PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2020-2963

RO
Title: Transition to Middle School: A Longitudinal Approach Investigating Risk and Protective Factors
This work is supported by a grant of the Executive Unit for Financing Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation: PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2020-2963
Project type: PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2020-2963, 2021-2023

 

Abstract: The present proposal aims to increase the understanding of the implications of school transition on three important developmental areas: emotion, motivation and academic achievement. Further, the proposal addresses transactional dynamics of school and social factors and students’ functioning on these domains during the critical transition to middle school. Furthermore, school transition is a proper period for prevention and implementation of interventions related to the reduction of internalizing problems and increasing the emotional well-being, as well as improvements in motivation and achievement. Thus, the principal objectives are to:

1) to examine longitudinal paths between internalizing symptoms, self-motivation beliefs (i.e., beliefs about competence and achievement goals) and academic achievement from elementary school (Grade 4) into the transition to middle school (Grade 5 and Grade 6) on a large sample of Romanian students;
2) to explore whether the changes in the relationships with parents and peers are longitudinally linked to changes in early adolescents’ functioning on emotional and academic domain;
3) to implement multi-target positive psychology interventions (with or without parents) to increase the students’ subjective well-being and to reduce the internalizing problems. Finally, the project will deliver a guide of best practices regarding the risk and protective factors for students’ educational transition.

 

Team members:

 

Achieved results

    • Published articles
      1. Măirean,C., Zancu, A.Z. & Diaconu-Gherasim, L. R. (2022). Children’s anxiety, academic self-efficacy, and intergenerational transmission of worries regarding the transition to middle school, British Journal of Educational Psychology. Advanced online. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12530
    • Articles under review in journals indexed in Web of Science Core Collection
      1. Diaconu-Gherasim, L.R., Maftei, A., Zancu, A., Măirean, C., Brumariu., L., Țepordei A.-M., Crumpei-Tănasă, I., & Nicuță, G., Parental psychological control and children’s academic achievement during the pandemic: The moderating role of perceived COVID-19 threat, Educational Psihology (sent back for review)
      2. Diaconu-Gherasim, LR, Nicuta G., Crumpei-Tanase I. & Opariuc, C.D. Perception of Friendship Quality and Mental Health: School Goal Structures as Moderators, School Mental Health (under review).
      3. Diaconu-Gherasim, L.R, Brumariu., E.L., & Ettengoff, C., Romanian Early Adolescents’ Perceptions of Parental Migration and the Associated Relational Impact: A Qualitative Analysis, Journal of Ethnic And Migration Studies (in preparation manuscript for resubmit).
      4. Țepordei A.-M., Zancu, A., & Diaconu-Gherasim, L.R. Still Worried? Pre-transition Parental Control and Academic Competence as Antecedents of Middle School Students’ Post-Transition Worries, Journal of Research on Adolescence (under review).
      5. Maftei, A. & Diaconu-Gherasim, L.R., The Road to Addiction (Might Be) Paved with Good Intentions: Social Media Use Motives and Psychological Distress among Early Adolescents (under review).

  • Oral presentations at international conferences
    1. Diaconu-Gherasim, L.R., Nicuță, G. & Crumpei-Tănasă, I. Friendship quality and children’ well-being: Are classroom goal structures moderators? 10th European Conference on Positive Psychology, Iulie 2022, Reykjavik, Iceland
    2. Diaconu-Gherasim, L.R., Maftei, A., Zancu, A., Măirean, C., Brumariu., L., Crumpei-Tănasă, I., Țepordei A.-M., & Nicuță, G., Parental psychological control and children’s academic achievement during the pandemic: The moderating role of perceived COVID-19 threat, 18th Biennial Conference of the European Association for Research on Adolescence, 23-28 august 2022, Dublin, Ireland.
    3. Mairean, C., Zancu A., & Diaconu-Gherasim, LR., Children’s anxiety, academic self-efficacy, and intergenerational transmission of worries regarding the transition to middle school, The 36th Annual Conference of the European Health Psychology, 23-27 august 2022, Bratislava, Slovacia.