Abstract
Single parenthood has become a social phenomenon all over the world. The aim of the study was to assess the effects of single parenthood on developmental outcomes such as personality type, social relations as well as academic performance among undergraduate teenage students. A cross sectional descriptive study carried out among students in Moshood Abiola Polytechnic Abeokuta. A total of 751 students were selected for the study using multistage sampling method. Data was collected by pre-tested, semi-structured, self-administered online questionnaire. Data collected was analysed with frequency distribution and logistic regression. Data analysis was carried with SPSS 23 software. Mean age of the respondents was 17.5 ± 2.67 years. Majority of the respondents (64.7%) were female and almost half (48.8%) lived in single parents’ household, 83.4% of which were headed by mothers. The result showed that students from dual parent homes had higher academic performance than those from single parent families. In addition, male students from single parenting families had lower academic performances than females. Students from single parent families were also more likely to exhibit antisocial behaviours than those from dual parent families. Similarly, male students from single parent families showed worse outcomes than female. The study did not observe any statistically significant difference in the outcomes of students from single parent families compared with dual parent families with respect to personality traits. However, the result showed that female students are more likely to express negative personality traits than male students.
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