Download Claire Ferguson Supervisors: Fraser Lauchlan & Alison Sanford

PSPS Network Meeting
Tuesday 12 February 2008
An Ethnographic Study of School Leavers: A
Profile of Characteristics, Competencies and
Resilience to Determine Risk Factors Of
Becoming Part Of The NEET Population
Research Proposal
To determine whether there are common
characteristics of school leavers (15-18 year
olds) in order to determine ‘at risk’ factors in
becoming part of the NEET population
• such characteristics include personality traits,
resilience, risk and protective factors,
feelings/emotions, social skills, attitudes towards
school, educational achievement, socio-economic,
demographic, environmental, etc
Hypotheses
There are educational, socio-economic,
demographic and environmental factors that
inhibit successful movement into education,
employment or training upon leaving school
That young people at risk of becoming part of the
NEET population would score lower in a
personality assessment
That young people at risk of becoming part of the
NEET population would score lower in an
assessment of resiliency
Research Questions
What are the educational, socio-economic, demographic and
environmental factors that inhibit successful movement into
education, employment or training?
What are the personality characteristics of those at risk of
becoming part of the NEET population that appear to have an
effect on attitudes towards employment, education and training?
Are there specific elements or traits that determine resilience
factors of individuals at risk of becoming part of the NEET
population?
Personality 1
‘Big Five’ or the ‘five-factor model’
(FFM)
• also referred to as the NEO model or NEOAC
(OCEAN): Neuroticism, Extraversion,
Openness to Experience, Agreeableness and
Conscientiousness (Costa, Macrae & Arenberg, 1980)
Identification of key dimensions of
personality
• enduring emotional, interpersonal, experiential,
attitudinal, and motivational styles (McCrae & John,
1992)
Personality 2
NEO PI-R (Revised Personality
Inventory) – The Big Five
• Neuroticism
• Extraversion
• Openness
• Agreeableness
• Conscientiousness
Personality 3 – sub-types
Neuroticism
•
•
•
•
•
•
Anxiety
Angry hostility
Depression
Self-conscious
Impulsive
Vulnerability
Extraversion
•
•
•
•
•
•
Warmth
Gregarious
Assertive
Activity
Excitement-seeking
Positive emotions
Personality 4
Openness
•
•
•
•
•
•
Fantasy
Aesthetics
Feelings
Actions
Ideas
Values
Agreeableness
•
•
•
•
•
•
Trust
Straightforward
Altruism
Compliance
Modesty
Empathy
Personality 5
Conscientiousness
• Competence
• Order
• Dutifulness
• Achievement striving
• Self-discipline
• Deliberation
Resilience 1
A set of qualities that promotes
successful adjustment and
transformation in spite of risk, hardship
and suffering
• social competence, flexibility, empathy,
communication skills, and a sense of
humour, problem-solving, resourcefulness,
creativity, etc
(Rutter, et al, 1979; Werner & Smith, 1989)
Resilience 2
Risk factors
• poverty
• poor domestic and
physical care
• long-term absence of
caregiver in infancy
• witness to extreme
conflict or violence
• parent with mental
illness
• substantiated neglect
• parent with substance
abuse
• separation/divorce/sing
le parent
• parent with criminality
• sexual, physical, or
emotional abuse
• removal from the
family home
• academic failure
(Garmezy, et al, 1984; Kolvin, et al, 1988;
Wyman, et al, 1991)
Resilience 3
Protective factors
• Qualities of the child - individual characteristics:
cognitive ability, temperament and positive social
direction
• Characteristics of the family – social bonding:
affective relationships and moral standards
• Support from outside the family – healthy beliefs
and clear principles of behaviour
(Garmezy, et al, 1984; Werner and Smith, 1992)
Resilience 4
Connor-Davidson
Resilience Scale
• Adaptable to
change
• Relationships
• Problem solving
• Confidence
•
•
•
•
•
Positive outlook
Self-belief
Determination
Support networks
Leadership
Measures 1
Defining the NEET population in terms of subgroup categories through a detailed literature
review
Liaising with local mainstream secondary
schools in order to identify a random sample
of school leavers (S4-S6) (n=120)
Administering a personality questionnaire, the
NEO PI-R (Revised Personality Inventory)
and the Connor-Davidson Resiliency Scale
Measures 2
Gathering a detailed analysis,
through Focus Groups, with school
leavers with regards to their
feelings about employment, training
and college opportunities, supports
they are receiving, etc
Additional Information 1
It is envisaged that a tracking system
will be set up, with the collaboration of
Careers Scotland, in order to monitor
the destination of school leavers taking
part in the study
This will be another dimension in
support (or otherwise) of the
hypotheses
Additional Information 2
Demographics
• Postcode
Personal Information
•
•
•
•
Date of birth
Academic achievement
Family composition
Culture of employment and expectation
Expected Outcomes
It is envisaged that an analysis of characteristics of
school leavers will illustrate correlations with regards
to personality and resilience characteristics
The monitoring factor regarding actual destinations
(positive or negative) of young people upon leaving
school will perhaps give validation to the hypotheses
This in turn will be informative in matching specific
and successful future intervention strategies to
individuals’ needs
Timescale
Oct 06- Oct 08
• Development of
Research Proposal and
Literature Review
Sept 07
• Ethics approval
Nov 07-Jun 08
• Data collection –
questionnaires, etc
• Data analysis and
discussion write-up
Nov 07-Jun 08 cont…
• Pilot study re Focus
Groups
• Data collection from
Focus Groups
Jul 08-Dec 08
• Monitoring - Careers
Scotland
Dec 08
• Thesis submission
References
Connor, K.M. and Davidson, J.R. (2003) Development of a new resilience scale: the Connor-Davidson resilience scale (CDRISC). Depression and Anxiety, 18(2): 76-82
Costa, P.T. Jr. and McCrae, R.R. (1992) Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R). Psychological Assessment Resources,
Inc. www.parinc.com
Costa, P.T. Jr., Macrae, R.R. and Arenberg, D. (1980) Enduring dispositions in adult males. Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology, 38: 793-800
Garmezy, N., Masten, A.S. and Tellegen, A. (1984). The study of stress and competence in children: A building block for
developmental psychopathology. Child Development, 55: 97-111.
Kolvin, I., Miller, F.W.J., Fleeting, M., and Kolvin, P.A. (1988). Social and parenting factors affecting criminal-offense rates:
Findings from the Newcastle thousand family study (1947-1980). British Journal of Psychiatry, 152: 80-90.
McCrae, R.R. and John, O.P. (1992) An introduction to the five-factor model and its applications. Journal of Personality, 60:
175–215
Prince-Embury, S. (2007) Resiliency Scales for Children & Adolescents: A Profile of Personal Strengths. Harcourt Assessment,
Inc.
Rutter, M., Maughan, B., Mortimore, P., Ouston, J. and Smith, A. (1979) Fifteen Thousand Hours. Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press.
Werner, E.E. and Smith, R.S. (1982). Vulnerable but Invincible: A Longitudinal Study of Resilient Children and Youth. New
York: McGraw-Hill.
Werner, E.E. and Smith R.S. (1992). Overcoming the Odds: High Risk Children from Birth to Adulthood. Cornell University
Press: Ithaca and London.
Wyman, P.A., et al (1991). Interviews with children who experienced major life stress: Family and child attributes that predict
resilient outcomes. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 31(5): 904-910.