Date of Award

January 2014

Document Type

Open Access Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Public Health (MPH)

Department

School of Public Health

First Advisor

Joan K. Monin

Second Advisor

Marc A. Brackett

Abstract

Emotional literacy interventions have been successful in increasing classroom organization and emotional climate. However, little has been reported on the effects of these interventions on conflict resolution and their implications for youth violence and aggression. The aim of this thesis is to determine the early effects of an emotional literacy intervention (RULER) on conflict resolution skills in middle school aged children by examining the link between RULER and conflict resolution, including emotion regulation as a mediator. This was done using a multi-method, multi-level approach. Data from 57 sixth-grade classrooms (N=754) were analyzed and included conflict resolution scores and emotion regulation scores. Multi-level mediation analyses showed that there was no early effect of RULER on conflict resolution or emotion regulation, and therefore, there was no mediation. However, interaction analyses revealed that RULER significantly and positively impacted boys' scores but was less successful in increasing scores of Hispanic students. The discussion highlights the potential role of emotional literacy interventions in promoting emotion management and effective conflict resolution skills and reducing violence and aggression.

Comments

This is an Open Access Thesis.

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