Teacher efficacy has been identified as a variable accounting for individual differences in teaching effectiveness. This study of elementary school teachers developed an instrument to measure teacher efficacy, provided construct validation support for the variable, and examined the relationship between teacher efficacy and observable teacher…

Discusses confidence in learning math, anxiety, attributions of success and failure, and perceived usefulness of mathematics for both elementary and secondary samples. Three models for research are presented, and directions for future research are discussed. (RH)

Male and female subjects from low and middle-upper socioeconomic groups were asked to explain their academic success or failure. Few sex or social class differences were found, with most subjects attributing success to internal, medium stable, and controllable causes. (GC)

The longitudinal changes in the causal attributions, academic self-concept, and learning approaches of 549 university students in Hong Kong were studied. Students were enrolled in two different disciplines: language/health studies (n=272) and construction/engineering (n=277). Measurements of causal dimensions, academic self-concept, learning…

Discusses improvement in self-concept, self-management of behavior and learning, and reduction of emotional dependence for slow learners which resulted from feelings of personal control and effectiveness when using computer-assisted instruction. Guidelines for improving instructional software and current research investigating effects of computer…

Examined the rates, contextual meanings, and attributional meanings of nonverbal behavior occurring during role-played conflict between dating couples. Eighty couples reported perceptions of their own behaviors and their partners' behaviors and were observed by trained raters. The nonverbal channel was used significantly more by females than by…

Reviews literature on effects of being imitated and the social influence function of imitation, plus related literature on conformity from social psychology. Considers this research within a number of theoretical contexts, especially within the conceptual framework of effectance motivation. Suggests imitation may facilitate mastery and control of…

Cooper and Baron's conclusions (EJ 174 719) that teachers' performance expectations were more potent predictors of their reinforcement behavior in class than were their attributions of responsibility is criticized on the basis of methodological flaws in the study. Evidence associations between teachers' attributions of responsibility and their…

Provides findings in support of the assertion that learned helplessness has been inadequately substantiated as the explanation of previous research results. (Author/RL)

Investigated potential differences between nonreferred children with and without callous-unemotional (CU) traits. Found that children with conduct problems, irrespective of CU trait presence, tended to have significant problems in emotional and behavioral regulation. CU traits, irrespective of conduct problem presence, related to a lack of…

The article describes an instructional intervention appropriate to improving student attitudes and achievement through attributional retraining and instruction in learning strategies, particularly mnemonic strategies. Application of the approach with learning-disabled students in reading comprehension and mathematics is reported. (DB)

Reports on a study testing the hypothesis that teachers' perceptions of children are strongly influenced by deficit concepts. The study focused on teachers' written observations and spoken comments regarding a group of children with learning difficulties. (NH)

A total of 60 boys in second, fourth, and sixth grades participated in a study of the development of children's situational attributions and dispositional inferences about peers. All age groups were able to use attributional dimensions, but younger boys were less likely to use them to form negative dispositional inferences about a target peer.…

Tenth graders' causal attributions about mathematics and reading success/failure were examined, along with relationships between these attributions and academic achievement and sex. Achievement data for 143, 153, and 105 of the students from grades 2, 5, and 10, respectively, were analyzed. Some attributions are sex specific, but others are not.…

Three causal attributions--ability, effort, and test difficulty--were examined for 223 University of Manitoba (Canada) students in relation to perceived performance and the quality of instruction. When instruction was good, causal attributions produced less variability in achievement and control. Implications for teaching are discussed. (SLD)