International Journal of Social Research and Development

authors
Florence Nwoburuoke Ikezam, Patience Linus Nwoke

abstract
The purpose of this study was to determine sexual assault as predictors of unwanted pregnancy among female secondary schools students in Rivers State Nigeria. Senior female public school students were purposefully selected. The study was a simple correlational design with a population of 31,757 public female senior secondary school students in Rivers State Nigeria. A sample size of 395 female students were used for the study. Taro Yamen’s method of determining minimum sample size was used to arrive at this figure. The Sexual Assault Questionnaire (SAQ) and the Unwanted Pregnancy Indication Scale (UPIS) were used as outcome measures. Face and content validity of both instruments were established by test experts and experts in guidance and counselling. The test-re-test reliability method was used to establish the reliability of SAQ and it yielded a coefficient value of ‘r’ 0.82 while the reliability of the UPIS was determined through the internal consistency method using Cronbach Alpha statistics and it yielded an alpha value of a=0.71. Results revealed that alcohol and drug use, peer group influence, lack of sexuality education in schools significantly predict unwanted pregnancy among female students in Rivers State. Based on the findings of this study, it was recommended among others that seminars on drug use and alcoholism should be regularly taught in schools to re-orientate students on the dangers involved in them. Orientations should be regularly organized in schools on the negative effect of peer influence. Secret agents should be detailed to all chemist, pharmaceutical and liquor stores to ensure that alcoholic drinks are not sold to teenagers, drugs not prescribed by medical personnel are not also sold behind the counter especially to children and teenagers to prevent the temptation of buying and using drugs that may be harmful to their existence.