Massey Documents by Type

Permanent URI for this communityhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/294

Browse

Has files: YesSubject: search.filters.subject.Problem behaviour

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Conduct disorder : an evaluation of a parenting intervention : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2002) Lawrence, Susan K
    The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the parenting component of the Youth Horizon Trust programme for families of young people with severe conduct disorder. Empirical research supports the assertion that interventions designed to change parental discipline practices are the most effective interventions in reducing conduct problem behaviour in young people. Eleven parents of Youth Horizon Trust programme participants completed a multi-method questionnaire conducted with repeated assessments over a twelve week period. The constructs measured have been consistently linked to conduct disorder. The questionnaires and a similar evaluation method were used in prior North American research (Frick, Christian, & Wootton, 1999; Shelton, Frick, & Wootton, 1996). The present study was designed to determine whether there were differences in parenting practices during a three month portion of intervention (hypothesis 1), among parents in the first, second and third years of programme participation (hypothesis 2), towards the end of programme involvement, compared to parents early in the programme (hypothesis 3) and related to the level of the young person's distress at the time of intake (hypothesis 4). The present study found firstly, that the two positive parenting scale results differed from prior research but the three negative parenting subscales showed similarities in the direction of changes (Frick et al., 1999). Secondly, there was no overall relationship between the time duration of the intervention and improvement in parenting practices, but changes in the third year indicated reductions in negative parenting practices and improved parental involvement, monitoring, supervision, and consistency. In addition, the most distressed young people at the beginning of the treatment programme had parents who indicated less involvement in their parenting practices. The overall implication drawn from the findings is that improvement in supervision, monitoring, and consistency of discipline by parents are more readily adopted than involvement and positive parenting practices. Further research with more extensive monitoring, larger samples and over a greater time frame are discussed.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Video self-modelling as a classroom based intervention to reduce off-task behaviour in mainstream students : a thesis presented in partial requirement for the degree of Master of Educational Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Livermore, David
    Video Self-Modelling (VSM) is an intervention which involves individuals observing images of themselves engaged in adaptive behaviour to increase the probability of adaptive behaviour occurring again. VSM has been used to improve academic success and/or promote positive change in a range of internalising and externalising behaviours such as mutism, social initiations, stuttering, aggressiveness, attending to task, and distractibility. Many of the current studies on the effects of VSM as a behaviour intervention have focused on students who have been referred for problem behaviour and/or been diagnosed with a disorder such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Selective Mutism, Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), or Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). There are few studies on the effects of VSM as a behaviour intervention for students in mainstream school who have not been referred for problem behaviour. The purpose of this research was to examine the effects of VSM on four, Year 7 students in a mainstream, intermediate school who engaged in three off-task behaviours (out of seat without permission, talking without permission, and making inappropriate noises/calling out). Prior to school each day each participant viewed themselves working on-task during literacy in an edited video clip for three weeks. The occurrence of off-task behaviour and the number of words written by participants in each 20 minute writing task was recorded during baseline, intervention, and post-intervention phases. Results indicated that students reduced in off-task behaviour and increased the number of words produced. Practical implications are discussed.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    The process of motivational interviewing with offenders : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Austin, Kevin Paul
    Motivational interviewing (MI) is a form of client-centred psychotherapy that resolves ambivalence and elicits motivation to change problem behaviours (Miller & Rollnick, 2009). An emerging theory suggests that MI works through the combination of a relational component and the goal directed application of MI methods to evoke and reinforce change talk (Miller & Rose, 2009). A process study was conducted on an adaptation of MI for offenders, the Short Motivational Programme (SMP). The SMP combines MI and cognitive behavioural content across five sessions to enhance motivation for change among medium risk offenders (Devereux, 2009). A single-case design and descriptive statistics were employed and supplemented with inferential statistics. The MI Skills Code 2.1 (Miller, Moyers, Ernst, & Amrhein, 2008) was used to rate the language of 12 facilitators and 26 offenders during 98 video-recorded SMP sessions. There was some evidence that facilitators were less able to use specific MI methods during sessions that included cognitive behavioural content. Offenders’ ambivalence about changing offending behaviour was most pronounced during sessions that included cognitive behavioural content. Offenders’ change and committing change talk was highest during sessions without cognitive behavioural content. Offenders who completed the SMP with more commitment to change demonstrated less ambivalence during earlier sessions. The relational component of MI appeared to be related to whether offenders completed the SMP. There was some evidence to support a relationship between the use of MI consistent methods and offender change talk. The use of MI inconsistent methods and a lack of MI consistent methods were related to ambivalence about changing criminal behaviour and premature exit from the SMP. These results suggested that facilitators should judiciously avoid the use of MI inconsistent methods and strategically employ MI consistent methods to reduce offenders’ ambivalence about change. The integration of cognitive behavioural content and MI needs to be carefully considered in reference to the aim of each session, the subsequent session, and the programme’s overall goal.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Teachers' use of classroom-based management strategies : a survey of New Zealand teachers : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Psychology, Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Nasey, Charlotte
    Behavioural problems are a constant threat to student learning and the learner environment, namely, the classroom. Researchers have identified empirically validated classroom-based strategies to support teachers to manage/deal with problem behaviours, but there has been very little research on whether these strategies are used in New Zealand (NZ) classrooms. The purpose of this present study is to fill the gap by conducting a survey of teachers’ self-reported use of management strategies, to increase students’ learning engagement and academic outcomes, and reduce behaviour interruptions. The present study is a partial replication and extension of a cross-cultural comparative study conducted in the United States (US) and Greece by Akin-Little, Little, and Laniti (2007) to determine the extent to which teachers’ utilized research-based management strategies in their classroom. The process and methodology of the present study was similar in that it used the same questionnaire but a different sample of teachers. The replication was an opportunity to compare the US-Greek findings with the situation here in NZ. The survey questionnaire was slightly modified to cater for the New Zealand demographic, such as the racial/ethnic background of the participants and the racial/ethnic composition of the classes. Another change was made regarding the use of “corporal punishment” in the school, which was replaced with the use of “restraint,” as non-violent crisis physical restraint is used as a last resort in some NZ schools/classrooms as a safety strategy to manage acting out students’ extreme behaviour. The use of corporal punishment was banned in all NZ schools (including Early Childhood Centres) in 1990. Participants for this study comprised 53 practising teachers from a range of co-educational primary schools within the metropolitan area of Auckland. The survey questionnaire contained four sections which gathered information on teacher characteristics, classroom rules, classroom child-management systems, and teachers’ perceptions of their role as a teacher, relative to their use of classroom-based management strategies. The results showed that most schools used a school-wide discipline plan, and a large number of teachers developed their own classroom rules with student input. Teachers’ overall reported the use of research-based management strategies (including those identified in the survey), as well as approaches appropriate to the ecology, culture/climate, and ethos of their particular school. In addition, the results showed that there was a greater emphasis on strengthening positive teacher-student relationships and proactive, preventative systems of managing behaviour, with less frequent resort to reactive-consequence based approaches. The results further indicated that over half the teachers perceived they communicated and monitored their students frequently during lessons and could attend to more than one event without undue disruption. In regard to teacher efficacy, the majority of teachers perceived that their classroom management strategies were adequate. These results have important implications for teaching practices and student learning. A comparison with teacher classroom management practices in the United State and Greece, limitations of the study, and possible further studies in this area are discussed.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    How does teacher acceptability of school-wide positive behaviour for learning relate to teaching experience, highest teaching qualification, and years since most recent teaching qualification?
    (Massey University, 2011) Ratclilffe, Christopher
    School-wide Positive Behaviour for Learning (SWPB4L) uses School-wide Positive Behaviour Support (SWPBS), an evidence-based intervention for reduction of student problem behaviour, as a template for its structure. Teacher acceptability of interventions is important for establishing social validity and can relate to the fidelity and effectiveness of interventions. Teacher acceptability has been found to vary in certain interventions with experience and qualifications. This study examined if SWPB4L was acceptable to teachers in three Intermediate schools and the extent to which acceptability varied according to teacher experience, highest qualification, and years since most recent qualification. Teachers were found, on average, to rate SWPB4L as acceptable but this did not vary differentially according to the demographic variables investigated in this study. Nevertheless, it is encouraging that teachers in these schools have generally found SWPB4L acceptable as this means that SWPB4L implementation in the sample schools is supported. The results are discussed in terms of the practical implications for schools.