Teacher Perception of Preschool Disruptive Behavior: Prevalence and Contributing Factors

ABSTRACT

The ways in which teachers perceive and subsequently respond to preschoolers’ behavior have significant implications for children’s experience in the classroom. To further understand the nature and variability of teacher perception of young children’s behavior, this study examined how teachers characterized the disruptive behaviors of a large and diverse sample of preschoolers (N = 2,427) at the beginning of the school year. Descriptive analyses provide extensive information regarding the frequency, severity, and comorbidity with which teachers reported preschoolers to display hyperactivity, inattention, and oppositionality in the classroom. Further, multilevel regression models allowed for examination of the association between perception of disruptive behavior and teachers’ demographic, professional background, and belief characteristics. Research Findings: Findings provide a current understanding of the salience of classroom disruptive behavior as seen through the eyes of the preschool teacher and indicate a nuanced relationship between this perception and teacher characteristics. Specifically, findings highlight teacher race/ethnicity, behavioral attribution beliefs, and self-efficacy to be uniquely associated with perception of preschoolers’ various behavior problems. Practice or Policy: Implications for teacher training and school-based intervention are discussed.

Acknowledgments

The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent views of the U.S. Department of Education. The authors wish to thank the generous programs, teachers, and consultants who participated in this study as well as the children and families who participated. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This manuscript was supported by a grant awarded to the second author by the Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, through Grant R324A100215 respectively to the University of Virginia.