Die schulbezogene Anstrengungsvermeidung als maladaptive Strategie des selbstregulierten Lernens : ein multidimensionales Konstrukt an der Schnittstelle zwischen Kinder- und Jugendhilfe und Schule

Abstract

Background. School achievement is determined by a series of cognitive and non-cognitive factors. In addition to general cognitive abilities, strategies of self-regulated learning play an essential role in School success. Children and adolescents who are not able to regulate their learning process have difficulties to meet the school earning requirements and will increasingly be affected by school failure. Frustrating learning experiences may manifest in school-based effort avoidance. Children and adolescents try to avoid the learning effort in order to scape the associated negative emotions. School-based effort avoidance is associated with poor school performance and can be considered as a maladaptive strategy of self-regulated learning. In particular, children and adolescents from child welfare services are at risk of developing such an avoidance. Aim. The aim of the present study is to analyze the construct "school-based effort avoidance". This includes the question how school-based effort is associated to other child-centred variables. It also examines the role school-based effort avoidance plays in school performance. Furthermore, given the example of school-based effort avoidance, it should be examined who was the most valid source of information in child welfare services. Methods. A questionnaire especially developed for this research project was used in a cross-sectional design to record school-based effort avoidance. It does not map school-based effort avoidance one-dimensionally but in a multidimensional profile. This makes it possible to examine the construct school-based effort avoidance in a differentiated manner. This differentiation is necessary to identify specific relationships with other constructs in order to be able to implement very concrete individual-oriented training and intervention measures. Assistance adapted to the specific and individual needs of the child or adolescent is crucial for a successful implementation of child welfare services. This Dissertation contains the findings of four publications, each relating to different random samples (ages 9 to 16) from the general population and child welfare services. Results. The results show that school-based effort avoidance is primarily related to externalizing behavioral problems (child welfare Services sample), but also to learning emotions, such as school phobia (general population sample). The school-based effort avoidance can even mediate the relationship between individual scales of school phobia and grades in mathematics and German. Therefore, school phobia only affects school grades when it leads to avoidance behavior. The results of the interrater Agreement on the example of school-based effort avoidance confirms only a small association between the different sources of information, whereas the agreement between the adults was higher than the agreement between the children and the adult raters (child welfare services sample). Conclusions. The present study highlights the impact of school-based effort avoidance on school success. Accordingly it should be identified as early as possible so that the appropriate training measures to reduce school-based effort-avoidance can be initiated and implemented at an early stage before the behavior manifests itself stronger. This is particularly important when it comes to children and adolescent from child welfare services, who are often subjected to enormous multiple loads. In future longitudinal studies the reciprocal contexts between school-based effort avoidance, behavioral problems, school phobia and school grades should also be considered.