UNDERSTANDING LOW SELF-DISCLOSURE AMONG JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN ANIOCHA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, ANAMBRA STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study sought to investigate the factors affecting junior secondary school students' willingness to self-disclose during counseling sessions in Aniocha Local Government Area, Anambra State, Nigeria. The study population comprised male and female students from eight selected junior secondary schools in the area, with a sample size of 400 respondents. Purposive sampling techniques were used to select the respondents for the study, and descriptive statistics and correlation analysis were utilized to analyze the data. Results showed that outcome expectation variables, including stigma tolerance, anticipated risk, social stigma, anticipated utility, perceived social support, and emotional openness, negatively impacted students' attitudes towards self-disclosure during counseling sessions. Specifically, female students had lower attitudes toward self-disclosure due to their lower level of emotional openness compared to male students. The study recommends the development of multicultural competencies to address the low self-disclosure phenomenon in counseling units, as well as improved counselors-students ratios across all junior secondary schools in the studied area. The study highlights the importance of counseling services for junior secondary school students in Sub-Saharan African countries in dealing with their stressors, social, educational, and psychological issues