SEX FOR GRADE - University Stories and Fallen Lecturers

The term ‘sex for grade’ is gradually becoming popular by the day as journalists and news agencies in Nigeria seems to prefer the newly coined term as against the term sexual harassment that has been a subject of academic research for a long period of time.

Sex for grade is an integral part of sexual harassment in which sex is exchanged for grades in educational institutions. This antisocial and unethical behaviour became more pronounced in Nigeria in 2019 when the social media and print media were awash with cases of sexual harassment in Universities, tagged sex for grade. Sex for grade is seen as an aspect of corruption. Corruption is pervasive and cuts across all known sectors of the Nigerian society. Its impacts are evident at governmental and nongovernmental organisational levels.

Statement of Problem

The twenty first century presents new brands of social problems. In the past, cases of sexual harassment or sex for grades were at a minimal level. However, in recent times, sex for grade has gradually become a well-known slogan in Nigerian educational institutions. This is because of recurring cases of male lecturers demanding for sex in plain language from female undergraduates. In 2019 alone about five cases of sex for grade were recorded and circulated on social media. In fact, there was a BBC Documentary in which an undercover Journalist Kiki Mordi by name and her team members recorded different encounters with lecturers at a Federal University in Lagos and a university in Ghana (Mordi. 2019). This act is condemnable and considered unethical in any institution of learning.

Earlier in the year, cases of sex for grade were reported at a federal university in the southwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria and a faith-based private university in the same geopolitical zone. These incidences portrayed the Nigerian university system in bad light and caused a national embarrassment even as individuals who graduated from some of these universities some years prior alleged that lecturers asked them for sex during their time in these universities. Undergraduates who got good grades in exchange for sex may not be able to defend their certificates or make substantial contribution in work organisations. This may have a negative effect on national development.

Therefore, this study seeks to answer two research questions:

(i) What is the relationship between the demand for sex in educational institutions and mediocrity in work organisations?

(ii) What is the relationship between the urge for sexual gratification and the level of corruption in educational institutions?

These questions are germane to the understanding of the impact of sex for grade, an aspect of corruption, on national development.

Literature review

Rodney (1972) defines development as increased skill and capacity, greater freedom, self-discipline, responsibility, and material well-being. Hence, national development denotes a situation in which a nation is able to achieve set objectives and well-being through self-discipline and responsibility. National development could be a mirage in a corrupt nation as corruption portrays irresponsibility and lack of self-discipline. Corruption according to Uji (2015) is asking, giving or taking a free gift or favour in exchange for the performance of a legitimate task, the pervasion or obstruction of the performance of such a task or the performance of illegal and illegitimate task hoarding, collusion, price fixing, election rigging, abuse and / or misuse of office. Corruption could lead to embezzlement of funds and poor management. It could lead to the assassination of political opponents. It could breed ethnicism and disintegration. Education, health, and other sectors usually suffer in a corrupt nation. It is quite difficult to separate the exchange of sex for good grades from corruption.

Owuamanam (1995) reported a high prevalence of sexual coercion in public institutions in Nigeria. Akanle and Ola (2018) quoting Stronge et al (2003) reported that 20% of graduate students and 19% of undergraduate students have been sexually harassed in school. Omonijo et al. (2013) equally reported incidences of sexual harassment in faith-based universities in Ogun state. These, coupled with series of incidence reported in 2019, shows a serious problem at hand. Two major problems in dealing with issues of sex for grade in universities and other tertiary institutions of learning are gender differences in the level of tolerance, and the attribution of blame. Females are often blamed for provoking or indirectly soliciting for sexual attention by their conducts and mode of dressing. Omonigho (2019) reported an incidence in which a female student was the one soliciting for sex:

Sex for grade, just like sexual harassment, is a mixture of sex and power, even though power relations may be dormant. The harasser tries to take the advantage of a victim who may worry about her grades. Akanle and Asebiomo (2012) observed that sexual harassment is a way of keeping females in place and making them feel vulnerable by calling attention to their sexuality. Sexual rights embrace human rights that are already recognized in international laws. These include the right to respect for bodily integrity, right to consensual sex, and the right to decide whether, when and whom to have sex with. Sexual assault is a violation of the sexual rights of students.

Dwelling on Fitzgerald et al., (1995), sex for grade goes with threats or benefits. Female students who refuse to offer sex for grades, often are victimized either with poor grades or failure while female students, who comply with the proposition usually enjoy unmerited grades to the detriment of others. Lecturers who enjoy sexual favours from students often return this favour to students by awarding high marks that the victims cannot defend, showing question papers and marking schemes to such students prior to examinations, etc. These benefits usually place female students, who subscribed to the sexual advances of lecturers above their classmates. However, when the proposal for sex is rejected it leads to a hostile reaction from such lecturers.

Sex for grade has serious implications not only on the perpetrators, educational institutions, and the nation at large. It undermines the emotional, physical, and psychological state of mind of the female victim (Fitzgerald et al., 1995). The female victim may be subjected to serious forms of stress, fatigue, and depression. These in turn could affect their motivation to study for excellent academic performance. On this note, the ethics of examinations and academic performance would be negatively affected (Ekore, 2012). According to Omonijo and Nnedum (2012b), if students involved build on the legacy of sex for grade, it may have adverse effects on their performances in work settings. Through this act, a woman could be impregnated and the man responsible may deny ever having a sexual relationship with her. The baby born out of this illicit relationship would become fatherless. Such a child is regarded as a bastard, especially in African societies. Often, children in this category are untrained and uncared for. Many of them have been linked with social vices in the society (Omonijo et al., 2013a).

Figure 1 shows the interplay between sex for grade, corruption, and national development. Demand for sex and urge for sexual gratification in educational institutions are variables under sex for grade while mediocrity in work organisations and corruption in educational institutions are variables under National development. The yellow block arrow suggested a relationship between demand for sex in educational institutions and mediocrity in work organisation while the green block arrow suggested a relationship between the urge for sexual gratification in educational institutions and corruption in educational institutions. The model indicates that mediocrity in work organisations and corruption in educational institutions engenders poor national development and, as such, sex for grade has a negative impact on national development.

Theoretical Orientation

One of the theories applicable to this study is the theory of social disorganisation. This theory was developed by the Chicago School, and it is related to ecological theories. The tenets of the social disorganisation theory link crime rate and deviant behaviour to neighbourhood environmental characteristics. Central to the theory is that a person’s residential location is a substantial factor that shapes the likelihood that the person will become involved in illegal activity. For instance, the theory suggests that youths from disadvantaged neighbourhoods participate in a subculture that approves of delinquency. Therefore, at the core of social disorganisation, the location is very germane when it comes to predicting illegal activity.

The nexus between the theory and this study lies in the corrupt nature of the Nigerian society, which has found its way into educational institutions of learning. Corruption is learned through interaction or association with others. In other words, the Nigerian environment and the system in educational institutions encourage corruption. Sex is then seen as a commodity that can be exchanged for value. In this case, sex is exchanged for grade. Hence, the corrupt nature of the environment plays a significant role in the involvement of lecturers and students in sex for grade scandals. The social disorganisation theory also posits that individuals seem to be interested in pursuing selfish interests rather than the common good.

In addition, the socio-cultural model associates sex for grade with the dominant economic power of men over women (Nieva and Gutek, 1981; Zalk, 1990). The political power of men over women can equally be used to explain the incidence of sex for grade. Majority of leaders and those who hold public offices worldwide are largely men, with women occupying only 20% (Williams, 2013). Therefore, where the traditional inequitable power relationship between men and women is considered, women, who have less power and control, are sometimes harassed sexually. In other words, men could employ their positions as lecturers to extort sexual gratification from students in exchange for grades. This no doubt portrays the circumstances that some female students in tertiary institutions in Nigeria find themselves.

Methodology

Descriptive research design was used for this study. The population consists of female undergraduates and male lecturers from three selected universities. This is because a significant number of reported sex for grade cases involved female undergraduates and male lecturers. A sample of 1,160 respondents was drawn using the purposive and stratified sampling technique. A total of 441 male lecturers representing 38.02% of the samples drawn were selected. 147 lecturers were purposively selected from each of the three universities. Also, a total of 719 students representing 61.98% of the total number of samples drawn from the population were selected for this study. 234 students were selected purposively using stratified random sampling from the first university, 239 students were selected from the second university while 246 students were selected from the third university. The three universities selected for this study were purposively selected from the south west geopolitical zone of Nigeria where cases of sex for grade were reported in recent times. The Universities consisted of different faculties and departments designated as strata for this study from which sample elements were drawn using a table of random numbers. The research instrument adopted for the collection of data was the questionnaire. This is because the respondents were learned. Also, the questionnaire guaranteed the confidentiality of information given by the lecturers and students. It also guaranteed the anonymity of respondents.

Data Analysis

The data generated from this study were analysed using a table of frequency distributions, Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) and chi square. A total of 1,160 copies of the questionnaire were administered out of which 1,143 copies were found to be filled correctly and returned to the researcher.

Table 1: Socio-demographic characteristics of Respondents

	Frequency	Percentage %
Respondents Age (in years)
16 – 25	476	41.6
26 – 35	241	21.1
36 – 45	341	29.8
46 – 55	51	4.5
56 and above	34	3.0
Total	1143	100
Degree of Respondents
Bachelor’s degree	901	78.8
Master’s degree	186	16.3
Ph. D Degree	56	4.9
Total	1143	100
Sex
Male	470	41.1
Female	673	58.9
Total	1143	100

Source: Researcher’s Field work, 2020

Table 2: Opinion of Respondents

Effects of Sex for grade on Society			Effects of Sex for grade on Victims
Response	N	%	Response	N	%
Pleasant	20	1.8	Emotional Stress	581	50.8
Unpleasant	1022	89.4	Spread of STDs	657	57.5
Not Sure	101	8.8	Abortion	595	52.1
			Physical stress	102	8.9
			Psychological stress	459	40.2
			*Note: Respondents chose more than one option.
Prevalence of Sex for grade in Universities			Does Sex for grade negate rules, morals, and Examination ethics?
Response	N	%	Response	N	%
High	646	56.5	Yes	1052	92
Low	399	34.9	No	91	8
Not sure	98	8.6	Not sure	–	–
Mediocrity hinders organisational goals and objectives			Effect of Corruption in Educational Institutions on National Development
Response	N	%	Response	N	%
Yes	903	79	Positive effect	21	1.8
No	217	19	Negative effect	962	84.2
Not sure	23	2	Not sure	160	12
Factors responsible for sexual gratification urge			Which of the following denotes corruption?
Response	N	%	Response	N	%
Indiscipline	101	8.8	Sex for grade	973	85.1
Immorality	160	14	Exam malpractices	104	9.1
Corruption	882	77.2	Cultism	66	5.8
Assumptions about Sex for Grade
Response	N	%
It is an aspect of corruption	926	81
It jeopardizes validity of examination	582	50.9
Students get good grade after sex	703	61.5
It jeopardizes national development	1071	93.7
*Note: Respondents chose more than one option.

Source: Researcher’s Field work, 2020

Cross Tabulation of Hypotheses

Table 3.1: Cross tabulation of responses on demand for sex in educational institutions and mediocrity in work organisations.

Demand for Sex in educational institutions	Mediocrity in Work organisation			Total
Demand for Sex in educational institutions	Very high	High	Low	Total
Very high	132	274	138	544
High	172	200	98	470
Low	56	70	3	129
Total	360	544	239	1143

Correlation coefficient (r) = 0.689

X² = 49.78, Degree of freedom (df) = 4, Significance level = 0.05, Table value = 9.49

The calculation of the Pearson correlation coefficient shows a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.689 and a calculated chi square value (X²) of 49.78.

Table 3.2: Cross tabulation of responses on urge for sexual gratification and level of corruption in educational institutions.

Urge for sexual gratification	Level of corruption			Total
Urge for sexual gratification	Very high	High	Low	Total
Very high	112	263	149	524
High	170	208	90	468
Low	68	70	13	151
Total	350	541	252	1143

Correlation coefficient (r) = 0.662

X²= 55.52, Degree of freedom (df) = 4, Significance level = 0.05, Table value = 9.49

The calculation of Pearson correlation coefficient shows a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.662 and a calculated chi square value (X²) of 55.52.

Discussion on SEX FOR GRADE :

The results generated from the analysis of the data shows that respondents belonged to different age groups. The lowest age group of respondents was 16 – 25 years. This can be attributed to the fact that candidates seeking admission in Nigerian tertiary institutions are expected to attain a minimum of 16 years of age. The degree of respondents ranged between Bachelor’s, Master’s and Ph.D degrees. This shows that respondents are well read with 78.8% within the Bachelor’s degree level, 16.3% within the Master degree level and 4.9% within the Ph.D. degree level.

The test of hypothesis one indicates that there is a significant relationship between demand for sex in educational institutions and mediocrity in work organisations as the chi square value of (X²) 49.78 is higher than the table value of 9.49. The correlation coefficient (r) = 0.689 established a positive linear relationship between demand for sex in educational institutions and mediocrity in work organisations. This means that mediocrity in work organisations increases as demand for sex in educational institutions increases. Moreover, since the Chi square value (X²) = 49.78 is greater than the table value 9.49, the alternative hypothesis H₁is accepted while the null hypothesis H₀is rejected. Hence, there is a significant relationship between demand for sex in educational institutions and mediocrity in work organisations.

Mediocrity in work organisations no doubt affects national development. If individuals who obtained good grades in exchange for sex are employed in work organisations, they may end up pulling such organisations down with their level of incompetence and this will in turn have a direct negative impact on national development.

Furthermore, the test of hypothesis two, shows that there is a relationship between the urge for sexual gratification and the level of corruption in educational institutions as the chi square value (X²) 55.52 is greater than the table value of 9.49. The correlation coefficient (r) = 0.662 established a positive linear relationship between the urge for sexual gratification and the level of corruption in educational institutions. This means that the urge for sexual gratification increases as the level of corruption in educational institutions increases. In addition, since the Chi square value (X²) = 55.52 is greater than the table value of 9.49, the alternative hypothesis H₁is accepted while the null hypothesis H₀is rejected. Hence, there is a relationship between the urge for sexual gratification and the level of corruption in educational institutions. This result corroborated the position of Ijewereme (2015) and Obuah (2010), which observed the pervasive nature of corruption in Nigeria. Corruption cuts across different levels and sectors in Nigeria. Universities are not left out of this social malady as series of corrupt behaviours have found their way into Nigerian universities. The majority of the respondents (89.4%) noted that sex for grade has unpleasant effects on the society and most especially on the female victim who may likely suffer emotional stress. 52.1% and 57.5 % of respondents noted that sex for grade encourages abortion and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), respectively, among victims. This corroborates the position of Fitzgerald et al. (1995), which submitted that the emotional, physical and psychological state of mind of the female victim may be undermined. About 56.5% of the respondents observed a prevalence of sex for grade in the universities used for this study thereby confirming the position of Owuamanam (1995), and Akanle and Ola (2018).

In line with the submission of Ekore (2012), 92 % of respondents opined that sex for grade negates the rules, morals, and ethics of examination, while 8% of the respondents were indifferent. Sex for grade practically jeopardizes the validity of the examination process as individuals could get good grades irrespective of their performances in an examination. Moreover, the results of the study validate the conceptual model illustrated in Figure 1. 81% of respondents asserted that sex for grade is an aspect and a part of corruption. 85.1% of the respondents equally classified sex for grade as corruption. 77.2% of respondents submitted that corruption is responsible for the urge for sexual gratification. 93.7% of the respondents also noted that sex for grade jeopardizes national development. This implies that the exchange of sex for grade in educational institution came as a result of the pervasive nature of corruption in Nigeria, and it has negative impacts on national development as about 79% of respondents opined that mediocrity in work organisations hinders the achievement of organisational goals and objectives. In addition, corruption in educational institutions is antithetical to national development as 84.2% of respondents observed that corruption in educational institutions has negative effects on national development Education is described as the bedrock of a nation. A nation with a corrupt educational system may find it difficult to achieve national development.

Conclusion

This study shows that sex for grade is an aspect of corruption and it has a negative impact on national development. The test hypothesis of this study proposed a relationship between:

The demand for sex in educational institutions and mediocrity in work organisations, and
the urge for sexual gratification and the level of corruption in educational institutions.

There is a high prevalence of sex for grade in universities and this has unpleasant effects on the society as victims pass through emotional stress and end up becoming mediocre in work organisations. Corruption is found to be significantly responsible for the urge for sexual gratification in educational institutions most especially in universities. Sex for grade jeopardizes the validity of examinations and it also jeopardizes national development.

Sex for grade negates all known rules, morals, and ethics of examinations. It is disheartening that in spite of the knowledge of the rules, some individuals still engage in such acts. There is therefore a need for the study of factors that motivates the exchange of sex for grade among students and lecturers in universities in spite of rules that forbid such acts. The exchange of sex for grade is a corrupt behaviour that is detrimental to national development.

Recommendations

The following recommendations are made from this study to stem the tide of sex for grade in Nigerian Universities:

There is a need to paste the rules and ethics of examinations that forbid sex for grade at strategic locations in every departments in universities to create more awareness on the damaging effects of sex for grade on the society.
Efforts should be made to curb corruption and corrupt practices in universities as sex for grade is seen as an aspect of corruption.

Lecturers and students who are victims of this variant of sexual harassment should be encouraged to speak up and report such incidences to university authorities.

University authorities should mete out severe punishment to individuals who engage in sex for grades.

References

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Ekore, J. O. (2012). Gender differences in Perception of Sexual Harassment among University Students. African Journals 10 (1): 12-23
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Stronge et al (2003) cited in Akanle, F. F., Ola T.M., (2018) Campus Sexual Assault and the Legal Solution in Nigerian Universities. International Journal of Advanced Research 6(12), 1181-1185
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SEX FOR GRADE – University Stories and Fallen Lecturers