Theoretical Perspectives on Campus Cultism and Violence in Nigeria Universities: A Review and Conceptual Approach

Abstract

Most African universities including Nigeria have witnessed youth violent activities laced with campusconfraternities. The disturbing phenomenon has led to several theories on the emergence of this worrisome trendand what could be done to stave it off. This paper reviewed the major theoretical perspectives on the campuscult-violence and its attendant psychopathological behaviour among Nigerian youths. The review is selective andconfined to the theoretical and investigative perspectives which presumably best fit Nigerian models ofsocio-cultural background. In the light of the existing empirical research which bears upon these theoreticalconclusions; a conceptual framework – psycho-infrastructuralism was proposed as an intervention model. Theframework shows the linkages between campus cult-violence and key factors of psycho-personality bias,frustration-aggression hypothesis, ethno-political theory and the environmentalist perspectives. It is suggested that,as a complex dynamic process, campus cult-violence activities and its key covariates must be measured andanalyzed within psycho-infrastructural model.