CAN INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE AND GENDER INFLUENCE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF ADOLESCENTS POPULATION WITHIN AWKA METRO

Abstract

This study investigated if intimate partner violence and gender will influence academic performance of adolescent students. Two hundred secondary school students in Awka south LGA, Anambra state served as participant for the study: Their age range from 10 to 16 years with mean age of 12.5 and standard deviation 1.16. 120 (60%) were males and 80 (40%) were females selected using the convenient sampling techniques. Instruments administered on them included the academic performance scale developed by Birchmeier and colleagues, 2010) and the children exposure domestic violence scale developed by Edleson et al., 2008). The study was a survey research and adopted correlational research design; this is because the study aimed to understand the possible relationships that exist between the variables under study. Multiple regression statistics served as appropriate statistics for analyses of the data. Result showed that intimate partner violence significantly and inversely predicted academic performance with (β= - .342, p<.05). Gender significantly predicted academic performance with (β=.270, p<.05). Lastly, intimate partner violence and gender jointly predicted academic performance with (F=2,119, Adjusted R 2 =.245, p<.001). Therefore, based on these results, it was recommended that educators and school staff should receive training on recognizing the signs of intimate partner violence, responding appropriately to disclosures, and connecting students with requisite resources necessary to mitigate such effect. Training should also emphasize the intersectionality of gender, violence, and academic performance to ensure a holistic approach to