Decision-sharing in elementary school children: effects on body-concept and anxiety.
To determine the effects of teacher-directed and decision-sharing models of instruction on the development of body-concept and reduction of anxiety 99 Greensboro public school children in Grades 3 and 4 participated in either a movement program in which the teacher made all the decisions or in a program where they shared in the decision-making. The Cheffers adaptation of Flanders' Interaction Analysis System was used to verify the two treatments. The dependent variables were measured by Osgood's semantic differential for body-concept measures, and Sarason's General Anxiety Scale for Children. There was no significant difference between the groups for improvement in body-concept. Also, girls have more positive concepts about their bodies than do boys. Anxiety scores indicated that levels in fourth-grade children appear to be reduced when exposed to a teacher-directed model. However, a decision-sharing approach had a significant effect on reducing anxiety levels in third-grade children.
D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology*; D001828:Body Image; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010806:Physical Education and Training; D013663:Teaching