Abstract:
The purpose of the study was to examine teacher perceptions and teacher characteristics about bullying and to see how distinctions in these variables relate or affect teacher attitudes, when responding to bullying situations in preschool classrooms. The researcher was also interested in investigating how other variables such as preschool program type (i.e., community-based/center models or non-community/school-based models) and race impacted teacher perception when responding to preschool bullying scenarios. Survey data were collected from 133 preschool teachers working in a nonprofit agency serving preschool children across a 13 county area in one state. The study used the Bullying Attitudes Questionnaire-Modified-Revised (BAQ-M Revised; Davis, Burnham, & Mills, 2015). The revised measure was based on Yoon and Kerber's (2003) questionnaire referred to as the Bullying Attitudes Questionnaire Modified (BAQ-M, 2003). The revised measure maintained the original six vignettes depicting three types of bullying: physical, social, and relational bullying. The revision to the instrument involved the creation of additional questions after each vignette to improve the content validity of scale constructs (i.e., Seriousness, Empathy, and Response). Teacher self-perceptions about classroom behavior management was measured using the Efficacy in Classroom Management subscale of the Teachers Sense of Efficacy Scale Short Form (TSES; Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk-Hoy, 2001). ANOVAS were used to analyze the first research question. Significant differences were found between Black and White teachers on the construct of Empathy based upon race. Specifically, Black teachers scored significantly higher on the construct of Empathy. A two-way ANOVA tested the independent variables of race and setting on the construct of Seriousness. Results of the ANOVA indicated that there were significant differences in race. Regression models were used to analyze the second research question. The results of a four-predictor model comprised on Seriousness, Empathy, Response, and Efficacy in Classroom Management was significant. However, the classroom management subscale of the Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES; Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk-Hoy) was not found to be a significant predictor in the model.
