The similarity of attitudes towards personal and impersonal types of authority among adolescent schoolchildren

Psychotherapist perceptions of engagement-building behaviours with youth clients across developmental levels

Building a positive therapeutic relationship is a challenging, yet critical, first step in conducting youth psychotherapy. A number of studies in the youth treatment literature have indicated that a positive therapeutic alliance is related to increased treatment attendance, participation, and outcome. Some research has examined therapist behaviours for engaging therapy clients; however, developmental differences in alliance formation have had limited exploration. The current study surveyed clinicians about their use of specific engagement strategies and the developmental stage of their youth clients. It was hypothesised that participants would differentially rate the importance of different aspects of therapeutic engagement based upon a youth client's developmental stage and that these would correspond with differences in specific engagement strategies. A total of 64 clinicians with experience treating youth completed the study. The participants completed a questionnaire administered online that asked them to rate the importance of developmental differences to forming a therapeutic relationship and provide example client behaviours from their clinical experience for each developmental stage. Results showed clinicians felt the relative importance of collaboration, advocacy, and trustworthiness increased with age. These differences were also evidenced in the specific strategies clinicians endorsed in relation to each engagement factor across developmental stages. This program of research will eventually aid in the development of new guidelines for engaging clients in youth psychotherapy. In addition, the results may be used to enhance psychotherapy training for those working with children and adolescents.

Why Do Some Children Bully at School?

The tendency for school children to bully others was conceived as lying along a continuum of frequency, ranging from zero to very high. To examine social factors that may influence the position of individual students on this continuum, questionnaires were administered to Australian school children attending state coeducational schools: primary (N = 200) and secondary (N = 200). They completed measures to assess: (i) frequency of engaging in bullying others; (ii) attitudes towards victims of bullying and (iii) the extent to which they believed specified others expected them to support victims of bullying. Those specified included mother, father, friends and teachers. Multiple regression analyses indicated that negative attitudes to victims and the perceived expectations of friends were associated with self-reported bullying behaviour ( p < 0.001); in addition, boys were more likely to report bullying others than girls ( p < 0.01). Reporting bullying others was related to perceived expectations of parents for girls only; for neither sex was there evidence that the perceived expectations of teachers influenced reported bullying behaviour. The attitudes students have developed towards victims and the views of their peers may be critical. Anti-bullying programs promoting empathic attitudes to victims and ways of mobilizing peer influence to counter bullying are supported.

Psychological Distress & Attitude to Authority in a Sample of Irish Adolescents

92 adolescents (mean age 13.8 yrs) at a North Dublin school completed the GHQ - 30 and the attitude to authority scale. A high level of psychological distress (as measured by the GHQ - 30) was found, with 44% of the sample reporting 6 or more symptoms. The majority of students (84%) however expressed pro-authority feelings. A negative correlation was found between the level of distress and positive attitude towards parents. The possible clinical relevance is discussed

Justice judgements, school failure, and adolescent deviant behaviour

BACKGROUND

The current paper is based on two different approaches. One is the relational model of authority (Tyler & Lind, 1992), which addresses the effects of justice perceptions on the legitimacy of authorities and behavioural compliance. The other is Emler and Reicher's theory (1995, 2005), which explains the involvement of adolescents in delinquency through their relationship with the institutional authorities of society.

AIMS

To provide empirical evidence for the linkage of these perspectives, analysing the relationship between justice perceptions about teachers and the involvement of adolescents in deviant behaviour. Our hypotheses are that teachers' justice is negatively related with deviant behaviour and that this relationship is mediated through the evaluation of institutional authorities, after controlling for school failure.

SAMPLE

Three hundred and ninety adolescents aged between 14 and 17 years.

METHODS

Participants completed the following scales: perceptions of justice about teachers, evaluation of institutional authorities, and deviant behaviour. Data were examined through correlation and bootstrap analyses.

RESULTS

Justice judgments about teachers were negatively related with deviant behaviour, and this relationship was partially mediated by the evaluation of institutional authorities, even after controlling for school failure. However, procedural justice revealed a much stronger relationship with deviance, compared to distributive justice.

CONCLUSIONS

As predicted, these results suggest that when adolescents perceive school authorities as fair, other institutional authorities are likely to be perceived in a similar way and the more those authorities are positively evaluated, the less often adolescents engage in deviant conduct. Results are discussed according to the theories underlying our hypothesis. Directions for future research are suggested.

Adult-Directed and Peer-Directed Respect for Authority: Relationships With Aggressive and Manipulative Behavior

This study investigated whether respect for adult and peer authority are separate attitudes which have distinct relationships with aggressive and manipulative behavior. Items assessing admiration for and obedience toward parents, teachers, popular students, and friend group leaders were administered to 286 middle school students (M age = 12.6 yrs). Factor analysis revealed two primary factors which corresponded to adult-directed and peer-directed respect orientations. Results suggested that adult-directed respect was associated with lower levels of aggression and social manipulation, whereas peer-directed respect was associated with higher levels of these behaviors. The role of peer-directed respect as a risk factor for negative social behavior in adolescence is discussed.

Students' Attitudes on the Boundaries of Teachers' Authority

Educators in many countries are concerned about the decline in respect for authority by young people. The current study explores how children perceive their teachers' authority, what the `boundaries' (limits) to that authority are, and under what conditions they may decide to rebel. Over 200 Israeli elementary and middle school students were asked in semi-structured interviews how they conceive the norm of obedience to teachers; what kinds of illegitimate commands teachers issue; what pupils do in case of disagreement, and what is the jurisdiction of teachers and parents inside and outside school. The majority (81 percent) accepted the principle of teacher authority but qualified it with several conditions: authority was seen as limited to the school area, parents were accepted to intervene in cases of severe punishment and teachers should avoid committing aggressive and unethical acts. The discussion identifies circles of legitimate (agreed upon by both sides) and illegitimate (accepted by teachers but not by pupils) authority practices. It is argued that school psychologists can assist teachers and students identify this circle of disagreement and solve discipline problems.

Impulsiveness, attitude to authority, and gender

This article examined the relationship between impulsiveness and attitudes toward institutional authority among Australian secondary school students. Reliable questionnaire measures of these constructs were completed by 48 boys and 57 girls, about 14 years of age. Correlations between impulsiveness and attitude to authority differed between the sexes, with a significant negative correlation of -.43 being obtained for boys only.