Summary The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a whole school behaviour management programme on teachers? use of encouragement in the classroom. Given that the performance of the school has become an important dependent variable in school effects research, it follows that interventions which address behaviour management and the improvement of academic performance, have also taken on a school?wide focus or orientation. In Australia, where this study was conducted, there has been an increased interest in the (...) use of school?wide behaviour management and discipline programmes, which are characterized by their focus on improving teachers? classroom management skills. In the present study randomly selected teachers from schools involved in a school?wide behaviour management programme participated in an experimental evaluation of the effects of the programme. Continuous data collection indicated that the majority of teachers made increases in their use of encouragement over the course of the intervention. However, observations conducted during a follow?up phase revealed reductions in levels of encouragement following the withdrawal of the intervention. (shrink)

Summary The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of contingent teacher praise, as specified by Canter's Assertive Discipline programme, on children's on?task behaviour. In Western Australian primary schools (and in an increasing number of British schools) Canter's programme is widely used. However, while there are many anecdotal reports of its effectiveness there is a relative absence of well controlled research studies reporting objective data. In the present study, three teachers from three separate primary schools and eight randomly (...) selected children from each of their classes were systematically observed. Continuous data collection indicated that following training in the appropriate use of praise, as specified by Canter, all three teachers successfully increased their rates of praising. Of the 24 children, all but one evidenced increases in levels of on?task behaviour. However, observations conducted during a follow?up phase revealed reductions in the use of praise by the teachers and in some levels of on?task behaviour. (shrink)

Individuals’ coping strategies have a profound effect on how well they respond to negative life events. Despite this, most coping strategies instruments that are available currently have been developed exclusively in Western contexts. In the present study, a Coping Strategies Scale for use with Chinese participants was developed and validated based on responses from 734 Chinese university students. Results supported a seven-factor structure for the CSS, which included the dimensions of Withdrawal, Positive Adaptation, Problem-solving, Disengagement, Prosocial Focus, Seeking Emotional Support, (...) and Self-regulation. The results supported the validity of the seven-factor CSS in terms of its content, associated response processes, internal structure, and relationships with other variables. Based on these results, the CSS provides a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing the coping strategies used by Chinese adults in confronting potentially adverse psychological events. (shrink)