Abstract

LYRA, Gabriela Franco Dias; ASSIS, Simone Gonçalves de; NJAINE, Kathie  and  PIRES, Thiago de Oliveira. Psychological distress and teaching - implications for the detection of problem behavior in students. Estud. pesqui. psicol. [online]. 2013, vol.13, n.2, pp. 724-744. ISSN 1808-4281.

This article aims to investigate the opinion of elementary school teachers - with and without psychological distress - on the behavior´s problems of the students and how to deal with these problems. In 2006, 139 teachers answered a questionnaire in order to evaluate some professional characteristics and the presence of psychological distress (Self Reported Questionnaire, SRQ-20). These professionals have also evaluated the presence of behavior problems in 358 students, through the scale Teacher's Report Form (TRF). In 2009, 10 teachers from the same sample were interviewed (5 teachers with signs of distress and 5 with no such signs). The results show significant differences between the two groups in regard to how to assess and deal with the problems of student behavior. Furthermore, it appears that the presence of psychological distress contributes to a more negative view of teaching.

Keywords : Psychological Distress; Teaching; Behavior Problems.

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