ASSESSMENT OF COUNSELLING ACTIVITIES ON INMATES IN INCARCERATION CENTRES IN SOUTHWEST, NIGERIA
Keywords:
counselling activities, inmates, incarceration centres, reformation centres, correctional centres.Abstract
Despite the efforts of successive counselling activities towards reformation of inmates in Nigeria, the condition faced by inmates in Nigeria is unsavory, as inmates are still observed to be some of the most mal-adjusted people in the society. The study presented assessment of counseling activities on inmates in incarceration centres in South-west Nigeria using descriptive research design. Three states (Osun, Oyo and Ondo) were selected using convenience sampling technique. In each of the state, four incarceration centres were purposively selected in order to have enough representation of the population. Inclusion criterion of eligibility was solely the literacy ability of inmates with no age or gender bias. In Agodi (Oyo) and Akure (Ondo) incarceration centres, a total of 130 inmates were purposively selected with the assistance of the staff in each of the centres; and same method was adopted to select 125 inmates in Ilesa and Ile-ife (Osun) centres; totaling 255 respondents. Three research questions were raised and responded to in the study. A questionnaire titled Counselling Activities on Inmates (CAI) was adopted for data collection, with reliability coefficient of 0.81. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings of the study revealed that: inmates in the selected reformatory centres benefit from various counseling activities, including psycho-education workshops, one-on-one sessions, group therapy, mental health counseling, goal setting, family therapy, and peer support. Counseling in reformatory centres enhances inmates' interpersonal skills, emotional management, and accountability. Inmates expressed high satisfaction with specific counseling activities provided by the reformatory centres. Study recommended that correctional institutions: need to engage more in personalized counselling activities; should increase access to relevant psycho-education to ensure effective rehabilitation and reintegration
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