The Impact of Teacher Nonverbal Behaviors on Children's Intergroup Attitudes and Mental Health

Completed · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Stress, Psychological, Stress, Emotional

In brief

Researchers in education have found that teachers often differ in their nonverbal behaviors toward children from different social groups and these behaviors correlate with achievement gaps and academic stereotypes about the groups. Early elementary school, when achievement gaps first emerge, is also the time when White, majority children begin to show group-level biases, and when racial minority children are able to detect discrimination and experience anxiety related to their membership in a particular social group. Therefore, if children are sensitive to teacher nonverbal behaviors, these behaviors could contribute to majority children's group biases, and may impact minority children's awareness of being in a negatively stereotyped group. In fact, children are adept at perceiving adult nonverbal behaviors and using these behaviors to guide their own behaviors and to make judgments about others. The primary goal of this research is to examine the effect of biased nonverbal teacher behaviors on group biases for children from positively stereotyped groups, and on affect and anxiety for children from negatively stereotyped groups. The investigators hypothesize that group biases in teacher behaviors will influence children's attitudes about groups, and will result in negative affect and anxiety for students in groups targeted by negative nonverbal teacher behaviors.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT03584230

Run by

University of Hawaii

People needed

96

Starts

2017-01-31

Expected to finish

2017-08-26

Last updated by the study team

2018-07-12

Who can join

Age: 5 and older, up to 9. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

• children older than 54 months
• children younger than 102 months
• children who are part of an existing database managed by the investigators
• children whose parents agreed to be contacted during community events

You may not qualify if…

• consent of the parent
• assent of participant
• parent and participant both fluent in English

Where it is running

• University of Hawaii at Manoa — Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

Trial information comes from ClinicalTrials.gov and is refreshed daily. TrialsForMe does not provide medical care and does not run the studies it lists.