Quality of attachment relationships and frequency of mathematics- and science-related activity offers in kindergarten as predictors of girls' and boys' mathematics-related motivation.

Autor/inn/en	Wolter, Ilka; Hannover, Bettina
Titel	Quality of attachment relationships and frequency of mathematics- and science-related activity offers in kindergarten as predictors of girls' and boys' mathematics-related motivation.
Quelle	In: Zeitschrift für pädagogische Psychologie, 36 (2022) 1-2, S. 53-63Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Link als defekt meldenVerfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	online; gedruckt; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1010-0652; 1664-2910
DOI	10.1024/1010-0652/a000321
Schlagwörter	Kompetenz; Bindungsverhalten; Zwischenmenschliche Beziehung; Kindergarten; Lehrer; Lehrer-Schüler-Interaktion; Motivation; Geschlechtsdifferenzierung; Mathematik; Mathematische Kompetenz; Wissenschaft; Qualität; Kindergartenerzieher; USA
Abstract	During the kindergarten years and until shortly before school start, there are no gender differences in (precursors of) mathematical competencies or mathematics-related motivation. Shortly after school entry, however, boys are already superior to their female peers in mathematics-related competencies and motivation. We investigated in a cross-sectional study two aspects of process quality in kindergarten that can favorably influence the development of mathematics-related motivation, especially of girls: the frequency of offers of mathematics- and science-related activities and a high-quality attachment relationship with the teacher. In 135 independent dyads, the quality of attachment between kindergarten teacher and child was assessed by a one and a half-hour standardized observation (Attachment Q-Set). The teacher provided information on how often she provides mathematics- and science-related activities. The children were asked about their mathematics-related motivation and precursors of mathematical competencies were measured using a standardized test. Results show, in line with existing studies, that girls and boys did not yet differ in their precursors of mathematical competencies and mathematics-related motivation at the end of kindergarten. Girls were involved in significantly higher quality attachment relationships with their teachers than boys. While girls' mathematics-related motivation increased with the frequency of the provision of relevant activities, it did not play a role for boys' motivation. We discuss (a) how teachers can be encouraged to offer mathematics-and science-related activities more often and (b) whether a comparable quality of attachment would be shown for boys as for girls if the kindergarten teacher were male. (ZPID).
Erfasst von	Leibniz-Institut für Psychologie, Trier
Update	2022/3