Cognitive style and types of problem behaviour in boys in special schools

Background. The paper considers problem behaviour in the context of cogniti ve style with reference to both diagnosis and treatment. Aims. The aims of the study were to investigate whether the style of pupils with behaviour problems was different to that of children with no reported problems, and also to consider how pupils of different style manifested th eir problem behaviours. Sample. The sample comprised 131 male pupils aged 11-16 years from eight sp ecial schools. Method. The sample were given the Cognitive Styles Analysis to assess their positions on the Wholist-Analytic and Verbal-Imagery style dimensions. The case notes of the sample were also examined for descriptions of recent beh aviours. Results. When the style characteristics of the special school sample were c ompared with a comparison sample of 413 12-16 year-old males attending 10 s econdary schools, the special school pupils had a significantly higher prop ortion of both Wholists and Verbalisers than the comparison group. Further, the inspection of the pupil records indicated that the types of social beh aviour and behaviour problems exhibited varied with style. Conclusion, The results were considered to have implications for the origin s and treatment of problem behaviour.