Mass Media as an Environmental Awareness Strategies and Attitude of Farmers towards Deforestation in Southern Cross River State, Nigeria
Agnes O. Omari
National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, Abuja, Nigeria.
M. Remi Omoogun *
Department of Environmental Education, University of Calabar, Nigeria.
John E. Effiom
Department of Environmental Education, University of Calabar, Nigeria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The main purpose of this study was to examine mass media as environmental awareness strategies and attitude of farmers towards deforestation in the rainforest zone of southern Cross River State, Nigeria. The hypothesis, which states that the use of mass media does not significantly influence the attitude of farmers towards deforestation in the rainforest zone of southern Cross River State, Nigeria, was formulated to guide the study. Ex-post facto research design was considered most suitable for the study. The sample consists of 568 respondents randomly selected through the stratified and simple random sampling techniques. A structured questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection. The instrument was faced validated by three experts in Test and Measurement. The reliability estimate of 0.83 was established through the Cronbach alpha reliability method. Simple linear regression statistical tool was used for data analysis. The result revealed that, there is a significant influence of mass media on attitude of farmers towards deforestation. Based on this finding it was recommended among others that environmental educators and advocates should ensure that the mass media should be maximally utilized to continually create environmental awareness among the citizens in order to empower them to develop more positive attitude towards eradication of negative environmental practices and actions.
Keywords: Mass media, environmental awareness strategies, attitude, deforestation, rainforest zone.