Teachers’ Time Use and Affect Before and After COVID-19 School Closures

Several large-scale survey efforts have attempted to understand teachers’ experiences in the early months of the pandemic. Our study complements this literature by providing direct evidence of teachers’ work prior to and after the onset of COVID-19. We leverage unique longitudinal time use and affect data on 131 teachers from one district across the 2019–2020 school year. Specifically, we provide a full accounting of teachers’ instructional activities, their reports of their positive affect and negative affect while engaged in these activities, and the extent to which teachers’ work experiences changed post-COVID. Our results suggest a large reduction in teachers’ daily instructional minutes, which were replaced with increased planning, paperwork, and interactions with colleagues and parents. Teachers’ overall positive and negative affect did not change post-COVID. But teachers’ affective responses to specific work activities did. Post-COVID, we saw increases in teachers’ positive affect when with students.

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Playing for God’s Team: The Influence of Belief in the Supernatural on Perceptions of Religious, Spiritual, and Natural Cues

Journal of Cognition and Culture ◽

10.1163/15685373-12342178 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 16 (3-4) ◽

pp. 215-244

Author(s):

Virginia A. Periss ◽

David F. Bjorklund

Keyword(s):

Negative Affect ◽

Positive Affect ◽

Social Exchange ◽

Religious Belief ◽

Large Scale ◽

Positive And Negative Affect ◽

Positive Bias ◽

Evolutionary Perspective ◽

Supernatural Beliefs ◽

Supernatural Explanations

Adherence to religious belief may serve to promote group cohesion and cooperation by decreasing the costs associated with social exchange. Consistent with this, organized religious ideologies, unlike secular or spiritual based ideologies, have been argued to facilitate cooperation among individuals living in large-scale societies. In the current study, we examined whether hypothetical adults’ explanations of natural events focused on religious ideologies were more effective at eliciting positive-affect compared to spiritual or natural explanations. Results revealed that religious cues were more effective than spiritual cues in eliciting perceptions of positive-affect, but only when participant religiosity was taken into account. Participants high in religiosity favored the religious cues over the spiritual and natural cues, whereas participants high in spirituality showed no preferences. Conversely, participants low in religious belief demonstrated not only a positive bias towards the natural explanations, but also rated the adults expressing the supernatural explanations, in particular the religious explanations, as having greater negative-affect. From an evolutionary perspective, we interpreted the results as providing support that some forms of supernatural thinking, typical of organized religion, are more effective at eliciting feelings of positive and negative affect compared to supernatural beliefs not rooted in organized religion.

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Learning loss due to school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.2022376118 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 118 (17) ◽

pp. e2022376118 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Per Engzell ◽

Arun Frey ◽

Mark D. Verhagen

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Fixed Effects ◽

School Funding ◽

Learning Loss ◽

School Closures ◽

Cumulative Impact ◽

School Year ◽

Before And After ◽

Face To Face Instruction ◽

Rich Data

Suspension of face-to-face instruction in schools during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to concerns about consequences for students’ learning. So far, data to study this question have been limited. Here we evaluate the effect of school closures on primary school performance using exceptionally rich data from The Netherlands (n ≈ 350,000). We use the fact that national examinations took place before and after lockdown and compare progress during this period to the same period in the 3 previous years. The Netherlands underwent only a relatively short lockdown (8 wk) and features an equitable system of school funding and the world’s highest rate of broadband access. Still, our results reveal a learning loss of about 3 percentile points or 0.08 standard deviations. The effect is equivalent to one-fifth of a school year, the same period that schools remained closed. Losses are up to 60% larger among students from less-educated homes, confirming worries about the uneven toll of the pandemic on children and families. Investigating mechanisms, we find that most of the effect reflects the cumulative impact of knowledge learned rather than transitory influences on the day of testing. Results remain robust when balancing on the estimated propensity of treatment and using maximum-entropy weights or with fixed-effects specifications that compare students within the same school and family. The findings imply that students made little or no progress while learning from home and suggest losses even larger in countries with weaker infrastructure or longer school closures.

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Did Students Learn Less During the COVID-19 Pandemic? Reading and Mathematics Competencies Before and After the First Pandemic Wave

10.31234/osf.io/pqtgf ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Johannes Schult ◽

Nicole Mahler ◽

Benjamin Fauth ◽

Marlit Annalena Lindner

Keyword(s):

Large Scale ◽

Learning Loss ◽

School Closures ◽

Large Scale Assessment ◽

Low Achieving Students ◽

Before And After ◽

And Mathematics ◽

Future Education ◽

Regular Classes ◽

Reading And Mathematics

The first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted regular classes in spring 2020. Temporary school closures supposedly led to a considerable learning loss, particularly for low-achieving students. Schools in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, were closed for two months. Although distance learning was implemented, students spent less time learning. Additionally, teachers were faced with organizational and technological challenges of remote learning environments. The present study investigates the competencies of fifth-graders, using large-scale assessment results in reading and mathematics from annual mandatory tests in September (each n > 80,000). In line with studies from other countries, competence scores were slightly lower in 2020 compared with the three previous years (–0.07 standard deviations for reading comprehension, –0.09 for operations, and –0.03 for numbers). Low-achieving readers managed to attain pre-pandemic competence levels. On the other hand, low-achieving students seem to have a learning backlog regarding mathematics competencies (such as operations) that deserves attention in future education.

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Affective Changes During Cognitive Behavioural Therapy–As Measured by PANAS

Clinical Practice and Epidemiology in Mental Health ◽

10.2174/1745017901713010115 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

pp. 115-124 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Lars Saxon ◽

Sophie Henriksson ◽

Adam Kvarnström ◽

Arto J. Hiltunen

Keyword(s):

Negative Affect ◽

Positive Affect ◽

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy ◽

Behavioural Therapy ◽

Problem Area ◽

Personality Types ◽

Cognitive Behavioural ◽

Before And After ◽

Self Actualization ◽

Therapy Clients

Background:Previous researches have indicated that self-reported positive affect and negative affect is changing in a healthy direction during Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).Objective:The aim of the present study was to examine how affective personality is related to psychopathology before and after CBT.Method:A group of clients (n = 73) was measured before and after CBT, differentiated by their problem areas at pre-therapy (i.e., depressive, anxious and mixed).Results:After therapy, clients experienced higher positive affect (p < .02, d=0.66), lower negative affect (p < .001, d=0.98) and there was a significant change in the distribution of affective personality regardless of problem area, χ2= 8.41, df = 3, two-tailed p = .04, 99% CI [0.03, 0.04]. The change in the distribution was largest for the two most relevant personality types, self-actualization and self-destructive affective personality.Conclusion:Results indicate that CBT can achieve changes in affect and affective personality.

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United on Sunday: The effects of secular rituals on social bonding and affect

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0242546 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. e0242546

Author(s):

Sarah J. Charles ◽

Valerie van Mulukom ◽

Jennifer E. Brown ◽

Fraser Watts ◽

Robin I. M. Dunbar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Negative Affect ◽

Positive Affect ◽

Field Study ◽

Health Benefits ◽

Social Bonding ◽

Social Connection ◽

Similar Role ◽

Religious Rituals ◽

Before And After ◽

Secular Rituals

Religious rituals are associated with health benefits, potentially produced via social bonding. It is unknown whether secular rituals similarly increase social bonding. We conducted a field study with individuals who celebrate secular rituals at Sunday Assemblies and compared them with participants attending Christian rituals. We assessed levels of social bonding and affect before and after the rituals. Results showed the increase in social bonding taking place in secular rituals is comparable to religious rituals. We also found that both sets of rituals increased positive affect and decreased negative affect, and that the change in positive affect predicted the change in social bonding observed. Together these results suggest that secular rituals might play a similar role to religious ones in fostering feelings of social connection and boosting positive affect.

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Examination-Related Feedback, Mood, and Helping: A Correlational Study

Psychological Reports ◽

10.2466/pr0.1997.80.1.239 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 80 (1) ◽

pp. 239-242 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ronald C. Feldt ◽

Michelle Jagodzinski ◽

Kristin McKinley

Keyword(s):

College Students ◽

Negative Affect ◽

Positive Affect ◽

Significant Relationship ◽

Correlational Study ◽

Class Session ◽

Letter Grade ◽

Before And After

The association of mood with helping was examined. College students ( N = 62) self-reported mood before and after receiving feedback (numerical score and letter grade) on an examination administered during the previous class session. Helping measures included the number of sessions in which they were willing to serve and the number of names in a list of 120 checked for spelling. Analysis indicated that examination scores were negatively correlated with negative affect ( r = –.69) and positively correlated with positive affect ( r = .51); however, there was no statistically significant relationship between mood and helping.

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Flourishing Students: The Efficacy of an Extensive Positive Education Program on Adolescents’ Positive and Negative Affect

International Journal of Applied Positive Psychology ◽

10.1007/s41042-020-00048-2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Mari Laakso ◽

Åse Fagerlund ◽

Anu-Katriina Pesonen ◽

Pekka Lahti-Nuuttila ◽

Rejane A. O. Figueiredo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Negative Affect ◽

Positive Affect ◽

Education Program ◽

Early Adolescents ◽

Well Being ◽

Positive And Negative Affect ◽

Positive Education ◽

Post Intervention ◽

School Year ◽

Cluster Randomized

AbstractThis study examined the efficacy of a classroom-based positive education program, Flourishing Students, on early adolescents’ positive and negative affect using a cluster randomized control trial (RCT) design. In total, 140 students (aged 10–12) participated in the study: 72 students participated in 32 well-being lessons during one school year, and 68 students followed the standard curriculum. Positive and negative affect (PANAS questionnaire), and daily positive and negative affect (experience sampling method, ESM) were gathered at baseline and post-intervention. PANAS data was also gathered at a follow-up 5 months after the intervention. Student questionnaire and ESM data indicated that the intervention had a beneficial impact on students’ positive affect and daily negative affect from baseline to post-intervention. No effect was seen in parental reports. Both qualitative data from focus group interviews with students and questionnaires for teachers supported the view that the students benefited from the program. Overall, these results demonstrate a positive effect of the positive education program on increasing positive affect and well-being among early adolescents.

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The effects of music induction on mood and affect in an Asian context

Psychology of Music ◽

10.1177/0305735620928578 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 030573562092857

Author(s):

Elizabeth Ann Campbell ◽

Elizaveta Berezina ◽

C M Hew D Gill

Keyword(s):

Negative Affect ◽

Positive Affect ◽

Mood Induction ◽

Energy Levels ◽

Circumplex Model ◽

Before And After ◽

Subject Factor ◽

Asian Context ◽

Mood Scale ◽

Sad Music

A sample of Asian participants was assessed using the Brunel Mood Scale and the Positive & Negative Affect Scale before and after music mood induction procedures to which each participant was randomly assigned. A series of mixed analyses of variance with the type of music (happy/positive vs. sad/negative) as the between-subject factor and pre–post music exposure as the within-subject factor revealed that the sad music induction attenuated the positive moods Vigor and Happiness, as well as the negative moods Anger, Tension, Fatigue, and Confusion but had no significant impact on Depression or Calmness, casting doubt on the robustness of Thayer’s circumplex model of mood formation. The happy music induction increased Vigor and decreased Fatigue and Confusion, suggesting that positive music has the potential to lift energy levels. The happy music induction led to increases in Positive Affect only, whereas the sad music condition attenuated both Positive Affect and Negative affect, casting doubt on Watson and Tellegen’s contention that the Affect systems are independent and suggesting that the bipolarity hypothesis may not provide a comprehensive explanation of mood formation. The mechanisms by which music may impact mood and potential differences in the expression of affect between Asian and Western participants are discussed.

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No Evidence that Social Desirability Response Set Explains the General Factor of Personality and Its Affective Correlates

Twin Research and Human Genetics ◽

10.1375/twin.13.2.131 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

pp. 131-134 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

J. Philippe Rushton ◽

Stephen Erdle

Keyword(s):

Negative Affect ◽

Positive Affect ◽

Social Desirability ◽

Self Esteem ◽

General Factor ◽

Eysenck Personality Questionnaire ◽

Personality Questionnaire ◽

General Factor Of Personality ◽

Response Set ◽

Before And After

AbstractIn two studies, the General Factor of Personality (GFP) remained intact after controlling for the Lie scale from the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, despite the Lie Scale showing significant correlations with the GFP defining traits. In Study 1, a re-analysis of 29 self-ratings from 322 pairs of twins (644 individuals) yielded a GFP both before and after controlling for social desirability. In Study 2, four measures of affect in 133 university students loaded on a GFP both before and after controlling for social desirability such that those high on the GFP were high in self-esteem and positive affect and low in depression and negative affect. These results join those from other studies failing to find evidence that the GFP is merely an artifact of evaluative bias.

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United on Sunday: The effects of secular rituals on social bonding and affect

10.31234/osf.io/phjyq ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Sarah Jane Charles ◽

Valerie van Mulukom ◽

Jennifer Brown ◽

Fraser Watts ◽

R. I. M. Dunbar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Negative Affect ◽

Positive Affect ◽

Field Study ◽

Health Benefits ◽

Social Bonding ◽

Social Connection ◽

Similar Role ◽

Religious Rituals ◽

Before And After ◽

Secular Rituals

Religious rituals are associated with health benefits, potentially produced via social bonding. It is unknown whether secular rituals similarly increase social bonding. We conducted a field study with individuals who celebrate secular rituals at Sunday Assemblies and compared them with participants attending Christian rituals. We assessed levels of social bonding and affect before and after the rituals. Results showed the increase in social bonding taking place in secular rituals is comparable to religious rituals. We also found that both sets of rituals increased positive affect and decreased negative affect and that the change in positive affect predicted the change in social bonding observed. Together these results suggest that secular rituals play a similar role to religious ones in fostering feelings of social connection and boosting positive affect.

Download Full-text