Jamaican Teachers' Efficacy and the Causal Attributions Made Regarding Students' Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Behaviors
Abstract
The behaviors associated with an attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis are inconsistent with the behavioral expectations within the classroom. As such, teachers are often integral in the identification and treatment of students with ADHD. This study explored whether an ADHD label and the behaviors associated with the combined subtype (C-subtype) and predominantly inattentive subtype (PI-subtype) influenced Jamaican teachers’ sense of efficacy and the attributions endorsed for the cause of the behaviors. Jamaican primary education teachers rated their attributions and teaching efficacy in response to two vignettes describing ADHD behaviors of the C-subtype and the PI-subtype. The results demonstrated that there was no difference in teachers’ teaching efficacy beliefs based on label or subtype. Label and subtype also had no influence on teachers’ attributions regarding the locus of causality, stability, and external controllability of the student’s behavior. On the other hand, label had an effect on teachers’ perception of the personal controllability of the student’s behavior. Altogether the results suggested that an ADHD label has some influence on teachers’ perception of the controllability of students’ behavior, and this influence has a positive association with their sense of efficacy. Limitations and future directions are discussed.
Subject Area
Educational psychology|Psychology
Recommended Citation
Small, Rene, "Jamaican Teachers' Efficacy and the Causal Attributions Made Regarding Students' Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Behaviors" (2019). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI13425302.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI13425302
