Nnadiebube Journal of Religion, Culture and Society

This study examined the promotion of youth integrity in Oghara Kingdom, Delta State, Nigeria: The Role of Cultural Symbols. The specific objectives were: to examine whether transmission of cultural symbols has impact in the growth and development of youth in Oghara kingdom, to ascertain the extent the use of symbols to communicate with youth make them to maintain good behavior, to determine how the knowledge of idol image guide youth in the kingdom, to establish the extent nodding and winking of eyes correct the youth and sustain their moral values in the kingdom. Symbolic theory was adopted as the theoretical framework for the study. The cross-sectional sampling procedure was used to select the relevant respondents from the study population. In-depth interviews were administered to eighteen (18) key informants. Structured questionnaires were administered to 600 youth. Data generated from the field were analysed using percentages and content analysis. The result of all the analyses showed that transmission of cultural symbols has impact in the youth growth and development in the kingdom, using symbols to communicate with the youth make them maintain good behavior, the knowledge of idol image will guide the youth, nodding and winking of eyes can correct the youth and sustain moral values in Oghara kingdom. The study therefore recommends that cultural symbols should be used in communicating with the youth, idol image should also be used in guiding the youth into morality, frequent use of nodding and winking of eyes to correct the youth and sustain their moral values.

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