Date of Award
8-2025
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School
Psychology
Committee Chair
Brad Dufrene
Committee Chair School
Psychology
Committee Member 2
Joe Olmi
Committee Member 2 School
Psychology
Committee Member 3
Emily DeFouw
Committee Member 3 School
Psychology
Committee Member 4
Zachary LaBrot
Committee Member 4 School
Psychology
Committee Member 5
Kourtney Kromminga
Committee Member 5 School
Psychology
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to find the average rate of behavior specific praise (BSP) and reprimands for teachers in childcare programs, Head Start programs, and university-based preschool settings, determine whether BSP and reprimands are provided at significantly different rates between settings, and understand the relationship between preschool teachers’ natural use of BSP and reprimands and child disruptive behavior (DB) and appropriately engaged behavior (AEB) in each setting. Participants included four preschool teachers and their four to five-year-old preschool children. The planned activity check (PAC) method for AEB and frequency within intervals for BSP, DB, and reprimands were used to collect data during 31 total 20-minute observations across settings. Descriptive statistics indicated that rates of BSP were .22 per minute in the childcare setting, .08 in the Head Start setting, and .09 in the university-based preschool setting. Reprimands were .78 per minute in the childcare setting, .54 in the Head Start setting, and .6 in the university-based setting. A Kruskal-Wallis test indicated that there was a significant difference in BSP across three preschool settings, but no significant difference in reprimands across settings. Post-hoc comparisons using Dunn’s method with a Bonferroni correction indicated that there were no significant differences in BSP across settings after correcting for multiple tests. Spearman’s correlations indicated that there is no significant relationship between BSP and AEB or DB or reprimands and AEB or DB in the Head Start or university-based settings. Within the childcare setting, there was no significant relationship between BSP and AEB. However, there was a significant positive correlation between BSP and DB and reprimands and DB, and a significant negative correlation between reprimands and AEB.
ORCID ID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5353-0764
Copyright
Brittany Pigg, 2025
Recommended Citation
Pigg, Brittany, "Praise in Preschool: Exploring Classroom Dynamics" (2025). Dissertations. 2379.
https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations/2379