Effects of an intervention programme with teachers on the development of positive behaviours in Spanish physical education classes.

Abstract

Background: The physical education (PE) context has been emphasised as an ideal environment for developing positive behaviours among students. Under the Positive Youth Development paradigm, various initiatives have been conducted with the aim of promoting personal and social responsibility among adolescents. Self-Determination Theory has been widely used to analyse students’ motivational processes during PE classes.

Purpose: This study aimed to measure the effects of a multidisciplinary intervention with teachers on the development of positive behaviours in PE classes.

Participants: Twenty PE teachers participated in the study (Mage = 35 years; SD = 2.32) along with 777 of their students (Mage = 12.81 years; SD = .93). The teachers (male = 16; female = 4) were between the ages of 29 and 48 years (M = 35.2 years; SD = 2.32). The students who participated in this study (male = 377; female = 400) were divided into 52 classes and were between the ages of 12 and 16 years (M = 12.81; SD = .93).

Research design: A quasi-experimental design was used that consisted of a control group and three groups in which an intervention was developed. In the control group, the teachers did not receive any type of intervention; in the second group, the teachers received a training programme to develop strategies for supporting basic psychological needs and promoting positive behaviours; in the third group, the teachers received a didactic unit to promote positive behaviours; and in the last group the teachers received a combination of the two previous interventions.

Data analysis: A repeated-measures ANCOVA (analysis of covariance) was used for every dependent variable included in the study to analyse the effect of Group × Time interaction, including Gender and Grade Level as covariates. The fixed effects caused by Intercept, Group, Time, and the Group × Time interaction were calculated using compound symmetry as the type of covariance and restricted maximum likelihood as the estimation method.

Findings: By examining the differences between pre-test and post-test, it was determined that in comparison with the students in the control group, the students from the three experimental groups had generally improved scores on the variables related to positive behaviours, such as perceptions of the teacher's support, as well as the development of the targeted behaviours.

Conclusions: These results provide information about the efficacy of an intervention programme with teachers that consists of strategies for developing positive behaviour and support for basic psychological needs to promote the development of positive student behaviour.

Antecedentes: El contexto de la educación física (EF) se ha destacado como un entorno ideal para desarrollar comportamientos positivos entre los estudiantes. Bajo el paradigma del Desarrollo Positivo de la Juventud, se han llevado a cabo diversas iniciativas con el objetivo de promover la responsabilidad personal y social entre los adolescentes. La Teoría de la Autodeterminación ha sido ampliamente utilizada para analizar los procesos motivacionales de los alumnos durante las clases de educación física.