CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF DEPRESSION ON UNIVERSITY OF BENIN STUDENTS

ABSTRACT

The study examined the causes and effects of depression on University of Benin students. The objective of the study was to know the prevalence of depression among undergraduates of universities in Nigeria, find out causes of depression among Nigeria undergraduates; to ascertain if there gender difference in depressive response among Students and to examine the roles of social workers in curbing the increasing rate of depression. The study adopted the descriptive survey design. The population of the study consisted students in the faculty of social science in the University of Benin. Two hundred and fifty (250) copies of questionnaire were distributed to respondents as sample size. Data collected were analyzed using frequency count, percentages and mean, with the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) 24.0. The empirical result revealed that depressive behavior is common among undergraduates of universities in Nigeria. Empirical result also revealed that loss of a loved one, financial crisis and unmet expectations in their academic work were the causes of depression among university students. The study recommends that programs on how to develop positive mental health attitudes by the depressed students and that the government should try and provide easy access to finance especially students who are facing financial difficulty.