Perceptions of Students and Administrators on Peer Pressure as a Predictor of Students’ Sexual Behavior in Secondary Schools in Homa Bay Town Sub County, Kenya

Abstract

A favorable school atmosphere, in which learners are well behaved, is one of the greatest concerns of education stakeholders. Although studies have documented a number of factors that lead to misbehavior among students in schools, peer pressure is reported to contribute up to 53% of cases of students’ misbehavior. The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of students and administrators on peer pressure as a predictor of students’ sexual behavior in secondary schools in Homa Bay Town Sub County Kenya. The objective was to find out the perception of students and administrators on the role of peer pressure in predicting risky sexual behavior among secondary schools’ students in Homa Bay Town Sub County, Kenya. The target population was 10761 students and 33 deputy principals in the 33 secondary schools in Homa Bay Town Sub County. Stratified and simple random sampling was used to select 30 secondary schools from which 30 deputy principals were selected. Three hundred and seventy students were sampled by simple random sampling. A descriptive survey research design was adopted to find out the perception of students and deputy principals on peer pressure as a predictor of Students’ sexual behavior. Data on the students’ and deputy Principals’ perception was collected using structured questionnaires and deputy principal’s interview. The content validity of the research instruments was established by seeking opinions from the experts in Educational Psychology. Reliability was assessed by test re-test method and Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.882 and 0.996 was obtained for students and deputy principal’s questionnaires respectively. Descriptive statistics including frequency counts, means, standard deviation and percentages were used to analyze quantitative data. Qualitative data from the deputy principals’ interview was transcribed and categorized into emergent themes. The study revealed that Students generally expressed moderate agreement that peer pressure relates to Students’ sexual behavior (mean=2.65). Deputy principals’ responses revealed that school administrators had higher level of agreement that peer pressure relates to Students’ sexual behavior (mean= 3.24). The findings of this study may help in increasing awareness and insight towards implementation comprehensive peer educational programs in school and provide useful information to the Ministry of Education and policy makers. The study recommend that secondary schools should implement comprehensive peer education programs that would bridge the gap in understanding and foster non-judgmental discussions on peer pressure and its influence on students behavior.