Dr Edward E. Idiege, Dr Agaba George A. & Ambali Abdullateef
Abstract
The aim of this study was to examine the influence of parental attitude on secondary school students’ career aspirations in Ogoja Education Zone of Cross River State, Nigeria. To achieve this aim, a random sample of 720 senior secondary two (SS II) students was selected from a total of 5,840 SS II students in 90 public secondary schools in the five Local Government Areas that make up the zone. A validated researchers-designed questionnaire with a Cronbach co-efficient of 0.811 was used for data gathering. Data collated from the study were subjected to chi-squared analysis at 0.05 level of significance. Findings showed that parental attitude significantly influenced female students’ career aspirations but did not significantly influence that of the male students. Based on the findings, it was concluded that parental attitude significantly influenced female students more than their male counterparts. It was recommended, amongst others, that parents should consider the prevailing occupational information in advising their wards to make occupational choices rather than compelling them to take after their own careers.