Influence of Social Media and Peer Group on Maladaptive Behaviour among Secondary School Students in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja

This study explored influence of social media and peer group on maladaptive behaviour among secondary school students in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The design employed for this study was a descriptive survey research design. The population of the study consisted of all the students attending federal university in Nigeria. A sample size of 322 students was selected for this study. The study revealed that social media has both negative and positive influence on maladaptive behaviours among secondary school students. Findings of the study also revealed that peer pressure has both negative and positive influence on maladaptive behaviours among secondary school students. The findings of the study further revealed that male and female respondents differ significantly on the influence of social media on maladaptive behaviour among secondary school students in FCT-Abuja. The findings of the study equally revealed that respondents from rural and urban areas differ significantly on the influence of peer group on maladaptive behaviour among secondary school students in FCT-Abuja. The study recommended that mass media especially the visual ones should be careful in what to feature and what not to, since most youth imitate and tend to exhibit a lot of what they borrow from these agents of information. As Nigeria is a developing nation, effort should be directed against polluting the characters of our youths since they are the hope of the nation.