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Students’ Prosocial and Antisocial Behaviors at School: the Role of Teachers and Parents’ Autonomy Support

  • Jul 7, 2026
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Abstract Book of the 11th International Conference on Research in Education, Teaching and Learning

Year: 2026

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Students’ Prosocial and Antisocial Behaviors at School: the Role of Teachers and Parents' Autonomy Support

Dr. Ludovico Vespasiani

ABSTRACT:

Grounded in Self-Determination Theory (SDT; Ryan & Deci, 2017), this paper explores the factors that contribute to promoting students’ prosocial behaviours toward their classmates, as well as to preventing antisocial behaviours. SDT posits that satisfying three basic psychological needs—autonomy, competence, and relatedness—influences behaviour, performance, and well-being. When teachers and parents engage in autonomy-supportive behaviours, such as respecting choices and encouraging independent decision-making, students experience need fulfilment. This fosters a positive, inclusive classroom climate and promotes prosocial behaviours (Gagné, 2003; Cheon et al., 2023).
The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between students’ perception of autonomy support from teachers and parents and their classmates’ prosocial and antisocial behaviours. The convenience sample consists of 438 Italian students from a middle school (grades 6-8). Data were collected using validated Italian instruments and analysed via Path Analysis. The underlying assumption was that higher perceived autonomy support relates positively to prosocial behaviour and negatively to antisocial behaviour.
Results indicate that autonomy support from teachers has a greater impact on prosocial behaviours than parental support. Furthermore, teacher support demonstrates a statistically significant effect in reducing antisocial behaviours, whereas parental support shows no significant effect. Given the crucial role of teachers, it is essential to implement training interventions aimed at enhancing their skills in fostering student autonomy. This contributes to a positive learning environment, empowering students to develop essential life skills, responsibility, and self-efficacy.

Keywords: Prosocial Behavior, Antisocial Behavior, Teaching Style, Parental Autonomy Support, Self-Determination Theory