Citation

Zee M, de Jong PF, Koomen HMY. Contemp. Educ. Psychol. 2017; 51: 37-50.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.cedpsych.2017.06.009

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Data gathered from a longitudinal study within regular upper elementary schools were used to evaluate a theoretical model within which teachers' perceptions of conflict and closeness in the student-teacher relationship were considered as the intermediary mechanisms by which individual students' externalizing behavior generates changes in teachers' student-specific self-efficacy beliefs (TSE) across teaching domains. Surveys were administered among a Dutch sample of 524 third-to-sixth graders and their 69 teachers. Longitudinal mediation models indicated that individual students' externalizing behavior generally predicted higher levels of teacher-perceived conflict, which, in turn, resulted in lower student-specific TSE across teaching domains (i.e., instructional strategies, behavior management, student engagement, and emotional support). Teacher-perceived closeness, however, was not found to mediate the link between externalizing student behavior and student-specific TSE. Instead, support was found for an alternative model representing the hypothesis that TSE, irrespective of teaching domain, mediated behavior-related changes in teachers' perceptions of closeness in the student-teacher relationship.

Language: en

Keywords

Externalizing student behavior; Student–teacher relationships; Teachers’ domain- and student-specific self-efficacy; Upper elementary school