Interactions are the daily exchanges in words and gestures one has with others. As a teacher, the interactions he/she has with young children can make a positive difference in their lives. A teacher's powerful interactions with children play an important role in their emotional well-being and learning. Powerful interactions are not the same as…

During the 2013-2014 academic year, we served on a faculty learning community exploring issues facing students identifying as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, Intersex, or Queer (LGBTIQ). Through collected testimonies from LGBTIQ friends and colleagues, we noted a nexus between LGBTIQ status and creativity. Many LGBTIQ colleagues had…

Previous research by Tsai and Kaufman (2010a, 2010b) has suggested that computer-simulated virtual pet dogs can be used as a potential medium to enhance children's development of empathy and humane attitudes toward animals. To gain a deeper understanding of how and why interacting with a virtual pet dog might influence children's social and…

The present study investigates the plasticity of altruistic behavior in children, analyzing the effect of a short intervention on 6- to 7-year-olds. After a 10-session intervention performed in a school context, altruism significantly increased. The intervention, which included relaxation practices, cooperative activities and emotional security…

Studies examining the link between parental socialization and child functioning in varying cultural contexts are scarce. Focusing on early adolescents in suburban middle-class families in India, the present study examined interrelations among reports of mothers' socialization goals, socialization behaviors in response to child emotion, child…

In universities, development as a teacher may be contradicted with developing as a researcher. Most previous studies have investigated pedagogical development merely as a result of pedagogical training and ignored the dual teacher-researcher identity. This study examines what kind of meaningful experiences are perceived to have triggered and…

The reemergence of positive psychology in the past 15 years has brought a renewed focus on psychological dispositions such as gratitude and their relationship to youth's subjective well-being and academic achievement. Similarly, youth development and developmental asset literatures have emphasized the value of examining youth positive…

Many parents wonder what they can do to ensure that their preschoolers will be successful when they enter school, especially now with so much emphasis on state testing and learning standards. Through play and everyday activities such as cooking, cleaning, and grocery shopping, young children acquire the information and skills needed to learn more…

This paper describes a mixed-methods pilot study that was conducted in collaboration with the developers of a new adult community-building intervention called "Leading Together" (LT), which focuses on strengthening relational trust among staff. The primary research focus of the collaboration was to gather and share descriptive…

This dissertation explores the role that teacher education can play in preparing new teachers to meet the challenges of the profession by offering a more holistic approach to preservice education. Upon entering the classroom, new teachers are oftentimes overwhelmed with the realities of teaching and feel unprepared to handle the challenges they…

The paper presents the results from a thematic analysis of the process diaries of teachers involved in teacher training in social and emotional learning (SEL) in Sweden. Twenty-nine out of the 122 diaries available were analyzed until saturation was reached. The following themes and sub-themes were extracted: development (professional and…

The present study examined the relationship between emotional intelligence, academic achievement and school climate among primary school students. The purpose of the study was to investigate the impact of social and emotional learning programs on the emotional intelligence and the academic achievement of 143 students in the 5th and 6th grade of…

Vygotsky (1986) draws attention to the interrelationship between thought and language and other aspects of mind. Although not widely acknowledged, Vygotsky (1999) also drew attention to the search for the relations between cognition and emotions. This paper discusses the findings of a study which examined imaginary scientific situations within the…

Children with hearing loss often have difficulties in the socio-emotional domain that can be attributed to a significant delay in the development of theory of mind (ToM). The current article describes a workshop aimed at enhancing deaf parents' awareness of the importance of ToM development and enriching parent-child conversations with…

How do schooling years impact children's lives, in rural and urban settings? Why do some children have lower self-esteem than others? What kinds of conflicts do adolescents experience in their search for identity? Why are some teachers able to understand the importance of ensuring the well-being of children while others do not? Does the emotional…