Self‐complexity and Self‐integration: Theory and Therapy in Clinical‐Developmental Psychology

Abstract

The growing field of clinical‐developmental psychology has been influenced by Lawrence Kohlberg's theory of moral judgement. Too literal a use of structural theory, however, has hindered this field's advancement. This paper argues that a new theory of self is required to apply appropriately developmental theory to clinical practice. The model consists of two related dimensions of self: self‐complexity and biographical themes (schemata and themata). A perspective on normal and atypical development given by the interactions between these components is described and implications for practice are discussed.     

Peer‐assisted Student Support at the University of Glamorgan: innovating the learning process?

This article analyses the overall performance of the Peer‐Assisted Student Support (PASS) Scheme in the Business School at the University of Glamorgan. Observations were made over a seven‐week period to measure the effectiveness of the scheme in terms of enhancing the student learning process. Weekly attendance was measured to establish patterns of demand in terms of age, gender and mentored subject area. Further quantitative and qualitative research was undertaken to provide an insight into the perceived benefits of the scheme in relation to student social development and academic performance. The empirical findings of this article show that PASS attendance is female dominated. Moreover, the research suggests that contrary to previous research, the majority of benefactors reside in the under‐21 age group. The findings also highlight that academic and laboratory‐based subjects are a considerable strain on PASS resources and more significantly superior academic performance is positively correlated with regular PASS attendance.     

The Feeling of Thinking in Professional Self‐study

Studying one's own professional work is no straightforward matter and adopting the reflective mode is not simply a cerebral activity. As we study our teaching, we are studying the images we hold of ourselves as teachers. Where these established self‐images are challenged, questioned and perhaps threatened in the learning process we may experience feelings of instability, anxiety, negativity, even depression. This is especially so if the ‘self we come to see in self‐study is not the “self we think we are, or the ‘self we would like to be. Thinking about our work In self‐evaluation can thus be a highly charged emotional experience, one from which we may be tempted to retreat, thus endangering further learning. If, on the other hand, we have the support of caring, sensitive and interested critical friends to help us through these potentially dangerous processes of self‐evaluation, we are more likely to remain open to further learning and professional development. The company we keep and the circumstances under which we enter into self‐study may have a significant effect, for better or worse, on our professional learning. These issues are illustrated by the experience of two award‐seeking teacher action researchers who used video in their classrooms to aid their self‐study. The paper argues for greater attention to be given to the nature of the learning climate in which self‐study, self‐evaluation and developmental self‐appraisal take place. If the learning climate is not ‘right’, self‐study may become self‐defeating.     

Self‐assessment in a technology‐supported environment: the case of grade 9 geography

We investigated the impact of self‐assessment training on student achievement and on computer self‐efficacy in a technology‐supported learning environment (grade 9 students using Global Information Systems software). We found that self‐assessment had a positive effect on student achievement, accounting for 25% of the variance across three measures. The treatment effect was as large for females as for males and for those with low initial self‐efficacy as it was for those with higher scores. In addition, self‐efficacy increased more in the control than in the treatment group. We interpreted the self‐efficacy results to be a positive outcome of the treatment: teachers may have used self‐assessment training to depress the inflated self‐perceptions of some teenagers.     

Self‐assessment in university assessment of prior learning procedures

Competency‐based university education, in which lifelong learning and flexible learning are key elements, demands a renewed vision on assessment. Within this vision, Assessment of Prior Learning (APL), in which learners have to show their prior learning in order for their goals to be recognised, becomes an important element. This article focuses on a first step in APL, namely students’ self‐assessment of their prior learning before entering university education. The main aim of the presented study is to examine the suitability of the use of self‐assessment in APL. First, in an explorative study, the main sources for self‐assessment are derived and the relation between sources and domain of study is investigated. Second, in a pre‐test post‐test research design, the hypothesis that students’ self‐assessment of prior learning related to a course changes after studying a domain‐specific course is tested. Pre‐test results reveal that students indicate that they have prior knowledge related to the chosen university programme. In general, this prior learning is obtained from study experience, work experience, books, newspapers, magazines, the Internet, TV, radio, film or video. A relation is found between the type of source and the university programme. The hypothesis that students change their self‐assessment after a study period could not be confirmed. Based on these results, it is concluded that self‐assessment in APL might be a suitable tool. Implications for further research are discussed.     

Self‐regulation of student epistemic thinking in science: the role of metacognitive prompts

The purpose of the present study is to examine the effectiveness of a metacognitive prompts intervention‐science (MPI‐S), which is based on the nature of science with 162 eighth‐grade science students. It was hypothesised that students exposed to the intervention will show higher levels of content knowledge and knowledge about the nature of science than students in a comparison group. Attempts were also made to determine what cognitive processes are triggered during the use of metacognitive prompts. Findings showed significant improvements in students’ content knowledge and nature of science. In addition, qualitative findings revealed that the experimental group made choices based on evidence in the inquiry unit whereas the comparison group made decisions based on authority. Educational implications for practice into the classroom are discussed.     

Talent development,work habits,and career exploration of Chinese middle‐school adolescents: development of the Career and Talent Development Self‐Efficacy Scale

This article describes the development of an instrument – the Career and Talent Development Self‐Efficacy Scale (CTD‐SES) – for assessing students’ self‐efficacy in applying life skills essential for personal talent development, acquisition of positive work habits, and career exploration. In Study 1, data were obtained from a large sample of Chinese middle‐school students (N=15,113) in Grades 7–9 in Hong Kong. The CTD‐SES is an 18‐item questionnaire with subscales containing items that address students’ orientations toward developing their own talents, acquiring and applying positive work habits, and exploring their career possibilities. Evidence is provided for internal consistency, temporal stability, and factor structure of the CTD‐SES. Goodness of fit statistics provided support for a three‐primary‐factor‐plus‐higher‐factor model, and this solution was used in the statistical analyses. The data also indicated that students with plans for university study reported significantly higher scores than those without on all three domains of career and talent development. In Study 2 (N=308) Grade 10 high‐ability students’ scores in CTD‐SES were correlated with scores in career decision self‐efficacy and academic performance. The development and validation of CTD‐SES is the first step toward investigating career exploration, work habits, and talent development among Asian middle‐school adolescents.     

Peer‐prompted Social Skills: the role of teacher consultation in student success

ABSTRACT A peer‐prompted social skills programme was introduced to two teachers in a local Head Start preschool programme, and changes in standardised social skills, observed play and problem behaviours were examined. The first teacher was given continuing classroom consultation and training directly addressing the use of the social skills programme. The second teacher was given an equivalent amount of consultation, but no consultant‐initiated efforts were made to support the use of the programme. Significant improvement in standardised measures of social skills and observed levels of associative/co‐operative play behaviour were found only in the skill‐specific consultation classroom. No changes were found for problem behaviour for either classroom. The data suggest that reinforcing the children for appropriate social interactions is not sufficient. Rather, peer support and consultation must be available for the teacher to produce significant changes in the children's behaviour.     

Positive Peer Support or Negative Peer Influence? The Role of Peers Among Adolescents in Recovery High Schools

Evidence from previous research suggests that peers at times exert negative influence and at other times exert positive influence on drug and alcohol use among adolescents in recovery. This study explores recovery high school staff members’ perceptions of peer support among students in recovery high schools using qualitative interview data. Themes of peer support are discussed in terms of positive peer support, negative peer influence, peer relationships, and sense of community. In general, recovery school staff members discuss peers in the school as sources of positive support and peers outside the schools as sources of risky influence. Themes and quotes are presented to highlight the diverse ways that staff members discussed peer influence. Limitations of this study and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Critical Pedagogy in Process: A Collaborative Self‐Study

... the most important consideration in formulating purpose in education is the happiness of the students themselves. — T. Makiguchi     

Peer and self‐assessment in the first year of university

This paper reviews the literature about peer and self‐assessment in university courses from the point of view of their use, and the suitability of their use, in the first year of university study. The paper is divided into three parts. The first part argues that although first‐year students are involved in many of the studies that report on the use of peer and self‐assessment in higher education, the proportion of these studies that do so is somewhat less than in other year levels. In addition, relatively little of this work directly and explicitly discusses the suitability of peer and self‐assessment for students and courses at this year level. The second part of the paper provides an introductory exploration of the relationship between peer and self‐assessment, and specific features of first‐year assessment, learning and teaching. Three issues relating directly to the suitability of peer and self‐assessment in the first year are explored. In the third part, the paper briefly discusses the desirability of implementing peer and self‐assessment, in general, before seeking to extend this specifically to the first year. The paper concludes by recommending that greater use can and should be made of peer and self‐assessment in the first year of university study.     

Self‐regulated pupils in teaching: teachers’ experiences

This article outlines in a theoretical and practical way the concepts of self‐regulated learning, learning strategies and metacognition by looking at concrete examples in the classroom. The teachers presented in the article were taking part in a research and development (R&D) work project in which they were cooperating both with each other and a researcher who was facilitating their way through the development processes. The article focuses on how the teachers introduced learning strategies, how the strategies were adapted to the pupils, how the strategies were connected to various tasks and what the use of strategies means for the pupils’ learning in the studied context. The overall aim of the article is to illuminate how the teachers experienced the pupils’ use of strategies in their learning work. Findings from the study indicate that teachers have to adapt the introduction and use of strategies to the pupils’ development levels and that pupils from 13 to 16 years of age need help from their teachers, both in learning and in controlling their own learning processes.     

Peer‐mediated instruction: assisted performance in the primary classroom

Peer collaboration has been supported in research as an effective instructional strategy. However, education researchers lack a full understanding of the types of scaffolding that take place in peer groups. Little research is available that documents what happens during the small group interactions. This case study took place in one teacher’s multi‐age primary classroom in the southeastern region of the USA. It examined how elementary students provided scaffolding to one another during collaborative classroom activities. Specifically, this investigation explored the ways in which elementary students provide assistance to one another during academic tasks and examined the status of the children, in terms of more or less capabilities, during the collaborative events. Vygotsky asserts that for learning to occur, assistance must be provided by a more capable person. The research findings suggest that peers provide scaffolding for one another in various ways. In this investigation, these primary students utilized questioning, providing feedback, and instructing as the primary methods of scaffolding during the learning experiences. This study also supports assertions that when students are allowed to pose questions and provide feedback to one another during peer collaboration, they help to establish instruction in their zone of proximal development.     

Self‐regulation strategies improve self‐discipline in adolescents: benefits of mental contrasting and implementation intentions

Adolescents struggle with setting and striving for goals that require sustained self‐discipline. Research on adults indicates that goal commitment is enhanced by mental contrasting (MC), a strategy involving the cognitive elaboration of a desired future with relevant obstacles of present reality. Implementation intentions (II), which identify the action one will take when a goal‐relevant opportunity arises, represent a strategy shown to increase goal attainment when commitment is high. This study tests the effect of mental contrasting combined with implementation intentions (MCII) on successful goal implementation in adolescents. Sixty‐six 2nd‐year high school students preparing to take a high‐stakes exam in the fall of their third year were randomly assigned to complete either a 30‐minute written mental contrasting with implementation intentions intervention or a placebo control writing exercise. Students in the intervention condition completed more than 60% more practice questions than did students in the control condition. These findings point to the utility of directly teaching to adolescents mental contrasting with implementation intentions as a self‐regulatory strategy of successful goal pursuit.     

Academic Self‐concept,Implicit Theories of Ability,and Self‐regulation Strategies

The purpose of the present study is to explore how academic self‐concept and implicit theories of ability are related to four self‐regulation strategies—motivation/diligence, concentration, information processing, and self‐handicapping. The hypothesis is that academic self‐concept and an incremental theory of ability are (1) positively related to motivation/diligence, concentration, and information processing strategies, and (2) negatively related to self‐handicapping strategies. On the basis of inventories 168 teacher students and 60 sport students (a total of 178 females and 50 males) were scored on academic self‐concept, incremental and fixed theories of ability and the four self‐regulation strategies. Multiple regression analysis was used for each self‐regulation strategy as dependent variable, and with academic self‐concept and the ability theories as independent variables. Results revealed that an incremental theory had, as predicted, a positive relation with motivation/diligence and concentration, but had only trivial relations with information processing and self‐handicapping, whereas a fixed theory had only the predicted relation with self‐handicapping. As hypothesised, a high academic self‐concept was positively related to motivation/diligence, conception, and information processing and negatively to self‐handicapping. The findings may indicate that, in order to promote meta‐theoretical processing and prevent student from self‐handicapping, it is important to strengthen academic self‐concept, and to foster an incremental conception of ability among students.     

Self‐advocacy: Encouraging students to become partners in differentiation

The intent of this study was to discover what relationship, if any, exists between creative personality characteristics and psychic overexcitabilities (OEs), as defined by Dabrowski's Theory of Emotional Development. Twenty‐one gifted seventh and eighth grade students were given the Something About Myself (SAM) portion of the Khatena‐Torrance Creative Perception Inventory and the Overexcitabilities Questionnaire. The seven subjects with the highest SAM scores were designated as the High Creative, the seven lowest as the Low Creative group. At test was performed on the group means of the two groups on the five dimensions of overexcitability. Differences between the High Creative and Low Creative groups were significant (p < .025] for imaginational and intellectual OE and (p < .05) for emotional OE. Differences Between the groups on psychomotor and sensual OE were nonsignificant. These findings have implications for parents, teachers, and counselors of creatively gifted students.     

The Social Pathologies of Self‐Realization: A diagnosis of the consequences of the shift in individualization

The aim of this article is to inquire into today's social pathologies, i.e. the negative consequences of the developmental processes of society. In a dialogue with Axel Honneth, the article asserts that a shift has occurred in individualization, a shift that implies a fundamental change in social pathologies: Social pathologies no longer derive from social barriers inhibiting self‐realization but from self‐realization itself. As a consequence, philosophy of education, rather than sociology, appears to be the relevant field of study. The article develops a social‐analytical perspective on ‘sickness in self‐Bildung’, which is conceived as a ‘refusal to transcend oneself into sociality’, and offers interpretations of present pathologies such as depression, anorexia, populist freedom of speech, and demonic rage.     

A Study in Self‐assessment: tutor and students’ perceptions of performance criteria

This paper reports a study which implemented and evaluated a method of student self‐assessment. The theme of the importance of marking criteria (Orsmond et al., 1996) is developed. Pairs of first‐year undergraduate biology students were asked to complete a poster assignment on a specific aspect of nerve physiology. The study was designed to allow the evaluation of (1) student self and tutor marking for individual marking criteria; and (2) student vs student marking of their poster work for individual marking criteria. A comparison between the tutor and the student self‐assessed mark reveals how important it is to consider the individual marking criteria rather than the overall mark. These results support our findings on peer assessment reported earlier (Orsmond et al., 1996). The results also illustrate the potential pitfalls that exist when making assumptions about the degree of student/student interaction and students’ marking ability. This study supports previous work which showed that self‐assessment is extremely useful in helping students reach their learning goals, i.e. it is a strong formative educational tool and can be used in order to bring about behavioural changes in students with regard to their own learning processes.