Therapy motivation of primary und secondary school students: the wish for pedagogical-therapeutic help

Therapy motivation of primary und secondary school students: the wish for p edagogical-therapeutic help. As part of an investigation of Austrian school counseling services 9-to-14- years-old students of 25 classes in primary and secondary schools answered a questionnaire regarding their classroom situation which included question s about the wish for pedagogical-therapeutic help by a counseling teacher. Through a pupil nomination inventory an indepedent evaluation of the studen t behavior was achieved. The results revealed that about a fourth of all pu pils had the wish for a possibility to talk over their concerns and a sixth had the wish for support in their relationships with their fellow. student s. A detailed analysis of the characteristics of students with a wish for s upport revealed that loneliness and depression as well as victimization by other students were important motives for the wish for support. Aggressive behavior was not a reason for wishing support in the relationship with othe r students. Consequences for the organization of counseling services in sch ools are discussed.