This study was developed in response to the lack of positive interventions for middle school students with school behavior problems. This study involved the development, implementation, and evaluation of a social-cognitive group treatment program for this group of at-risk students. A total of 35 students were randomly selected from three middle schools. Subjects were also randomly assigned to either a treatment or control group at each school using a pretest-posttest control group design. Scores from the Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale, Teachers Self-Control Rating Scale, and two collateral measures were used to assess subjects' cognitive and behavioral changes before and immediately following the treatment program. To ensure group equivalency prior to treatment, the pretest scores were analyzed for group differences. Three outside observers rated the group leader on an Observer Checklist form at the conclusion of each group session to ensure that it was carried out in an accurate and consistent manner at all three schools. The interobserver agreement on the Observer Checklist was 81%. / Statistically significant differences between pretest and posttest scores from the N-SLCS and the TSCRS were found for the treatment group but not for the control group. These findings provided evidence that this school-based social cognitive group treatment program produced significant changes in treatment subjects' perceptions of locus of control and teacher-reported self-control. Moreover, since the TSCRS is a teacher-reported instrument, changes on this measure provided evidence that changes in subjects' self-control were generalizable from the treatment setting to the classroom setting. There were no significant differences in outcomes among treatment subjects based upon their race and gender or based upon the treatment setting. The implications of these findings for school social work practice and future research are discussed. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 52-06, Section: A, page: 2273. / Major Professor: Curtis H. Krishef. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1991.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_76421 |
| Contributors | Dupper, David R., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 143 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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