Children's self-talk and academic self-concepts: The impact of teachers' statements

Data were collected from 269 Australian primary school children in grades 3 to 7. Self-report questionnaires measuring students' perceptions of the frequency of positive and negative statements directed to them by their teacher, their positive and negative self-talk; and their reading, mathematics and learning self-concepts were administered. Positive statements made by teachers were found to be directly related to positive self-talk and to maths and learning self-concepts. Teachers' positive statements were also indirectly related to reading self-concept through positive self-talk. Negative statements made by teachers were not predictive of self-talk or self-concepts for the total sample but were predictive of maths self-concept for girls and negative self-talk for boys. Implications for teachers and educational psychologists are discussed.

Enhancing students' self-concepts and related constructs: A critical longitudinal analysis capitalising on and combining promising enhancement techniques for educational settings

Enhancing children's self-concepts is widely accepted as a critical educational outcome of schooling and is postulated as a mediating variable that facilitates the attainment of other desired outcomes such as improved academic achievement. Despite considerable advances in self-concept research, there has been limited progress in devising teacher-administered enhancement interventions. This is unfortunate as teachers are crucial change agents during important developmental periods when self-concept is formed. The primary aim of the present investigation is to build on the promising features of previous self-concept enhancement studies by: (a) combining two exciting research directions developed by Burnett and Craven to develop a potentially powerful cognitive-based intervention; (b) incorporating recent developments in theory and measurement to ensure that the multidimensionality of self-concept is accounted for in the research design; (c) fully investigating the effects of a potentially strong cognitive intervention on reading, mathematics, school and learning self-concepts by using a large sample size and a sophisticated research design; (d) evaluating the effects of the intervention on affective and cognitive subcomponents of reading, mathematics, school and learning self-concepts over time to test for differential effects of the intervention; (e) modifying and extending current procedures to maximise the successful implementation of a teacher-mediated intervention in a naturalistic setting by incorporating sophisticated teacher training as suggested by Hattie (1992) and including an assessment of the efficacy of implementation; and (f) examining the durability of effects associated with the intervention.

The relationship between significant others' positive and negative statements, self-talk and self-esteem

This study investigated the effect of self-talk in mediating between positive and negative statements made by significant others and self-esteem with children in grades 3 to 7. Students completed questionnaires on the frequency of positive and negative statements from parents, teachers, and peers. Findings suggest that self-talk does mediate between significant others' statements and children's self-esteem.

Multiple-choice versus short-response items: Differences in omit behavior

The overall rate of omission of items for 28,331 17 year old Australian students on a high stakes test of achievement in the common elements or cognitive skills of the senior school curriculum is reported for a subtest in multiple choice format and a subtest in short response format. For the former, the omit rates were minuscule and there was no significant difference by gender or by type of school attended. For the latter, where an item can be 'worth' up to five times that of a single multiple choice item, the omit rates were between 10 and 20 times that for multiple choice and the difference between male and female omit rate was significant as was the difference between students from government and non-government schools. For both formats, females from single sex schools omitted significantly fewer items than did females from co-educational schools. Some possible explanations of omit behaviour are alluded to.

Measuring behavioural indicators of self-esteem in the classroom

This study aimed to develop and validate an instrument to be used by teachers to measure the frequency of behaviors indicative of self-esteem and then to evaluate the instruments' reliability and concurrent validity. The Behavioral Indicators of Self-Esteem (BIOS) Scale proved to be a reliable and valid measure.

The user-led disruption : self-(re)broadcasting at Justin.tv and elsewhere

The rise of videosharing and self-(re)broadcasting Web services is posing new threats to a television industry already struggling with the impact of filesharing networks. This paper outlines these threats, focussing especially on the DIY re-broadcasting of live sports using Websites such as Justin.tv and a range of streaming media networks built on peer-to-peer filesharing technology.

Examining the antecedents and consequences of ritualized fan behavior [Abstract]

One of the features of the sporting industry is the ritualized way in which it is consumed across the world. Fans of every sport have rituals and superstitions to help them enjoy the spectacle, socialize with other like-minded fans, and reduce some of the anxiety of watching their team play. These rituals include dress, barracking styles and pre and post match behaviors. What is not known are the factors that lead fans to engage in ritual behaviors and what relationship rituals have with desirable outcomes such as increased attendance, attitudinal loyalty or satisfaction. Given that some ritual behaviors are clearly undesirable, (e.g., hooliganism), understanding these relationships is important to managers who may be questioning whether rituals should be encouraged. Although ritualized behavior amongst fans is clearly visible, the symbolic and emotional nature of ritual poses challenges to researchers. Most previous ritual research is exploratory and qualitative in nature. This study, however, uses a behavior-based scale to measure fan ritual and relates it to desirable outcomes such as commitment and attendance. Over 2,000 season ticket holders of a football (soccer) team in Australia’s professional A-League competition were surveyed to investigate the antecedents and consequences of fan ritual behavior. Cluster analysis was used to explore the characteristics of respondents, and it revealed that those fans that engage in ritual behavior also differed on many other demographic and attitudinal dimensions. The associations between ritual and psychological commitment, and ritual and attendance are positive and significant. When used in conjunction with other constructs, fan ritual also improves the explanation of attendance behavior. The findings support previous research that found a significant and positive relationship between team identification, involvement and attendance, and extend previous research by finding a significant and positive relationship between rituals and attendance. For sports marketing practitioners, the results indicate the importance of developing and managing consumption rituals tied to game day attendance, with a view to generating uncommon loyalty.

Designing self sustaining support for micro-enterprises in sub-Saharan Africa : a pilot

Small and micro-enterprises play a significant part in most economies. However, in developing countries these enterprises have often been planned and implemented from a poverty alleviation perspective, rather than as entrepreneurial activities and growing businesses (Mead & Liedholm 1998, Toye 1993). This paper explores a model for sustainable support to micro-enterprises in a developing country context. Sustainability is critical if micro-enterprises are to grow. The traditional philanthropic model for funding micro-enterprises leaves local communities dependent on the priorities of donors which may not always be consistent with those of the community. Long term sustainability requires a move to a model that broadens the base of both economic and intellectual resources, that builds capacity as well as providing ‘start-up’ funding through mechanism such as micro-credit (Elkington & Hartigan 2008). Designing for sustainable enterprise development includes responding to the community’s priorities, investigating individual problems and solutions, encouraging agency and active involvement in goal setting, with on-going consultation and co-development of solutions. Recognising the importance of experimentation we have moved beyond existing forms to prototype new ways of working which provide continuity of financial and intellectual support for local initiatives. The paper reviews existing micro finance and microcredit practices and suggests a new approach to establish and support enterprises with financial and knowledge resources for sustainable business practices. Principles underlying such a program and the initial steps are described.

Towards self-authorship in child care students : implications for working with children and their families

Using self authorship as a theoretical framework, this chapter examines the relationship between personal epistemology and beliefs about children’s learning for students studying to be child care workers in Australia. Scenario-based interviews were used to investigate how students’ views of knowledge, identity and relationships with others were related to beliefs about how children learn. Implications for vocational education are discussed.

Sharing knowledge at work : macro, social and relational individual influences on individual behavior

The impact of relations between an organization and its workers and the relations among workers on individual knowledge generation and sharing practices has not, to date, been addressed in an integrated way. This paper discusses the findings of a study analyzing issues at macro, locally-constructed and micro levels in a public sector organization, to identify and integrate the complex sets of mediators. Key factors were found to include (a) the contested nature of the process of knowledge construction, (b) the worker’s experience of the organization’s internal environment, (c) how the organization is understood to value knowledge sharing, (d) relations with colleagues, and (e) the perceived outcomes of knowledge sharing behaviors. Implications for practice are discussed.

Cross-cultural differences in self-reported decision-making style and confidence

The Melbourne Decision Making Questionnaire (Mann, Burnett, Radford, & Ford, 1997) measures selfreported decision-making coping patterns. The questionnaire was administered to samples of University students in the US (N = 475), Australia (N = 262), New Zealand (N = 260), Japan (N = 359), Hong Kong (N = 281), and Taiwan (N = 414). As predicted, students from the three Western, individualistic cultures (US, Australia, and New Zealand) were more con® dent of their decision-making ability than students from the three East Asian, group-oriented cultures (Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan). No cross-cultural differences were found in scores on decision vigilance (a careful decision-making style). However, compared with Western students, the Asian students tended to score higher on buck-passing and procrastination (avoidant styles of decision making) as well as hypervigilance (a panicky style of decision making). Japanese students scored lowest on decision self-esteem and highest on procrastination and hypervigilance. It was argued that the con¯ ict model and its attendant coping patterns is relevant for describing and comparing decision making in both Western and Asian cultures.