The Influence of Entrepreneurial Self-Efficacy and Creativity on Job Insecurity and Mental Health Among Youth Corps Members in Ibadan Metropolis

Abstract

Urban youth in Ibadan, Nigeria experience major job insecurity problems because the combination of their high unemployment rates and their lack of formal employment opportunities creates mental health issues. Youth corps members who recently graduated from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme face significant challenges when trying to find permanent jobs. The research investigates how entrepreneurial self-efficacy, creativity, and resilience interact to influence youth corps members in Ibadan Metropolis who are experiencing job insecurity, and symptoms of mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. The study involved 262 youth corps members, selected through multi-stage sampling from six local government areas, in a quantitative correlational study. The research used self-administered questionnaires from standardised instruments including the Entrepreneurial Self-Efficacy Scale (ESES), the Creativity Scale (CS), the Job Insecurity Scale (JIS), the Resilience Scale (RS), and the Mental Health Symptom Inventory (MHSI) to collect data. Findings revealed that entrepreneurial self-efficacy was negatively associated with job insecurity (β = -0.35, p < 0.001) while creativity also had a similar negative effect on job insecurity (β = -0.29, p = 0.002). Resilience acted as a mediating factor connecting job insecurity to mental health symptoms (indirect effect = -0.16, p < 0.05). The researchers found a strong positive link between job insecurity and mental health symptoms indicating that job insecurity increased mental health problems (β = 0.42, p < 0.001). The research findings demonstrate that organisations should engage youth corps members on entrepreneurial skills, creativity and resilience training programmes to decrease job insecurity while protecting their mental health. The researchers present specific intervention strategies that will enhance mental health outcomes and employment opportunities for young people in Ibadan.