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In this study, we examined the mediating role of academic self-efficacy and motivational learning strategies in the relationship between personality and elementary school students' achievement. The data were collected using a questionnaire that was administered to 511 Croatian eighth-grade students (14-15 years old) and analysed using Hayes's PROCESS procedure. The results suggest that conscientious students have higher grade point average (GPA) which can partially be explained with their relatively high academic self-efficacy and avoidance of using strategies of protecting self-esteem. Findings also indicate serial mediating effects of academic self-efficacy and strategies of protecting self-esteem on the relationship between conscientiousness and GPA. Openness was positively related to GPA, but only indirectly, through academic self-efficacy. Furthermore, we found an indirect effect of agreeableness on GPA through less frequent use of strategies aimed at protecting self-esteem. Neuroticism and extraversion showed no direct nor indirect effects on GPA. Additionally, students with higher academic self-efficacy were less inclined to use strategies of protecting self-esteem. However, there was no effect of academic self-efficacy on strategies of promoting learning process. This study adds to the existing literature by specifically examining serial mediation of academic self-efficacy and learning strategies in the relationship between personality and GPA.

Aggressive behaviour has negative consequences for students who are exposed to it and those who are aggressive. In addition to a number of negative consequences at the individual level aggression negatively impacts processes within the school. Successful methods of preventing and reducing aggressive behaviour at school often include activities related to empathy. Empathy is the ability to understand and feel the emotional state of another person. It includes cognitive and emotional components and is associated with positive effects on relationships and behaviours; the lack of empathy is associated with negative effects, including aggressive behaviour. We analysed the relationships among empathy dimensions and general aggression, including the subtypes of aggression. We used the AG-UD aggression scale and the IRI questionnaire for the measurement of empathy on a sample of Slovene (N = 125), Croatian (N = 95) and Swedish (N = 84) adolescents aged between 13 and 14. The findings across samples revealed several significant associations on the level of general aggression and high congruence across countries and on the level of types of aggression. This data indicates the need to include dimension-level prevention and intervention based on the prevalence of specific types of aggression.

Framed by the EU-project Hand in Hand focusing on Social, Emotional and Intercultural (SEI) competencies among students and school staff the paper discusses implementation and professional competencies based on a literature review. Five themes were identified: 1) Intercultural/transcultural competency is not often referred to in the same research as social-emotional learning, though socio-emotional aspects appear to be 'in the core', 2) it is crucial to be aware of agency among school staff in a SEI-implementation, 3) successful implementation is about more than the activities in the specific program, it is rather about elements in synergy and professional learning over time, 4) the subtle balance between adaptation and fidelity might best be addressed in an adaptive curriculum emphasizing active ingredients, and 5) this is a field with many intervention studies, but it is urgent to consider if the psychometric measures are sufficiently sensitive to catch the subtle changes related to SEI-competencies.

The motivation, skills and professional identity of future teachers develop during their initial teacher education. The aim of this research is to assess the differences between first-year and fifth-year student teachers on a number of personality and motivational variables that are indicative of their approaches to learning, using a cross-sectional design. The participants were 217 first-year and 109 fifth-year student teachers from three Croatian universities. The questionnaire measured personality dispositions, self-descriptions, achievement goals, motivation, learning strategies and perceived autonomy support in learning. The results showed that final-year student teachers displayed more conscientiousness and self-efficacy, and less avoidant goal orientations, extrinsic motivation and surface learning compared to first-year student teachers, indicating final-year students' more adaptive and proactive approach to learning. The observed differences could be a result of maturation processes and/or the effects of teacher studies that support the development of more adaptive patterns of learning and self-beliefs.