How to be a better teacher: study

Supporting autonomy in young people is key to successful leadership, according to a new study.

Autonomy support involves providing people with more freedom, choice and flexibility, and it is going to be vital in homes, schools and workplaces as Australia heads into a third year of the pandemic, said the study authors.

The study is published in the journal Psychological Bulletin. It is meta-analysis of 139 research studies on experiences of autonomy and control and prosocial and antisocial behaviour. The results have applications in work, school and family settings.

Lead author Dr James Donald, Senior Lecturer at the University of Sydney Business School, said that those working with children should help them to find their internal motivation, and then give them freedom — within safe parameters — to take responsibility and manage their own tasks.

“We found that consistently connecting people to the ‘why’ of their actions, providing choices in how tasks get done and giving meaningful feedback results in people being more likely to share ideas and to be more collegiate,” Donald said.

“Managing people with controlling, carrot and stick strategies led to people being less likely to share, cooperate or help others.”

Co-author Dr Emma Bradshaw, from Australian Catholic University, is an expert in wellbeing and motivation and said: “The core insight is that, if you want honest, cooperative team members — and don’t we all — the promotion of their intrinsic motivation is best practice.”

The study found that when individuals experience autonomy, it increases prosocial behaviours and emotions, such as cooperation, helpfulness and empathy. However, parents and teachers who default to using carrots and sticks to motivate children inadvertently promote less sharing and collaboration, and even prompt acts of aggression, such as undermining and bullying. Donald said prosocial behaviours can be encouraged by the right leadership style.

“In a crisis, sticks and carrots work. But if you want to build and sustain a high-performance culture, you need to move away from crisis-style management and actively invest in your people’s intrinsic motivation. Building a clear sense of purpose and a culture of psychological safety are key building blocks if you want sustained success,” he said.

“If you want to develop self-aware, responsible young people, you need to move away from command and control, and actively nurture children’s own interests, strengths and innate sense of what is right."

When challenges come up, there are a number of questions managers or teachers can ask themselves, the experts said.

• Is this really a crisis? Avoid eroding morale by leaping to crisis-thinking by default.
• If it’s not a crisis, look for opportunities to seek feedback, engage the team in problem-solving and give responsibility.
• Working virtually? Think carefully about the ‘levers’ that can be pulled to enhance the feeling of autonomy and ‘ownership’ among the team.
   

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Tierney