Social Skills Training and Gender Differences in Conduct Disorder Symptoms Among Juveniles in a Nigerian Correctional Centre
Abraham Terfa Naibo, Harry Obi-Nwosu, Ekaette Mfon Useh, Iniobong Samuel George and Uwemedimo Sunday Isaiah
ABSTRACT
Conduct disorder (CD) is increasingly prevalent among juveniles in Nigerian correctional institutions, yet structured psychosocial interventions such as Social Skills Training (SST) are rarely implemented. This study examined the effectiveness of SST and the influence of gender on treatment outcomes among juveniles in a correctional center in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. Sixty participants diagnosed with CD (48 males, 80%; 12 females, 20%), aged 10–17 years (M = 13.5, SD = 3.5), were purposively selected and randomly assigned to an experimental or control group (n = 30 each). Using a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design, the experimental group received eight weekly 60-minute SST sessions focusing on communication, cooperation, and conflict resolution, while the control group received standard center programming. Assessments were conducted using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview–Kid Version (MINI-KID) for CD and the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS). Data were analyzed using t-tests and ANOVA. Findings revealed
a significant reduction in conduct disorder symptoms in the experimental group (F (2, 56) = 76.56, p < .001, η² = .72). At pretest, males (M = 36.5) reported slightly higher symptoms than females (M = 34.7), but males showed greater symptom reduction (M = 18.3 vs. 13.1) with larger effect sizes (Cohen’s d = 1.45 vs. 1.12). Post-hoc Bonferroni tests confirmed significantly lower symptoms in the experimental group compared to controls (MD = –25.40, SE = 4.82, 95% CI [–35.85, –14.95], p < .001). These results indicate that SST is effective in reducing CD symptoms among juveniles, particularly males, and support the integration of SST into correctional rehabilitation programmers to promote improved behavioral outcomes
