Personality characteristics of Greek mothers of children with special needs who are involved in special needs support centres

It is generally accepted that support of the family is critical for effective intervention in the case of a child with special educational needs (SEN). The quality of this support highly depends on the personality characteristics and the mental health of the parents. It has also been argued that, because of the increased pressure and the strain of having to care for a child with SEN, the opportunity to learn from and share problems with other families is very beneficial. It is also essential to seek emotional support at times of crisis through the means of parent support groups. This empirical study focuses on the mothers' personality since they are more directly affected by their child's disability. The aim of the study was to examine whether participation in parent support groups and sharing with others the care of a child with SEN affect the self-esteem, the coping mechanisms and the depression of mothers with such children.peer-reviewe

School leadership innovations and creativity: The case of communication between school and parents

AbstractIn this work we examine how the creativity of the school leaders improves the relationships between school and parents through the innovations. Our study is based on a quantitative approach to the issue through interviews with 6 headmasters of primary schools (3 in Greece and 3 in Cyprus) and 18 parents (3 of each school, one mother and two fathers).The results showed that the creativity of the school headmaster or school principal is a main factor to establish a strong communication based between school and parents. School leader has the power to “meet parents where they are” and none parent be exclusive from school life

The effect of parental style on bullying and cyber bullying behaviors and the mediating role of peer attachment relationships: A longitudinal study

The purpose of the present study was the examination of the longitudinal effect of parental style on short-term changes in conventional and cyber forms of bullying/victimization, and the investigation of the mediating role of peer attachment relationships on this effect. The participants were 861 children and adolescents (52% girls, M  = 11.72 years) attending Cyprus public institutions. Students provided information during three measurement points. There was a six and a 12 week interval among the three measurement points, respectively. The findings of the study indicated that parenting seems to be a significant predictor of all forms of bullying/victimization, conventional and cyber, in early adolescents, even when accounting for bullying/victimization levels eighteen weeks back. More importantly, results showed that the effect of parental style on bullying forms was mediated by peer attachment relationships. Results are discussed in the light of theoretical and practical implications. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2018 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

How students determine the importance of self-perception domains and how this relates to self-esteem

The purpose of the study was to test the selectivity hypothesis according to which individuals selectively assign the greatest importance to those domains in their life in which their self-perceptions are most positive and assign the least importance to areas in which their self-perceptions are poorest. The sample of the study consisted of 1033 Greek senior high school students in grades eleven and twelve. Our findings revealed that for all eight domains examined in our study, except for physical appearance, there was a self-perception significant and positive main effect on the domains' importance. Thus, the lower the self-perception in a specific domain, the lower the importance assigned to the domain. These tendencies were somewhat stronger for participants with higher self-esteem. Physical appearance was the domain which even the high self-esteem students found most difficult to discount. Among the two subscales tapping students' likeability by peers, the domain of close friendship seems to be somewhat easier to discount than the domain of acceptance by classmates. The discounting of behavioural conduct offers the platform for a culturally interesting interpretation on the basis of the Greek concept of 'philotimo'. © 2001, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Academic intrinsic motivation: Developmental differences and relations to perceived scholastic competence, locus of control and achievement

The construct of academic motivation has substantial validity and significance for children's effective school functioning. The scope of the present study was to address issues concerning academic motivational orientation in Greek elementary and junior high school children (grades six through nine). More specifically the study (a) examined the grade and sex effects on children's academic motivation, (b) sought to identify correlates of a child's motivational orientation, and (c) investigated the impact of academic motivation and locus of control on self-perception of scholastic competence. Support was found that: (a) preference for challenge and intrinsic interest in the subject material - the two dimensions of academic intrinsic motivation considered in our study - decline with grade level; (b) boys show higher preference for challenge than do girls, while sex differences in intrinsic interest in the subject material shift in the favour of boys with grade level (i.e. smaller differences in favour of girls); (c) academic intrinsic motivation is positively related to self-perception of scholastic competence and achievement, and negatively related to external locus of control; (d) the effects of academic motivation and locus of control on children's perception of their scholastic competence are additive and they do not interact with one another. © 1999, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC