Factorial validation of sense of community scale using Nigerian mathematics, science, and social science education students: Implication for educational administrators and evaluators.

The ugly occurrences of security breaches have made the Nigerian populace to be leaving in fear. The most affected are the teaming adolescents of the school-age who may not have a good sense of their community. Thus, this study carried out the factorial validation of a 36-item sense of community scale (SoCS) developed by Cicognani et al. since no such study exists in Nigeria. The instrument was adopted and validated. A sample of 357 students in South East Federal Universities, Nigeria, was used for this study using a simple random sampling technique. The instrument's factorial validation was conducted by subjecting the data obtained to factor analysis to determine its validity and reliability. Besides, the principal component matrix with varimax rotation was used to carry out the exploratory and confirmatory factors analyses, while the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) and confirmatory factor index (CFI) were used to determine the data model fit. Findings of the study showed that SoCS demonstrated good reliability (0.89) and model fit (RMSEA = 0.041, CFI = 0.951) in the Nigerian context. SoCS is a reliable scale for measuring the in-school adolescents' sense of community.

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.