Information and Rehabilitation: The Need for Correctional Centre Libraries in South- West, Nigeria

Abstract

The paper examined the importance of nformation in all spheres of life be it economic, social-political, and research. The study adopted the survey  research design. The population for the study was 472 longterm prisoners in South-West, Nigeria cutting across 15 Correctional Centres. Total enumeration was used. Instruments for data collection were a self-developed and validated questionnaire titled, “Information Provision and Prisoners' Rehabilitation Programmes in South-West, Nigeria” and observation. The reliability test of the questionnaire  yielded  the following
Cronbach's Alpha coefficient for the major constructs: rehabilitation programme=0.83, prison  rinformation needs rehabilitation = 0 . 8 2 , sources of information = 0 . 9 4 , Data from the questionnaire were analysed using descriptive and  inferential (correlation and multiple regression) statistics. Data from observation were thematically analyzed. Findings revealed that vocational programmes such as barbing and home economics ranked  highest (mean = 3.6, on the scale of 5) among the rehabilitation programmes available in Nigeria ncorrectional centres, while addiction treatment ranked the lowest (mean = 1.4). Prisoners identified health, counseling, recreational, religious, and emotional wellbeing as major areas in which they needed information (mean = 3.9). There was a high Mean score of all the identified variables investigated with the highest being correctional centre Libraries, Information Centres, Lectures, Fellow prisoners, and Visitation by relatives with Mean (mean = 3.9). In all the least rated sources in terms  of importance were databases Mean (mean = 3.0) and e-resources with Mean (mean = 3.0) on the scale of 4 points. Observation, however, revealed that correctional centre libraries in the real sense of it are not available in correctional centres in South- West, Nigeria.

Keywords: Information; Rehabilitation; Correctional Centre Libraries; South-West, Nigeria.