Engagement as flourishing: The contribution of positive emotions and coping to adolescents' engagement at school and with learning

Predictors of changes in students’ motivational resilience over the school year

Students perform better in school to the extent they are able to engage fully, cope adaptively, and bounce back from obstacles and setbacks in their academic work. These three processes, which studies suggest are positively inter-connected, may comprise a self-sustaining system that enables motivational resilience. Using self-determination theory to frame hypotheses about such a motivational system, this study examined (1) whether a set of personal factors (self-perceptions of relatedness, competence, and autonomy), interpersonal resources (perceptions of teacher warmth, structure, and autonomy support), and emotional reactivity predicted changes in motivational resilience over the school year; (2) whether motivational resilience in turn predicted improvements in students’ achievement and also fed back to increases in their personal and interpersonal resources; and (3) whether teacher support could shift established motivational patterns. A latent path model depicting these processes showed a good fit with self-report data from 1020 students in Grades 3 through 6 collected in fall and spring of the same school year (including achievement data from a random subset, n = 365). Multiple regressions predicting changes from fall to spring refined the proposed model. Moreover, teacher support was crucial: Students who began the year with at-risk profiles, but also experienced high teacher support, ended the year on par with low-risk students; whereas students who began with resilient profiles but experienced low levels of teacher support ended the year at-risk. Discussion focused on identifying levers for intervention and the essential role teacher support plays in these dynamics.

Relations of Positive and Negative Expressivity and Effortful Control to Kindergarteners' Student-Teacher Relationship, Academic Engagement, and Externalizing Problems at School

The current study examined the role of naturally-occurring negative and positive emotion expressivity in kindergarten and children's effortful control (EC) on their relationships with teachers, academic engagement, and problems behaviors in school. Further, the potential moderating role of EC on these important school outcomes was assessed. Emotion and engagement were observed at school. EC was assessed by multiple methods. Teachers reported on their student-teacher relationships and student's externalizing behaviors. Children's emotion expressivity and EC were related to engagement and relationships with teachers as well as behavioral problems at school. Children low in EC may be particularly vulnerable to the poor outcomes associated with relatively intense emotion expressivity as they struggle to manage their emotions and behaviors in the classroom.

The effects of the Make a Wish intervention on psychiatric symptoms and health-related quality of life of children with cancer: a randomised controlled trial

OBJECTIVE

Children with life-threatening medical conditions frequently undergo invasive medical procedures that may elicit anxiety and distress. However, there are few empirically validated interventions that reduce mental health symptoms and increase the resilience of children during the acute stages of illness. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the Make a Wish intervention for children with life-threatening cancer.

METHODS

The design was a wait-list-controlled trial with two parallel groups. Sixty-six children aged 5-12 with an initial diagnosis of life-threatening cancer were identified and randomly assigned to the Make a Wish intervention (n = 32) or a wait-list control group (n = 34). Children completed measures of psychiatric and health-related symptoms, positive and negative affect, hope, and optimism pre-intervention and post-intervention. After baseline data collection, children were interviewed and made an authentic wish that they wanted to come true. These wishes were made possible 5-6 months after baseline data collection, to fuel anticipation and excitement over the wish-fulfillment event. The post-intervention assessment point was 5 weeks after wish fulfillment (approximately 7 months after baseline data collection).

RESULTS

Children in the intervention group exhibited a significant reduction in general distress (d = 0.54), depression (d = 0.70), and anxiety symptoms (d = 0.41), improved health-related quality of life (d = 0.59), hope (d = 0.71), and positive affect (d = 0.80) compared to decrease in positive affect and no significant changes in the other measures in the control group.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings emphasize the role of hope and positive emotions in fostering the well-being of children who suffer from serious illnesses.

The effect of emotions, promotion vs. prevention focus, and feedback on cognitive engagement

The purpose of the study was to explore the role of emotions, promotion-prevention orientation and feedback on cognitive engagement. In the experiment participants had the possibility to engage in a categorization task thrice. After the first categorization all participants were informed that around 75% of their answers were correct. After the second categorization, depending on the experimental condition, participants received feedback either about success or failure. Involvement in the third categorization was depended on participants’ decision whether to take part in it or not. Each time, before and after categorization, the emotional state was assessed. Results showed that promotion orientation predicted experiencing curiosity before the task, which in turn led to a higher cognitive engagement in the first categorization. Promotion and prevention orientation moderated the type of emotional response to positive feedback. Promotion orientation also predicted cognitive engagement after the feedback of success was provided. Generally results confirmed the positive effect of positive emotions as well as promotion orientation on cognitive engagement.

High self-control protects the link between social support and positivity ratio for Israeli students exposed to contextual risk

This study examined how Israeli students, despite exposure to contextual risk factors, may experience a high ratio of self-reported positive to negative emotions (i.e., positivity ratio). Self-control skills and perceived social support were tested as protective factors, where each was posited to moderate the relation between risk status and positivity ratio. The participants were 460 Israeli students (51% girls) in grades 8-10. Contrary to expectations, students attending a school with high contextual risks did not differ from students attending a school with low contextual risks in their scores on self-control skills, perceived social support, or positivity ratio. However, an exploratory follow-up moderation analysis revealed a significant three-way interaction, indicating that while low self-control skills eliminate the link between social support and positivity ratio for students attending the school defined as at-risk, high self-control protects this link. These results suggest that neither contextual risk in itself nor initial differences in self-control or social support account for differences in students' positivity ratio. Rather, it is the way these factors interact with each other that matters. Study limitations and implications are discussed.

The SimSpay-Student Perceptions of a Low-Cost Build-It-Yourself Model for Novice Training of Surgical Skills in Canine Ovariohysterectomy

Practical and ethical considerations have led to an increased use of artificial substitutes for live animals in veterinary surgical skills training. However, commercially produced models are expensive and homemade models often require full-time staff to produce enough models for training large groups of students. In the Department of Veterinary Clinical and Animal Sciences of the University of Copenhagen, a low-cost build-it-yourself model, the SimSpay, was developed for novice training of surgical skills in canine ovariohysterectomy. The model did not require the use of trained technical staff or costly, hard-to-source supplies. The SimSpay was developed and implemented in the clinical veterinary curriculum in 2013. In 2014, 54 students participated in a questionnaire study to investigate their perception of the usefulness of the SimSpay as a learning tool. On a five-point Likert-type scale, students were asked to rate their perceived levels of competence, confidence, and anatomic knowledge before and after SimSpay training. Results demonstrate a strongly significant (p<.0001) increase in all three areas after training on the SimSpay. By increasing students' perceived levels of competence, confidence, and anatomic knowledge, the low-fidelity SimSpay is a useful, low-cost learning tool for teaching ovariohysterectomy.

Staying Engaged: Knowledge and Research Needs in Student Engagement

In this article, we review knowledge about student engagement and look ahead to the future of study in this area. We begin by describing how researchers in the field define and study student engagement. In particular, we describe the levels, contexts, and dimensions that constitute the measurement of engagement, summarize the contexts that shape engagement and the outcomes that result from it, and articulate person-centered approaches for analyzing engagement. We conclude by addressing limitations to the research and providing recommendations for study. Specifically, we point to the importance of incorporating more work on how learning-related emotions, personality characteristics, prior learning experiences, shared values across contexts, and engagement in nonacademic activities influence individual differences in student engagement. We also stress the need to improve our understanding of the nuances involved in developing engagement over time by incorporating more extensive longitudinal analyses, intervention trials, research on affective neuroscience, and interactions among levels and dimensions of engagement.

Connectedness and suicide prevention in adolescents: pathways and implications

Adolescent suicide is a major public health concern. Stressing the need for public health-based solutions, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified "connectedness" as one means of pursuing this agenda. To advance this effort in suicide prevention with adolescents, (1) consistencies and variation in the literature overtly linking connectedness to suicide thoughts and behaviors (STB) are reviewed, (2) three more specific mechanistic pathways are proposed whereby connectedness may influence STB, and (3) several implications related to use of connectedness as a public health framework for adolescent suicide prevention and intervention are outlined.

Green Perspective for a Hopeful Future: Explaining Green Schools’ Contribution to Environmental Subjective Well-Being

This article offers a new perspective on 2 of the most pressing challenges of contemporary society: improving the state of the environment and improving the subjective well-being (SWB) of adolescents, who are not only likely to suffer the severe consequences of environmental degradation but are also society's future leaders. We present an innovative interdisciplinary approach blending positive psychology with environmental education to study the previously unexplored mechanisms by which green schools may promote not only adolescents’ environmental behavior (EB) but also their SWB. Within a new framework of environmental subjective well-being, our explanatory theoretical model posits a potential chain of influence that begins with green schools’ effects on students’ goal-directed environmental hope (a latent cognitive variable indicated by agency thinking, pathway thinking, and trusting other members of society), which in turn contributes to increased levels of EB and SWB. A latent cognitive–behavioral variable, indicated by self-control skills and resistance to peer pressure, is posited as moderator of the relation between environmental hope and actual EB. Implications for research, practice, and policy are proposed.

Concurrent and Predictive Validity of the Student Engagement Instrument

The Student Engagement Instrument (SEI) is a self-report measure of cognitive and affective engagement with school. Prior SEI validation studies have focused primarily on construct validity through analyses of internal consistency, factor analysis, and measurement invariance. Results are presented here from a two-pronged study of the criterion validity of SEI scores. Using a middle school sample ( N = 35,900), concurrent validity was assessed through analyses of group differences in SEI scores across student subgroups expected to differ in cognitive and affective engagement levels: behaviorally disengaged versus non-disengaged, high-risk versus low-risk disability status, and high versus low academic achievement. Next, through multiple logistic regression analyses, the 4-year predictive validity of SEI scores for on-time graduation and dropout was assessed in a cohort of first-time ninth graders ( N = 11,588). Nearly all SEI factors demonstrated directionally consistent associations with each criterion, including considerable long-term predictive associations with both dropout and on-time graduation.

To Study or Not to Study? Investigating the Link Between Time Perspectives and Motivational Interference

The aim of this study was to explore possible synergies between research on motivational interference and time perspectives. A conceptual model relating individual differences in time perspectives to motivational interference during studying and leisure and academic achievement was tested. Filipino college students ( N = 385) participated in the study. Results from the path analysis indicated that future time perspective was positively associated with motivational interference during leisure and negatively associated with motivational interference during studying. Moreover, future time perspective also positively predicted academic achievement. Present fatalistic and past negative time perspectives were positively associated with motivational interference during studying. Present hedonistic time perspective negatively predicted motivational interference during leisure. Motivational interference during studying, in turn, was negatively associated with academic achievement. Implications are discussed.

The mediating role of organizational justice in the relationship between transformational leadership and nurses' quality of work life: a cross-sectional questionnaire survey

BACKGROUND

The importance of transformational leadership for nurses' well-being is increasingly acknowledged. However, there is a paucity of research examining the mechanisms that may explain the relationships between transformational leadership and nurses' quality of work life.

OBJECTIVES

First, to examine two possible psychological mechanisms that link transformational leadership behaviors to nurses' quality of work life. Second, to study the relationship between nurses' quality of work life and their work engagement.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study design.

SETTINGS

The study took place in 47 different hematology, oncology, and hematology/oncology units in France. Participants were nurses and auxiliary nurses.

PARTICIPANTS

343 nurses completed the questionnaire. Surveys were sent to all nurses working in the units. 95% were female, the average age was 36.30 years.

METHODS

Nurses were asked to rate their supervisor's transformational leadership style and their perceptions of distributive and interactional justice in the unit. They were also asked to evaluate their own level of quality of work life and their work engagement.

RESULTS

Distributive justice and interactional justice were found to fully mediate the relationship between transformational leadership and nurses' quality of work life. In addition, nurses' quality of work life positively related to their work engagement.

CONCLUSIONS

Transformational leaders may help ensure nurses' quality of work life which in turn increases their work engagement. These leadership practices are thus beneficial for both employees and organization.

The upward spiral of adolescents' positive school experiences and happiness: investigating reciprocal effects over time

In line with self-determination theory and Fredrickson's (2001) broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, this study adopts a positive perspective on students' school experiences and their general psychological functioning. The reciprocal effects of positive school experiences and happiness, a dimension of affective well-being, are examined over the course of an academic year. Data were collected from 215 secondary school students at 5 measurement occasions. The results of longitudinal cross-lagged structural equation modeling support the notion of an upward spiral of positive school experiences and happiness over time. Positive school experiences had a stable lagged effect on happiness, and, in turn, happiness had a lagged effect on future positive school experiences.

Development of School Engagement in Association With Academic Success and Well-Being in Varying Social Contexts

This review examines the development of students’ engagement with school and how it may contribute to future academic success and individual well-being in different social contexts. The review discusses the two main approaches of school engagement research: one examines students’ behavioral, cognitive, and affective engagement (North American approach), while the other examines study-related vigor, absorption, and dedication (European approach). This research shows that a high level of school engagement is positively associated with academic success, and negatively associated with students’ ill-being, such as depressive symptoms and burnout. High engagement with school also fosters several aspects of students’ well-being, such as positive emotions and life satisfaction. Moreover, several contextual factors, including parental affect, teachers’ support, and a mastery-oriented atmosphere in the classroom, promote students’ engagement with school.

The Longitudinal Stability and Dynamics of Group Membership in the Dual-Factor Model of Mental Health

This study examined the longitudinal stability and dynamics of group membership within the Greenspoon and Sakflofske’s dual-factor model of mental health. This expanded model incorporates information about subjective well-being (SWB), in addition to psychopathological symptoms, to better identify the mental health status and current functioning of youths. Participants included 730 seventh- and eighth-grade U.S. middle school students. Four groups of students were identified: flourishing (i.e., high SWB and low psychopathology), vulnerable (i.e., low SWB and low psychopathology), symptomatic but content (i.e., high SWB and high psychopathology), and troubled (i.e., low SWB and high psychopathology). Analyses of stability of group membership revealed varying levels of stability, with flourishing students demonstrating the highest stability. Analyses also revealed that social support variables yielded meaningful predictions of changes in group membership. Implications for professional practice are discussed.

Measuring school-related subjective well-being in adolescents

The tripartite model of subjective well-being (SWB) incorporates 3 components: frequent positive emotions, infrequent negative emotions, and an overall positive evaluation of life circumstances (Diener, Suh, Lucas, & Smith, 1999). In light of the large amount of time that youth spend in school, this study investigated a tripartite model of school-related SWB among adolescents, based on 3 measures of SWB appropriate for adolescents. The measures included a measure of school satisfaction (SS) and measures of positive and negative emotions experienced specifically during school hours. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to analyze the factorial validity of 3- and 4-factor models of school-related SWB in a sample of 921 adolescents. Results indicated that a 4-factor model comprised of positive emotions, negative emotions, fear-related negative emotions, and SS best described the structure of school-related SWB in the current sample. Results also revealed a comparable factor structure for male and female students. The study points to the possible benefits of a contextualized approach to SWB that takes into account the specific environments in which adolescents live.

Flourishing, substance use, and engagement in students entering college: a preliminary study

OBJECTIVE

The present study explores the association between positive mental health or flourishing, depression, and engaged learning in undergraduates.

PARTICIPANTS

Entering first year students (N = 428) at a liberal arts college.

METHODS

Students completed measures of depression, flourishing, substance use, and student engagement.

RESULTS

Based on Keyes' model of mental health,(1) 69.1% of students were flourishing, 29.0% were moderately mentally healthy, and 1.9% were languishing. In addition, 21.8% of students had elevated depression scores, and these scores were highly correlated with languishing. Alcohol consumption and binge drinking were not associated with measures of mental health. However, certain kinds of student engagement were associated with flourishing.

CONCLUSIONS

Results suggest more flourishing in this sample entering college than in previous studies of high school students or adults. Future research should explore flourishing in undergraduates in more diverse samples across educational institutions, and employ prospective designs.

Psychosocial Profiles of Adolescent Nonsmokers in the Pacific

Studies examining adolescent smoking have focused on at-risk individuals, while overlooking the psychosocial profiles of those adolescents who have managed to remain nonsmokers. Accumulating evidence suggests that positive emotions such as happiness may be associated with the adoption of healthy practices, but limited evidence has emerged from developing countries. This study examined the association between non-smoking and positive emotions and psychosocial correlates in 3 large population samples of Pacific youths (N = 5659) living in Tonga, Vanuatu, and Pohnpei in the Federated States of Micronesia. Across all 3 samples, being confident was significantly associated with nonsmoking and being happy (Tonga, odds ratio [OR] = 1.39, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.12-1.73; Vanuatu, OR = 1.29, 95% CI = 1.02-1.63; Pohnpei, OR = 2.34, 95% CI = 1.60-3.34). Some cross-country differences in relationships were found in the associations between societal factors (ie, perceived connections with school, teachers, and peers, and perceived community importance and involvement) and nonsmoking and happiness. Findings have implications for developing innovative strategies aimed at preventing smoking uptake and suggest the need for focusing on identifying the determinants of nonsmoking and measuring positive emotions.

A dual-factor model of mental health: toward a more comprehensive understanding of youth functioning

Traditional mental health models focus on psychological problems and distress; accordingly, health is viewed as the absence of illness or disability. In contrast, a dual-factor model of mental health incorporates both indicators of positive subjective well-being (SWB) and measures of psychopathological symptoms to comprehensively determine an individual's psychological adjustment. This study used such a dual-factor model to measure the mental health status of young adolescents. A total of 764 middle school students were classified into one of four distinct groups based on having high or low psychopathology and high or low SWB. Furthermore, group differences in student engagement, academic achievement, and environmental support for learning were investigated. Results demonstrated the existence of a traditionally neglected group of adolescents (low SWB and low psychopathology) who are nonetheless at risk for academic and behavior problems in school and who performed no better than the most troubled group of adolescents. Overall, both the presence of positive well-being and the absence of symptoms were necessary for ensuring the most advantageous school performance. These results highlight the importance of incorporating positive indicators of well-being along with traditional negative factors in more fully understanding relationships between individuals' mental health and educational outcomes.

Life satisfaction and student engagement in adolescents

Situated within a positive psychology perspective, this study explored linkages between adolescent students' positive subjective well-being and their levels of engagement in schooling. Specifically, using structural equation modeling techniques, we evaluated the nature and directionality of longitudinal relationships between life satisfaction and student engagement variables. It was hypothesized that adolescents' life satisfaction and student engagement variables would show bidirectional relationships. To test this hypothesis, 779 students (53% female, 62% Caucasian) in a Southeastern US middle school completed a measure of global life satisfaction and measures of cognitive, emotional, and behavioral engagement at two time points, 5 months apart. A statistically significant bidirectional relationship between life satisfaction and cognitive engagement was found; however, non-significant relationships were found between life satisfaction and emotional and behavioral student engagement. The findings provide important evidence of the role of early adolescents' life satisfaction in their engagement in schooling during the important transition grades between elementary and high school. The findings also help extend the positive psychology perspective to the relatively neglected context of education.

The Incremental Validity of Positive Emotions in Predicting School Functioning

Proponents of positive psychology have argued for more comprehensive assessments incorporating positive measures (e.g., student strengths) as well as negative measures (e.g., psychological symptoms). However, few variable-centered studies have addressed the incremental validity of positive assessment data. The authors investigated the incremental validity of positive emotions relative to negative emotions in predicting adolescents’ adaptive school functioning. Positive emotions demonstrated significant incremental validity in predicting school satisfaction, adaptive coping, and student engagement, but not self-reported GPA. The findings offer some support for the utility of positive measures in psychoeducational assessments.