Assessment of Counselling Services in the Remediation of Socio-Psychological Problems among Undergraduates in Osun State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study assessed the utilisation of counselling services in the remediation of socio-psychological problems among undergraduate students in Osun State, Nigeria. Anchored in the Theory of Planned Behaviour (Ajzen, 1991) and the Ecological Systems Theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1979), the study employed a descriptive survey design with quantitative analysis. Data were collected from a purposively and randomly selected sample of 1,160 undergraduates across universities in Osun State, supplemented by structured interviews with ten professional counsellors. Of 1,108 usable responses, findings revealed that 67.4% of students were aware of counselling services, yet only 29.7% had ever utilised them, with friends (74.8%), family (58.3%), and religious leaders (47.6%) preferred over formal counselling. Principal barriers included inadequate information (68.3%), fear of a confidentiality breach (61.7%), and stigma (54.2%). Chi-square tests of independence (χ²) revealed statistically significant associations between gender and awareness (χ²(1) = 13.09, p < .001), age group and utilisation (χ²(3) = 15.25, p = .002), and religious affiliation and utilisation (χ²(2) = 8.80, p = .012). The study argues that the paradox of institutional availability without meaningful student engagement represents a systemic failure demanding structural, attitudinal, and policy-level remediation. Recommendations include the redesign of counselling orientation programmes, adoption of digital and peer-mediated counselling platforms, integration of mental health literacy into academic curricula, improved counsellor-to-student ratios, and the development of a national policy framework for university counselling in Nigeria.