Citation

Berger RH, Valiente C, Eisenberg N, Hernandez MM, Thompson M, Spinrad T, VanSchyndel S, Silva K, Southworth J. J. Appl. Dev. Psychol. 2017; 53: 108-119.

Affiliation

Arizona State University, Department of Psychology, PO Box 871104, Tempe, AZ, 85287-1104, United States.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.appdev.2017.10.001

PMID

29403121

PMCID

PMC5796539

Abstract

Guided by the person by environment framework, the primary goal of this study was to determine whether classroom chaos moderated the relation between effortful control and kindergarteners' school adjustment. Classroom observers reported on children's (N = 301) effortful control in the fall. In the spring, teachers reported on classroom chaos and school adjustment outcomes (teacher-student relationship closeness and conflict, and school liking and avoidance). Cross-level interactions between effortful control and classroom chaos predicting school adjustment outcomes were assessed. A consistent pattern of interactions between effortful control and classroom chaos indicated that the relations between effortful control and the school adjustment outcomes were strongest in high chaos classrooms. Post-hoc analyses indicated that classroom chaos was associated with poor school adjustment when effortful control was low, suggesting that the combination of high chaos and low effortful control was associated with the poorest school outcomes.

Language: en

Keywords

chaos; classroom environment; kindergarten; school liking and avoidance; self-regulation; teacher-student relationships