ABSTRACT

 This study investigated socio-personal factors as correlates of students’ career choice in secondary schools in Ikot-Ekpene Local Government Area ofAkwa Ibom State. Six research questions were raised and six null hypotheses formulated that were tested at 0.05 level of significance guided the study. The study adopted a correlational research design. The sample for the study consisted of 469 respondents drawn through multistage sampling techniques from a population of2,347’male and female senior secondary school class two (SS2) students in all the public senior secondary schools in the Local Government Area in 2022/2023 academic session. Tw'O instruments titled: Socio-Personal Factors Questionnaire (SPFQ) Students’ Career Choice Questionnaire (SCCQ) were developed by the researcher from literature for data collection. The instruments were validated by three experts: one in Psychology, one in Guidance and Counselling and one expert in Measurement and Evaluation; all from Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike. The stability of the SPFQ and SCCQ was determined using Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficient. The Coefficient reliability indices of 0.75 and 0.83 were obtained for SPFQ and SCCQ respectively. The internal consistency ofthe SPFQ and SCCQ was determined using Cronbach’s Alpha method. The reliability indices of 0.87 and 0.89 were obtained for SPFQ and SCCQ respectively. The data obtained through the administration ofthe instruments were analyzed using Pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient, Pearson’s r, R2 (coefficient of determination) to provide answers to the research questions while linear regression and multiple regressions were used to test the null hypotheses at .05 level ofsignificance. Linear regression analysis was used for hypotheses 1, 2, 4 and 5 and multiple regression analysis was used to test the null hypotheses three at 0.05 level ofsignificance. Scheffe test was also done for a step-wise comparison ofthe means for hypothesis four. The study revealed that: Joint socio-personal factors (students’ interest factor in a career and peer group influence factor) predicted career choice in senior secondary schools to a very highly positive and significant extent. Joint socio-personal factors (students’ interest factor in a career and peer group influence factor) predicted 99.8% ofthe variance observed in in career choice in senior secondary schools. However, students’ interest factor in a career had higher percentage contribution of 72.4% than peer group influence factor which predicted 55.5% of career choice in senior secondary schools. There was no significant difference between male and female students’ career choice based on interest factor and peer group influence factor; as students’ interest factor predicted only 5.1% and 5.0% while peer group influence factor predicted only 5.2% and 5.1% ofthe male and female students’ career choice respectively. It was thus recommended among others that school counsellors/psychologists, teachers and parents should provide secondary school students information from this study; which would aid them in making appropriate career choice in secondary schools.