dc.description.abstract | The purpose of my study was to establish how rehabilitation programmes influence
behaviour change of street children in Embakasi central, Nairobi. It was guided by four
objectives; to investigate how life skill competences, institutional capacity,
entrepreneurship training and psychosocial support influence the behaviour change of
street in that area. It also sought to determine the level of success of these programmes
in rehabilitation of these street children towards change of behavior and improve their
lives. The target population of the study was one hundred and ten (110) which
comprised of care givers, administrators, government officials and street children in the
rehabilitation centers. The study employed the descriptive survey design which
collected both quantitative and qualitative data. A sample size of 86 participants was
extrapolated from the targeted population using the Krejcie and Morgan Table from
which stratified sampling was employed to obtain a sample for each strata. Data
collection was done using questionnaires, focus group discussion guides and interview
schedules. The instruments were pilot-tested using 9 questionnaires that were
administered to Shauri Moyo street children rehabilitation centre which has similar
characteristics as the study area. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.782 was obtained
through split and half technique to check for the reliability of the instruments.
Describing statistics in the form of frequencies, percentages, mean and standard
deviation was used to analyze quantitative data. Inferential statistics was used to test
hypothesis. Analyzed data was presented in forms of tables. The study revealed that
any unit increase in training in lifeskill competencies would lead to 0.795 increase in
behaviour change of street children, any level of change in institutional capacity would
lead to 0.579 units change in behaviour change of street children. Similarly,any unit
change in entrepreneurship training would lead to 0.675 units change in behaviour
change of street children any a unit increase in psychosocial support would lead to 0.617
units change in behaviour change of street children. Life skills are necessary to thrive
in this ever changing world, resourcing these centres should be at the heart of every
interested stakeholder, teaching street children on entrepreneurship training is
important especially in promoting self-reliance, trust among society and creating
employment opportunities for self and others and psychosocial support in terms of
mentorship is a key avenue towards building the confidence of street children.
Collectively and as observed in this study, it is impossible to separate these 4 variables
as avenues for transforming lives of street children. This is largely due to the reality
that these factors are only useful when availed together as a bundled service as opposed
to treating them uniquely. The study recommends the need for rehab centres to establish
a follow-up mechanism. | en_US |