Program to Promote Personal and Social Responsibility in the Secondary Classroom

Abstract

The performance of school children has been studied by considering partial relationships between several personal variables such as the link between cognition and motivation. However, contextual variables, such as a child’s willingness to accept social responsibility, also influence students’ social and academic performance. Thus, students with greater responsibility have a better attitude toward their studies, resulting in higher academic achievement. This 2-year study aims to reveal to what extent an intervention program affects student performance and is based on the Theory of Positive Action among young people proposed by Don Hellison and the Theory of Reasoned Action by Fishbein and Ajzen. The program focuses on positive influences on social and personal responsibility, taking into consideration parental styles, gender, and academic performance. The program was a part of the educational curricula in participating schools and it targeted four main areas: (a) teaching units using academic texts about social responsibility, (b) student training in mediation processes, (c) teacher training, and (d) family training and involvement. A total of 271 students took part from first and second year of Secondary Education (12–14 years old). The experimental group was made up of 132 students while the remaining 139 formed the control group. All participants completed the Assessment Scale of Social Responsibility Attitudes in Secondary Education and the Parent–Adolescent Communication Scale. Results show that students in the experimental group performed significantly better than those in the control group. Additionally, the issue of social responsibility seems to be related to commitment, self-discipline and perseverance. Regarding gender, males appear to score higher in the factor for well-mannered, friendly and tidy. Finally, a positive relationship has been identified between social responsibility attitudes and parenting with an open communicational style. This paper discusses the results so that schools can include programs aimed at improving social and personal responsibility.

Chinese Consumers’ Herd Consumption Behavior Related to Korean Luxury Cosmetics: The Mediating Role of Fear of Missing Out

“…Several prior studies note that luxury goods appeal to consumers' self-concept and self-worth (e.g., Naylor et al, 2008;Kang et al, 2014). The symbolic interaction theory is based on the social nature of selfdefinition (Carbonero et al, 2017). It is defined largely through individuals' attitudes toward themselves and is determined by how others evaluate them.…”

The Development of Social Responsibility among Students in School: the Social Test Method

“…While working over the issue of social responsibility development among citizens, the researchers consider the contribution of different levels of education: preschool [3], school [4], vocational education [5], adult education [6]. Besides, we should mention the role of informal education in the socialization of the individual [9].…”

“…Foreign studies on the topic of social responsibility dwell upon it as an ability that people possess to respond effectively and adequately towards their behaviors, in a way that the person adjusts to those norms that set all social behaviors [5] The theoretical basis of this research is quite diverse: the theory of moral development based on cognitive psychology; the theory of moral socialization, which goes back to the psychology of learning. Besides, there is a large number of supporters and followers of the theory of positive action of young people.…”

“…The impact on social responsibility covers a variety of methods: the presence of responsible jobs in the school [13], social planning (or project-making) [8], reading and discussing literature [5], the method of social action [14]. At the same time, the diversity of approaches and methods of influencing social responsibility even more emphasizes the importance of practice [7] allowing students to translate their concept of social responsibility into action.…”

“…At the present stage of researches we may assert the positive influence of methods and programs for the promotion of social responsibility on social and academic achievement of secondary school students [5]. Among other positive tendencies we have noticed the prevention of bullying in schools [13], improvement of attitudes and values of students [16].…”