a more important contribution than attitude towards work in the delay modernity.
Among the many recommendations made were the use of the CW as a tool in combating attitudes not condusive to modern development particularly among the future teachers and University Students whose attitudes are likely to influence the cause of development in decade to come. Without doubt, teachers and teacher-trainers are expected to play a leadership role in this needed attitude modification.
As a conclusion to the whole study, a personality moulding programme of instruction is suggested. It is hoped that if such habits and attitudes as indicated in the programme are instilled early in youth, they would apply them both in their personal lives and interactions with others, and also in favour of modern development in Cameroon and, possibly, in other developing countries. Development would thus emerge as a consequence of internal dynamics of each individual personality, and society in general, rather than from external forces.
Some implications on development policies and issues for further research are raised in the closing chapter of this report.
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Keywords
Modern Development , Communication Workshop
Citation
Luma, E.L (1986) Effects of a Communication Workshop on Attitudes Conducive to Mode Development. University of Lagos School of Postgraduate Studies Phd Thesis and Dissertation Abstracts. 273pp.