Physical and psychological health consequences of intimate partner violence among married primary school teachers in Delta South Senatorial Zone of Delta State, Nigeria: Implication for marital stability.

Background: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a serious health issue among couples which is recorded more among married partners. Dishearteningly, IPV among couples who are teachers is underreported due to shame, thereby increasing the prevalence of IPV in the area of the study. Objectives: The study examined physical and psychological health consequences of IPV on married primary school teachers. Methods: The design was a cross-sectional descriptive survey conducted on married primary school teachers in Delta South Senatorial zone of Delta State, Nigeria from 22nd February - 29th November, 2021. Three hundred and thirteen 313 (207 women and 106 men who have experienced various forms of IPV) who were identified as victims of IPV were used as participants in the study. Structured questionnaire was used to elicit information on physical and psychological health consequences of IPV on married teachers. Conclusion: The researchers concluded that there are severe and serious physical and psychological health consequences associated with IPV among married primary school teachers in Delta South Senatorial zone of Delta State, Nigeria. Urgent interventions such as public enlightenment, campaigns, workshops, seminars, community health talk-shows should be organized by government stakeholders, non-governmental organizations, community leaders on the prevention of IPV and its dare consequences for marital stability.

Validation of coronavirus-2019 phobia scale using preschool practitioners in urban and rural communities in Nigeria: Implication for educational sociologists.

ABSTRACT: Coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) emerged in December 2019, causing significant changes in people's social lives and other human activities. The outbreak halted educational activities throughout the world. The Nigerian experience was unique in that most people were skeptical about the pandemic's existence. This practice contributed to the Nigerian people's fear of the COVID-19 outbreak. However, in Nigeria, there has never been a validated or established Covid-19 phobia scale, necessitating this study.This study was a pure validation study on COVID-19 phobia scale (C19PS). The study area was south-east states and a sample of 386 preschool practitioners in urban and rural communities of South East States, Nigeria participated in the study. The eligibility criteria include being a preschool teacher and demonstrating signs of COVID-19 phobia. The validation of the C19PS was done by subjecting the data gathered to principal axis factoring analysis with varimax rotation. The model fit for the data was tested using root mean square error of approximation and comparative fit index.It was found that the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin value of .845 for the measure of the adequacy of the sample size. There was also a significant Bartlett's test of sphericity (P < .05). This implies that the correlation matrix for the C19PS is not an identity matrix. It was revealed that C19PS had good overall reliability (α = .896) and model fit (Root mean square error of approximation = .042, comparative fit index = .943) in a sample of Nigerian preschool practitioners.As a result, C19PS was recommended as a trustworthy tool for identifying persons who suffer from COVID-19 phobia.

The need for school administrative policies to manage meningitis amongst students in Nigeria: a viewpoint.

Students are at greater risk of meningitis than non-students of similar age. However, a lack of specific school administrative policies for the management of meningitis may contribute to the increasing incidence of meningitis in the student population. The study aims were to promote the need for a policy framework in school settings to manage meningitis, and to encourage research to assess the readiness of school administrators to adopt such a policy in Nigeria. The material reviewed here derives from expert opinion, gray literature, national data sources, websites, and peer-reviewed journals. It is important to offer comprehensible, reliable, and accurate information about meningitis to students and staff of every school in Nigeria, as one of the best ways of achieving the goal of preventing meningitis in students may be through the adoption and implementation of meningitis policy frameworks by school administrators. Furthermore, studies are required to examine the readiness of school administrators to adopt a meningitis policy framework.

Effect of music therapy combined with cognitive restructuring therapy on emotional distress in a sample of Nigerian married couples.

BACKGROUND: Music therapy combined with cognitive restructuring could provide a mechanism to improve patients' sense of control over emotional distress. This study evaluates the effect of music therapy combined with cognitive restructuring therapy on emotional distress in a sample of Nigerian couples. METHODS: The participants for the study were 280 couples in south-east Nigeria. Perceived emotional distress inventory (PEDI) was used to assess emotional symptoms. Repeated measures with analysis of variance were used to examine the effects of the intervention. Mean rank was also used to document the level of changes in emotional distress across groups. Effect sizes were also reported with partial η. RESULTS: There were no significant baseline differences in emotional distress level between participants in the music therapy with cognitive restructuring group and waitlisted group. Significant decreases in the level of emotional distress were observed in the music therapy with cognitive restructuring group, but the waitlisted group demonstrated no significant change in their score both at posttreatment and 3 follow-up assessments. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest music therapy with cognitive restructuring therapy is effective for reducing emotional distress of couples. In addition, the positive effect of the music therapy with cognitive restructuring therapy program can persist at follow-up. Therefore, therapists have to continue to examine the beneficial effects of music therapy with cognitive restructuring therapy on emotional distress level of couples both in Nigeria and in other countries.

A rational-emotive stress management intervention for reducing job burnout and dysfunctional distress among special education teachers: An effect study.

BACKGROUND: Job-related burnout and distress are adverse stress responses which affect individuals in their occupational environment. This study aimed at investigating the effect of a rational-emotive stress management program on job burnout and dysfunctional distress among special education teachers in Nigeria. METHODS: A pretest-posttest randomized control group design was used. The participants in the study were 54 special education teachers. Data were collected using self-report questionnaires. Participants were allocated to either the treatment group (n = 28 [59.1%]) or the waitlist control group (n = 26 [48.1%]), respectively. A rational-emotive stress management manual was used to deliver the intervention. We statistically analyzed the data collected at three-time points with repeated-measures analysis of variance. RESULTS: At baseline, the job-related burnout symptoms and distress scores of participants were high. However, an intention-to-treat analysis showed that the rational-emotive stress management intervention program was efficacious in reducing the levels of job-related burnout symptoms and dysfunctional distress among participants assigned to the treatment group, compared to a waitlisted group at post-treatment and follow-up meetings. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrates the effectiveness of a rational-emotive stress management intervention in reducing the level of job-related burnout and distress in a sample of special education teachers in Nigeria. Occupational health counsellors and other clinicians with sufficient knowledge of rational-emotive behavior therapy framework are urged to employ this approach in assisting other employees in managing job burnout symptoms, and distress.