Perceived Economic Hardship, Learned Helplessness and Japa Intention Among Youths in Uyo Metropolis

Abstract

Nigeria's protracted economic difficulties, marked by rising inflation, unemployment and a widening cost-of living gap, have intensified concerns about how young people interpret and respond to hardship, including a growing wish to relocate abroad, popularly termed “Japa.” This study conducted a descriptive survey of perceived economic hardship, learned helplessness and Japa intention among youths in Uyo Metropolis, Akwa Ibom State. A descriptive survey design was adopted, and data were collected through a self-administered online questionnaire, the Economic Hardship, Helplessness and Japa Intention Questionnaire (EHHJIQ), from youths aged 18 to 35 years recruited through convenience sampling on social media and community platforms in Uyo. Of 600 responses received, 584 were usable for analysis. The instrument comprised a ten-item Perceived Economic Hardship Scale, a fifteen-item Learned Helplessness Scale adapted from Quinless and Nelson (1988), and a ten-item self-developed Japa Intention Scale, each on a five-point Likert format, with Cronbach's alpha coefficients of .78, .85, and .77 respectively. Data were analysed using frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviations. Findings showed a high level of perceived economic hardship (M = 3.87, SD = .54), a moderate level of learned helplessness (M = 3.22, SD = .58), and a high level of Japa intention (M = 3.95, SD = .52) among respondents. One-way ANOVA revealed significant differences in all three variables across employment status groups (p < .001), with unemployed respondents recording the highest mean scores and employed respondents the lowest. The study concludes that economic hardship and the desire to emigrate are pervasive among youths in Uyo Metropolis, even though outright helplessness has not fully set in, and recommends targeted youth-employment programmes and psychosocial support services.