TY - JOUR
T1 - Observations of Student Behavior in Nonclassroom Settings
T2 - A Multilevel Examination of Location, Density, and School Context
AU - Cash, Anne H.
AU - Bradshaw, Catherine P.
AU - Leaf, Philip J.
N1 - Funding Information:
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This research was supported in part by grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (R49/CCR318627, 1U49CE 000728, and K01CE001333-01), the National Institute of Mental Health (1R01MH67948-1A, T32MH019545), and the Institute of Education Sciences (R305A090307).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2014, © The Author(s) 2014.
PY - 2015/6/21
Y1 - 2015/6/21
N2 - Observational methods are increasingly used to assess the impact of school-based interventions. Yet, few studies have used observations in nonclassroom settings, such as hallways or the cafeteria, or explored aspects of the school context that may be related to the observed behavior. The current study used a multilevel approach to examine associations between observed rule violations and contextual predictors, including characteristics of observations (e.g., location and number of students present) and schools (e.g., perceived management, discipline referrals). Analyses were conducted on data from 37 elementary schools. Within schools, rates of physical and verbal violations varied by location and significantly higher rates of rule violations were observed in areas with high student density. Between schools, only a negative association for observed verbal violations and staff perceptions of the status of nonclassroom management systems was significant. The significance and relevance of these findings for both educators and applied researchers are discussed.
AB - Observational methods are increasingly used to assess the impact of school-based interventions. Yet, few studies have used observations in nonclassroom settings, such as hallways or the cafeteria, or explored aspects of the school context that may be related to the observed behavior. The current study used a multilevel approach to examine associations between observed rule violations and contextual predictors, including characteristics of observations (e.g., location and number of students present) and schools (e.g., perceived management, discipline referrals). Analyses were conducted on data from 37 elementary schools. Within schools, rates of physical and verbal violations varied by location and significantly higher rates of rule violations were observed in areas with high student density. Between schools, only a negative association for observed verbal violations and staff perceptions of the status of nonclassroom management systems was significant. The significance and relevance of these findings for both educators and applied researchers are discussed.
KW - nonclassroom
KW - observation
KW - school climate
KW - student behavior
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U2 - 10.1177/0272431614562835
DO - 10.1177/0272431614562835
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84937206941
SN - 0272-4316
VL - 35
SP - 597
EP - 627
JO - Journal of Early Adolescence
JF - Journal of Early Adolescence
IS - 5-6
ER -