"They'll Just Send You Off Without a Clue": Exploring Middle School Students' Autonomy and Attributions

• In Event: Poster Session 9
  In Poster Session: Motivation, Engagement, and Identity

Abstract

We used qualitative analysis to explore students’ experiences at a middle school that appears to exemplify many of the qualities of developmentally-appropriate school environments, as described by Stage-Environment Fit theorists (e.g., Eccles et al., 1993). Specifically, we asked to what extent students and teachers perceived the school to meet students’ developmental needs and how students fared in that environment. Findings suggest that, although intended to give students autonomy, the school environment may provide too much unstructured responsibility for students, leading many to make maladaptive attributions for their challenges. We suggest that students’ attributions may be closely tied to their perceptions of autonomy, and that maladaptive attributions, in particular, can undercut the benefits students can gain from additional autonomy.

Authors

• Megan Sanders, The Ohio State University - Columbus

• Alyssa Emery, The Ohio State University

• Lynley H. Anderman, The Ohio State University