Correlates of Nigerian Polytechnic Students’ Self-Communication in Study Reading

Abstract

The primary responsibility of a student is to study if he is to attain the high standard in his course. The University of Manchester (2001) released a student’s study reading plan which requested them to engage in one study activity or the other everyday including weekends. One effective way to exhibit and demonstrate such intensive study reading exercise is through the practice of self-communication. Using Ruesch and Bateson’s (2016) seven traits of intrapersonal communication, this study investigated students’ display of self-communication traits before and during examination. The Self Communication Questionnaire was administered on four hundred randomly selected students from four polytechnics. Results showed lower practice of, an insignificant correlation of, and a significant difference between, self communication displays associated with study reading before and during examination (r=.46; t(399)=-6.851; p<.05) . The study concluded that students delayed study reading till examinations were imminent and recommended that students’ study reading practices must be regulated and monitored at institutional level to assist students in effective time management in an environment full of co- and extra- curricular distractions. Keywords: Study reading, self communication, intrapersonal communication DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/9-1-0