Management of irrational beliefs among pupils: An intervention study using rational emotive behavior therapy.

BACKGROUND

Learners' convictions and worldviews are crucial driving forces for academic achievements in elementary schools. This is because a child's conviction determines his/her educational beliefs and dispositions. On this note, this study investigated the effect of rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) in the management of irrational beliefs (IBs) among pupils. The primary objective was to ascertain the efficacy of REBT in the management of pupils' IBs.

METHOD

This research adopted a randomized controlled trail experimental design. A random sampling method was employed to draw a sample of 103 primary school learners, comprising 52 and 51 pupils for treatment and control groups respectively. Besides, G-Power, version 3.1 was used to ensure sample adequacy for the study. Irrational beliefs inventory (IBI) was used for data collection. Repeated measures analysis of variance was used to analyze the data collected. The hypothesis was tested a 0.05 level of significance.

RESULTS

It was revealed that REBT significantly reduced IBs among primary school pupils after the intervention period as well as at the follow-up measure.

CONCLUSION

REBT is beneficial in the management of IBs among pupils. The study recommends that primary school counselors and psychologists should educate young learners on the negative effects of IBs on their academic pursuits.