The Effect of Self-Determination Activities on Communication and Interaction Skills and Academic Success (Grade Point Average) of Students at Risk of Emotional-Behavioral Disorders: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) have lower academic efficiency than students with other disabilities and exhibit high levels of problematic behaviors and low levels of social functioning. This research aims to investigate the impact of self-determination activities on communication skills and scholastic achievement of students at risk of emotional-behavioral disorders. Methods: The study was conducted through a randomized controlled trial during the academic year 2018-2019. The samples included 54 female students (14 to 16 years) at risk of emotional-behavioral disorders from secondary schools in Tehran, Iran. The sampling was conducted through a random cluster method. The applied tools encompass Youth Self-report and Assessment of Communication and Interaction Skills. Academic success was measured by students' grade point average (GPA) in two terms. The intervention was held in 8 sessions of 90 minutes, once a week, after the first term of academic of students for the intervention group and the control group did not receive any intervention during this period. The data were analyzed by SPSS-22, MANCOVA, T-test, and Chi-Square tests. Results: The results of the multivariate analysis of covariance analysis showed self-determination has an impact on communication skills (physicality, information exchange and relations) of students at risk of emotional-behavioral disorders (p<0.05). Comparing the difference between the averages of the two students' means, it was found that there was a significant difference in the two groups after the intervention (p<0.001). Also, after the intervention, there was no significant difference between the two groups but the GPA of students in the intervention group increased from 13.19 to 15.61. Conclusion: The findings suggested self-determination is effective for academic success and communication skills of students at risk of emotional-behavioral disorders and can be used in educational programs for these students.