Mind the conflict: Empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphere

Recent studies show that conflict situations are a quite frequent reality in schools. These conflict occurrences can be attributed, among other things, to the lack of conflict resolution skills among school personnel. This paper presents a mixed methods study aimed to evaluate the effect of the “Min...

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Main Authors: Michal Levi-Keren, Shiri Godeano-Barr, Shiri Levinas
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2022-12-01
Series:Cogent Education
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2021.2013395
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author Michal Levi-Keren
Shiri Godeano-Barr
Shiri Levinas
author_facet Michal Levi-Keren
Shiri Godeano-Barr
Shiri Levinas
author_sort Michal Levi-Keren
collection DOAJ
description Recent studies show that conflict situations are a quite frequent reality in schools. These conflict occurrences can be attributed, among other things, to the lack of conflict resolution skills among school personnel. This paper presents a mixed methods study aimed to evaluate the effect of the “Mind the Conflict” intervention model on novice teachers’ self-awareness and sense of efficacy in conflict situations, as well as their ability to express empathy toward the “other” in the conflict. The study sample comprised 61 teachers, aged 25–55, most of them females, drawn from primary public schools across Israel. Forty-two teachers were trained in the model as part of an Induction into Teaching course (experimental group). Nineteen teachers who took an unrelated course constituted the control group. Data sources included pre-post questionnaires administered to both groups, and final papers gathered from the experimental group. Results showed that at the end of the course, teachers exposed to the model reported significantly higher empathy levels in conflict situations, and that this ability was a significant predictor of their sense of efficacy in these situations. These findings were supported by data from the qualitative analysis. Possible contributions stemming from the use of the model for novice teachers are discussed.
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spelling doaj.art-7d074e6a84634ebcb954ee1d371fef8e2023-09-02T15:30:56ZengTaylor & Francis GroupCogent Education2331-186X2022-12-019110.1080/2331186X.2021.20133952013395Mind the conflict: Empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphereMichal Levi-Keren0Shiri Godeano-Barr1Shiri Levinas2Tel Aviv UniversityHaifa UniversityBen Gurion University of the NegevRecent studies show that conflict situations are a quite frequent reality in schools. These conflict occurrences can be attributed, among other things, to the lack of conflict resolution skills among school personnel. This paper presents a mixed methods study aimed to evaluate the effect of the “Mind the Conflict” intervention model on novice teachers’ self-awareness and sense of efficacy in conflict situations, as well as their ability to express empathy toward the “other” in the conflict. The study sample comprised 61 teachers, aged 25–55, most of them females, drawn from primary public schools across Israel. Forty-two teachers were trained in the model as part of an Induction into Teaching course (experimental group). Nineteen teachers who took an unrelated course constituted the control group. Data sources included pre-post questionnaires administered to both groups, and final papers gathered from the experimental group. Results showed that at the end of the course, teachers exposed to the model reported significantly higher empathy levels in conflict situations, and that this ability was a significant predictor of their sense of efficacy in these situations. These findings were supported by data from the qualitative analysis. Possible contributions stemming from the use of the model for novice teachers are discussed.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2021.2013395conflict resolutionconflict transformationmindfulnessself-efficacyempathyinduction into teachingreconciliation mindset
spellingShingle Michal Levi-Keren
Shiri Godeano-Barr
Shiri Levinas
Mind the conflict: Empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphere
Cogent Education
conflict resolution
conflict transformation
mindfulness
self-efficacy
empathy
induction into teaching
reconciliation mindset
title Mind the conflict: Empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphere
title_full Mind the conflict: Empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphere
title_fullStr Mind the conflict: Empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphere
title_full_unstemmed Mind the conflict: Empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphere
title_short Mind the conflict: Empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphere
title_sort mind the conflict empathy when coping with conflicts in the education sphere
topic conflict resolution
conflict transformation
mindfulness
self-efficacy
empathy
induction into teaching
reconciliation mindset
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2021.2013395
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