Peer-reviewed article
LIKING CHILDREN AND SENSITIVITY TO VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION MAJORS
Leyla Saraç, Zeynep Filiz Dinç ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined attitudes toward children and awareness of violence among 179 Turkish physical education teacher candidates. Researchers measured how much the candidates liked children and their sensitivity to violence against children using validated scales. The findings showed that candidates had high levels of both liking for children and sensitivity to violence, with no significant differences by gender or year of study, and no correlation between the two attitudes.
Key points
- PE teacher candidates showed high levels of liking for children overall
- PE teacher candidates demonstrated high sensitivity to violence against children
- No significant gender differences were found in either liking for children or sensitivity to violence
- No significant differences were found across grade levels despite teacher training exposure
- Liking for children and sensitivity to violence against children were not correlated with each other
Limitations
This is a cross-sectional study measuring attitudes and self-reported sensitivity rather than actual behaviour or intervention outcomes. The findings cannot tell us whether high reported sensitivity translates into actual protective actions or whether teacher training programmes effectively build child protection competencies over time.
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to compare the liking and sensitivity to violence against children among PE teacher candidates based on gender and grade level and to examine the correlation between liking and sensitivity to violence against children. The study utilized a cross-sectional and descriptive-correlational research design. A total of 179 physical education teacher candidates (91 females and 88 males) enrolled in the study. As data collection instruments, the Demographic Information Form, the Barnett Liking of Children Scale, and the Violence Sensitivity Toward Children Scale were used. The gathered data were analyzed using the independent sample t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and Pearson correlation analysis. The findings revealed that PE teacher candidates' levels of liking for children and sensitivity to violence against children are both high, with no gender or grade level difference, and that there is no correlation between their levels of liking for children and sensitivity to violence against children. Although it is encouraging to see that physical education teacher candidates have a high level of liking for children and are sensitive to violence against them, the findings regarding grade level variables do not seem to reflect the impact of children-focused field and teaching profession courses taken during the teacher training program.