Formal Education and Psychological Malaise in an African Society

Abstract

Two theoretical arguments are posed concerning the effects of formal Western education in producing a sense of alienation among individuals in traditional, non-Western societies. The value-conflict thesis leads to the hypothesis that education and alienation are positively associated. The goal frustration thesis suggests that education and alienation are negatively associated among individuals with modern value orientations and positively associated among those with traditional orientations. Crosstabular evidence based on structured interviews of 591 young males in Kano, Nigeria, and involving controls for acquiescent response set and tests for the effects of ethnicity, economic status, and intelligence, casts doubt on the value-conflict thesis and provides support for the goal-frustration thesis.