Eric Isaac Shockden, Dr Jacob Omede, Dr Grace Onyejekwe
Abstract
This research examines the educational consequences of threats, and tests the prediction of basic needs (physiological and safety) satisfaction outlined in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory on academic engagement of adolescent students in Plateau State, Nigeria. An ex post facto research design was employed for the study. Adolescents attending public schools in high-risk (n = 279) and lower-risk locations (n = 203) in Plateau State completed Students Basic Needs Satisfaction Scale (SBNSS, α=0.92); Academic Valuing Scale (AVS, α = 0.86), and Students Academic Engagement Scale (SAES, α =0.80). Descriptive statistics, MANCOVA (with age and gender as covariates), and regression statistical techniques were used to analyze the data. Results showed, among others, that adolescents in high-risk locations had lower levels of basic needs satisfaction, valued academic achievement less, and had lower academic engagement than their peers in lower-risk locations; basic needs satisfaction showed strong correlation with both academic valuing and academic engagement among students in high-risk locations. It was recommended, among others, that academic planning should be directed towards fostering academic values and engagement of students through enhancing basic needs satisfaction, especially in risky locations of the country.