Author(s)

Shane GrantFollow

Date

4-2018

Department

School of Education

Degree

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Chair

Lisa Reason

Keywords

controlling behavior, perception, self-esteem, supportive behavior

Disciplines

Education

Abstract

Research has shown that self-esteem, particularly among female students, can decline during the elementary school years and beyond. Self-esteem is a very important indicator of how well students will adapt to their surroundings and perform in and outside of the classroom setting. Very little research identifying the impact of students’ perceptions of teachers’ controlling or supportive behaviors in relation to self-esteem has been studied among middle school high-ability math students in the United States. The purpose of this quantitative, predictive, correlational study was to examine the effect of the criterion variable of self-esteem based on the multiple predictor variables of gender and perceptions of teachers’ behaviors as controlling or supportive. A multiple regression was used to indicate the degree and statistical significance of the relationship between the variables. The sample comprised high-ability male (n = 63) and female (n = 64) Grade 6 math students from 6 classrooms in 3 schools in rural northwestern Georgia. Examining the relationship between the self-reported self-esteem of male and female students and their perceptions of teachers’ controlling or supportive behaviors might provide the educational community with a better understanding of applicable teacher traits to exhibit when working with students.

Included in

Education Commons

Share

COinS