Browsing by Author "Mvungu, Eunice Njeri"

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    An investigation into the effectiveness of rehabilitation programmes in selected centres of former street children and adolescents in Nairobi, Kenya
    (2012-02-15) Mvungu, Eunice Njeri
    The problem of street children is a worldwide social concern. There is virtually no city anywhere in the world without the presence of street children. Although the street children phenomenon is a global problem, it is more prominent in Latin America, Asia and Africa. In Kenya, the problem of street children first began in the early 1950s when the colonial system broke up families by imprisoning men and women or taking them away to the concentration camps. Since then, the number of these children has been increasing to unmanageable levels by the year 2403 prompting the Kenya government to institutionalize all the street children and families so as to have them rehabilitated. The study was aimed at establishing the effectiveness of rehabilitation prog selected centres for former street children and adolescents manned by Nairobi City Council. A descriptive survey method was used to collect the data for the study. A total of three centers were purposively sampled. From the centres, 151 children and adolescents out of a total population of 820 were also sampled using the same method. Fourteen staff members from the centres were also selected purposively for the study. Questionnaires were used as the main tool for data collection. Additionally an interview schedule and an observation checklist were used to verify the data obtained_ The data obtained were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Descriptive statistics such as means, percentages and frequency distributions were used to analyze various variables. The data were then organized, categorized and reported thematically. The results were presented in tabulated percentages. The findings of the study revealed that rehabilitation services provided include basic needs, counselling and medical care, among others. At the centres, the rehabilitatees are exposed to a number of activities such as laundry and personal grooming, cooking their meals and keeping the center clean that are viewed as being rehabilitative. The rehabilitatees declared that the programme had given them hope for a bright future. The staffs in the centres were found to be adequate in terms of numbers but were said to be uncommitted in their work hence negatively affecting the performance of the programme. The study also found that all the three centres did not have enough facilities. However, the programme was found to be rehabilitative and the rehabilitatees' attitude towards it was positive. It was therefore concluded that the rehabilitation programmes in the three centres are reasonably effective.
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    Prevalence and factors associated with gambling disorder among Kenyan university students involved in sports betting
    (Contemporary Research Center CRC Publications, 2020) Ogachi, Fabio M.; Karega, Muchiri; Mvungu, Eunice Njeri
    With the high uptake of sports betting among young people especially university students, it is inevitable that some of them will experience adverse effects associated with gambling disorder. This study sought to determine the prevalence of gambling disorder among university students who engage in sports betting and describe the factors associated with gambling disorder. A crosssectional survey was conducted among 228 students from one large private university in Kenya. Data was collected using a questionnaire developed based on the DSM-V criteria for gambling disorder and included items that measured gambling frequency and typical amount placed per bet. The results revealed that 69.3% of the participants were disordered gamblers, 68.9% gambled more than once in a week while 56.6% typically placed bets of between 50 to 100 Kenyan shillings. The study also found that frequency of gambling predicted gambling disorder while typical amount placed per bet did not. Findings also showed that many university students who gamble experience adverse effects as a result of disordered gambling and that there is need to develop policies and interventions aimed at reducing risk and harm associated with gambling disorder.
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    Societal factors and behaviour maladjustment of the boy-child: a case of boys in selected rehabilitation institutions in Nairobi and Kiambu counties, Kenya
    (Kenyatta University, 2014) Mvungu, Eunice Njeri; Sirera, M. A.; Mweru, M.
    Throughout much of history and across cultures, greater value has been placed on the male child. This is because of the roles he was presumed to take in the family and the society at large. Despite the high premium in which the boy-child is held, he has been internationally and locally featured causing havoc to the same people he is expected to be providing security to. The purpose of this study was to establish the societal factors that contributed to the behaviour maladjustment of the boy-child in selected rehabilitation institutions in Nairobi and Kiambu Counties, Kenya. The study looked at the role of parenting, society and peers on behaviour maladjustment of the boy-child. In addition, the study sought to find out what needs to be done to encourage pro-social behaviour among boys with behaviour maladjustment. The study was guided by social learning and psychosocial stages theories. To achieve the purpose of the study, ex post facto design was used. Purposive sampling was used to select three boys’ rehabilitation institutions while convenience sampling was used to select 92 boys, three institutional managers, nine rehabilitation staff and nine boys’ parents/guardians. A questionnaire and interviews were used to collect the data. Quantifiable data was coded and analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) whereas qualitative data was analysed using thematic descriptions. Statistical Analysis System (SAS) which gives output similar to SPSS was used in testing the hypotheses for this study. The findings are presented as per themes pertinent to the research questions. The study established that parenting and models in the society contributed to the boy-child’s behaviour maladjustment. Two parenting and two society related variables were found to be statistically associated with the outcome variable of maladaptive behaviour at (p=0.014 and p=0.04) and p=0.05 and p=0.017 respectively. However, the test found peers to have no significant influence on the behaviour of the boy-child which contradicts other past studies that have mostly found peers to influence each others’ behaviour. To encourage pro-social behaviour, effective parenting approaches and appropriate role modelling at family and society levels which could be achieved through Psycho-education for parents on responsible parenting was suggested. Based on the study findings, the following recommendations were given: i) Counseling for both the boy-child and the parents/guardians, ii) Empower parents/guardians through psycho-education, iii) Economic empowerment for the parents, iv) Psycho-education for the parents and the rest of the society. It is hoped that the findings of this study have shed some light to the society on some of the factors responsible for the behaviour maladjustment exhibited by the boy-child thus, embrace appropriate parenting and positive role modelling