Peter Boman

Examination of the latent structure of the psychological sense of school membership scale

Despite its widespread use, there has been limited examination of the underlying factor structure of the Psychological Sense of School Membership (PSSM) scale. The current study examined the psychometric properties of the PSSM to refine its utility for researchers and practitioners using a sample of 504 Australian high school students. Results from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses indicated that the PSSM is a multidimensional instrument. Factor analysis procedures identified three factors representing related aspects of students’ perceptions of their school membership: caring relationships, acceptance , and rejection.

Mainstreamed students with learning difficulties :failing and underachieving in the secondary school

Abstract Despite the rhetoric that students with learning difficulties are adequately supported within schools, the evidence suggests that they continue to experience school failure with devastating consequences. Students with learning difficulties are disproportionately represented as juvenile delinquents, as the unemployed and in mental health statistics. However, the defining of this group remains confused and imprecise and has not been a national priority. This has repercussions for both secondary schools and for the students themselves. This paper highlights research related to teaching practices, policies and school structure and their effects on the academic outcomes and emotional well being of students with learning difficulties. Finally, it makes a number of recommendations to change the status quo for these students.

Primary school teachers' ability to recognise resilience in their students

This study investigated teachers’ knowledge of, and capacity to identify resilience, in 92 primary school children in Far North Queensland. It was found that although teachers’ knowledge of resilience was apparently strong, and they reported a significant level of confidence in their ability to assist children in building resilience, their capacity to identify levels of resilience in their students was lacking. The paper concludes with suggestions for future research.

Examining well-being, anxiety, and self-deception in university students

Abstract This study examined the combined influence of six positive psychology variables (optimism, hope, self-efficacy, grit, gratitude, and subjective life satisfaction), termed covitality, in relation to buffering individuals against anxiety symptoms. In addition, the influence of self-deception was examined to test whether this construct had an influence on the reporting of these positive psychology variables. A total of 268 individuals (203 females and 65 males) with a mean age of 22.2 years (SD = 7.4 years) from one Queensland university took part in the study. The participants completed an online questionnaire, which included a battery of positive psychological measures, plus a measure of anxiety and self-deception. The results indicated that the covitality constructs had a moderation effect on anxiety. In a regression analysis, the six covitality constructs explained an additional 24.5% of the variance in anxiety, after controlling for self-deception. Further analyses revealed that those higher in self-deception scored higher in self-efficacy and all positive covitality measures and lower in anxiety, than those lower in self-deception. These findings illustrate the importance of considering the role that self-deception might play in the reporting of positive psychology variables.

Nursing a Case of the Blues: An Examination of the Role of Depression in Predicting Job-Related Affective Well-Being in Nurses

The current study explored the effect of depression, optimism, and anxiety on job-related affective well-being in 70 graduate nurses. It was predicted that depression and anxiety would have a significant negative effect on job-related affective well-being, whereas optimism would have a significant positive effect on job-related affective well-being. Questionnaires were completed online or in hard-copy forms. Results revealed that depression, optimism, and anxiety were all significantly correlated to job-related affective well-being in the expected direction, however, depression was found to be the only variable that made a significant unique contribution to the prediction of job-related affective well-being. Possible explanations for these findings are explored.

Positive psychological strengths and school engagement in primary school children

Abstract A sizeable body of research has investigated the impact of specific character strengths or traits on significant outcomes. Some recent research is beginning to consider the effects of groups of strengths, combined as a higher order variable and termed covitality. This study investigated the combined influence of four positive character traits, gratitude, optimism, zest and persistence, upon school engagement, within a sample of 112 Australian primary school students. The combined effect of these four traits, in defining covitality as a higher or second-order factor within a path analysis, was found to predict relatively higher levels of school engagement and pro-social behaviour.

The Effects of Covitality on Well-Being and Depression in Australian High School Adolescents

Positive psychology is an area of increasing interest in psychological research, with studies generally focusing an individual’s strengths rather than their psychopathology. Within positive psychology, co-vitality is a new area of study that relates to the co-occurrence of human strengths. This study examined the construct of co-vitality, using the Social- Emotional Health Scale-Secondary (SEHS-S), in a population of Australian adolescents examining relationships between its four underpinning constructs (Belief-in-Self, Belief-in- Others, Emotional Competence, and Engaged Living), psychological well-being, and depression. Three hundred and sixty-one adolescents completed the SEHS-S with results demonstrating high correlations between all constructs examined. The results demonstrated that covitality predicted both well-being and depression. However, the combined effect of these constructs, co-vitality, was found to be a stronger predictor of psychological wellbeing and depression than the unique variance of any of the SEHS-S individual constructs. This suggests that building only one psychological strength, such as belief-in-self, might not be enough to strengthen wellbeing, or lessen depressive tendencies, in adolescents. In conclusion, it is considered that a broad range of constructs, such as those that underpin the SEHS-S, should be considered in high school intervention programs with adolescents.