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Abstract Purpose Our study focuses on stress contagion in vocational school classes, examining how students’ stress experiences affect their spatial classmates. For this purpose, we apply a novel formal network model that allows us to differentiate between endogenous and exogenous peer effects in the stress contagion process. Using the network model, we investigate effects on students’ stress levels, considering the stress and coping experiences of spatial peers as well as didactic-methodological context factors. Methods We test our statistical model using secondary data collected in a study involving 53 students from two classes at a public German vocational training school. The students’ experiences of stress (time pressure, pressure to succeed) and coping strategies (understanding of the subject matter, self-confidence) were captured using the experience sampling method, while classroom characteristics (e.g., teacher instruction, cooperative work) were recorded through video-based analysis of lessons. Utilizing the panel data, we employ maximum likelihood estimation to assess the spatial peer effects model for both classrooms. Results Among other findings, all model specifications revealed significant peer effects for both stress measures, indicating that the higher the stress experience of immediate peers in the classroom, the higher the individual stress experienced by the students. Concerning the considered context factors, we found, for example, that increased cooperative work leads to higher levels of stress experience. Conclusion From a substantive perspective, our results underscore the role of peer-to-peer contagion in the vocational classroom and thus suggest a nuanced examination of cooperative practices. From a research methodology perspective, our approach illustrates how various methods (such as experience sampling, video-based classroom observation, and spatial network information) complement and enrich each other, highlighting the added value of our network analytical approach

Abstract Background Our study aims to investigate inter- and intraindividual effects of trainee teachers’ perceived opportunities of participation in vocational education and training teacher training on their emotional states. Additionally, it is examined whether the subjective reason for action as in intrinsic and extrinsic motivation affects the relationship between perceived participation and emotional states. In this respect, control-value theory constitutes the guiding conceptual framework in our study. Methods On the basis of a longitudinal design with a total of 75 trainee teachers in Germany and a maximum of 58 survey time points during 18-months of teacher training (in total 1790 individual measurements), we traced the perception of participatory opportunities, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation as well as weekly emotional states. Multilevel modeling allowed us to examine both between- as well as within-person effects of perceived participation. Results The results of our multilevel models indicate, among other findings, statistically significant within- and between-person effects of perceived participation opportunities on enjoyment, hope, pride, as well as anger, anxiety, shame, and hopelessness. Furthermore, the attributed subjective reason for action, i.e., the intrinsic or extrinsic motivation, moderates the relationship between perceived opportunities to participate and emotional states. Discussion The findings, which are consistent across different emotions of the same valence and for the two different types of motivation, indicate that those trainee teachers who report low values for intrinsic motivation (or high values for extrinsic motivation) in a given week react more responsively to changes with regard to opportunities for participatory influence.

Abstract Stress in teaching and teacher training is a well-known issue and stress management during teacher training may not only be affected by individual coping efforts, but also determined by private and work-related networks the individual is integrated in. In that regard, our article aims firstly to identify sources of social support in the German teacher training system and secondly to analyze interdependencies in dyadic coping interactions based on the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. On the basis of questionnaire data from 307 German trainees and qualified teachers from vocational and general schools, we found that mentors, partners, fellow trainees, colleagues at school, parents, and good friends were named as the most supportive reference persons during teacher training. In a follow-up survey, data from 49 sources of support were obtained, which could be assigned to the corresponding (trainee) teachers (in the sense of support recipients). These dyads thus form the basis for the analysis of dyadic coping interdependencies. The results of the moderator analyses show, among other things, that support recipients who prefer the coping strategy palliative emotion regulation tend to react rather sensitively to contrary coping strategies of the source of support with regard to their stress symptoms. Social interactions in this respect can represent both protective as well as risk factors. Therefore, a system of complex social interdependencies must be considered when analyzing relational resilience among prospective teachers.

Abstract Background To examine relationships between teachers’ experienced classroom demands and autonomic stress reactions, we report the results of a pilot study. Based on an integrative literature review, we identified and described the following situational classroom demands: time and work pressure (including missing rest periods, time pressure, and pressure to get through the subject matter), vocal strain, uncertainty concerning the subject matter, uncertainty concerning didactical decisions, achievement-related diversity in class, lack of social appreciation, disquietude in class, classroom disturbances, behavioral problems of students, insufficient skills and concentration of students, and insufficient motivation of students. Method These identified categories of teachers’ situational classroom demands are the basis for the empirical item identification and selection (Study A). The identified items were used in a single-case, short-term longitudinal study in which we examined relationships between experienced classroom demands and autonomic stress reactions as well as between autonomic stress reactions and affective stress experience via first-order vector autoregressive modeling (Study B). Results Concerning our hypotheses, we found evidence that some of the experienced classroom demands (“I cannot respond to students’ different needs”; “There is disquietude in class”) had time-lagged associations with autonomic stress measures. Furthermore, we found that physiological arousal triggers affective stress experience due to a time-lagged effect. Conclusion The research approach and results of our pilot study can be the basis for further process-oriented research in vocational education and training (VET). From a practical point of view, our results on experienced classroom demands could be used in VET teacher education to prepare student teachers for specific skills to cope with such demands.

Abstract Background The study aims to investigate stress-inducing potentials of problem-solving activities (e.g., goal elaboration, decision making, and information seeking) within an authentic problem-solving task from the business administration domain. Furthermore, the study aims to investigate stress-reducing potentials of personal characteristics (e.g., self-efficacy beliefs, vocational experience). Methods A mixed-methods design was chosen to investigate in-depth processes during domain-specific problem solving, using a computer-based office simulation. Personal characteristics were assessed by questionnaires and tests before the task. Cardiovascular and electrodermal reactivity were measured continuously during the task. Problem-solving activities were coded on the basis of screencasts and think-aloud recordings. Changes in physiological reactivity were estimated on the basis of problem-solving activities and personal characteristics via multilevel regression analyses. Results The problem-solving task in general was associated with stress reactions. There were no significant main effects of self-efficacy beliefs, vocational experience, and general intelligence. However, changes in heart rate depended on an interaction between vocational experience and activities including goal elaboration and definition. Furthermore, problem-solving activities including decision making were significantly associated with an increase of amplitudes of detected skin conductance responses. A negative correlation found between the problem-solving score and the LF/HF ratio indicates that higher physiological arousal during the problem-solving task was accompanied by lower problem-solving performance. Conclusion It seems to be worthwhile to integrate physiological methods in domain-specific research practice to a greater extent. An essential advantage of such methods can be seen in the measurements’ relative independence from self-reported biases that seems to be especially important for high-frequency measurements within the scope of process-accompanying surveys and/or when investigating implicit aspects of action processes: from this, some new methodological perspectives for empirical research in VET could be developed. However, one has to consider that physiological measures alone are not objective or meaningful in this context, but rather have to be interpreted in their interplay with psychological parameters (e.g., experiences, behaviors) or with particular situational stimuli.

Die Integration digitaler Medien in Schule und Unterricht wird in Deutschland seit (mindestens) vier Jahrzehnten diskutiert (Schaumburg/Seidel 2009; Wedekind 2010). Obwohl sich die zugrunde liegenden Technologien und damit die Perspektiven auf mediengestützte Bildung im Laufe der Jahre stark gewandelt haben, erweisen sich die Argumentationsmuster für die schulische Implementierung von Computer- und Informationstechnologie als relativ stabil. So identifizierte Hawkridge (1990) vier Begründungslinien, die nach wie vor relevant erscheinen (vgl. Herzig/Grafe 2007; Eickelmann 2010a). Die gesellschaftliche Begründungslinie (social rationale) geht davon aus, dass Schülerinnen und Schüler auf eine „digital geprägte Gesellschaft und Kultur“ (BMBF 2009) vorbereitet werden müssen. Dabei geht es um eine umfassende Medienbildung, die den produktiven und reflektierten Umgang mit digitalen Medien als Grundlage für die Teilhabe an gesellschaftlichen Prozessen einschließt. Die berufsbezogene Begründungslinie (vocational rationale) orientiert sich dagegen an den Anforderungen der Arbeitswelt, in der Schülerinnen und Schülern ohne ausreichenden Zugang zu Computern und Internet – die es auch in der (vermeintlichen) Net Generation (Schulmeister 2009) noch gibt – Schwierigkeiten auf dem Arbeitsmarkt prognostiziert werden (Eickelmann 2010a). Aufgrund betrieblicher Ausbildungserfordernisse sind Computerkompetenzen bspw. im kaufmännischen Bereich der beruflichen Bildung essentiell. Die pädagogische Begründungslinie (pedagogic rationale) stellt dagegen auf die lernförderlichen Potenziale digitaler Medien und deren didaktisch begründete Nutzung ab. Digitale Medien ermöglichen Adaptivität, Interaktivität sowie die multicodale und multimodale Präsentation von Informationen. Kommunikation und Kooperation können durch Medieneinsatz gefördert werden (Herzig/Grafe 2010). Darüber hinaus werden digitalen Medien besondere Potenziale für die Binnendifferenzierung und Individualisierung von Unterrichtsprozessen zugeschrieben (Eickelmann 2010b). Eng damit verbunden ist die „katalytische“ Begründungslinie (catalytic rationale).