Perceptions of competence: How parents and teachers view each other

Abstract

The home-school relationship typically has been described from the perspective of mothers and teachers, disregarding fathers, and there is usually no reference to the child involved. A 22-item Parent and Teacher Attitude Questionnaire (PTAQ) was completed by the mothers (N = 150), fathers (N = 114), and teachers (N = 127) of children in grades kindergarten through five in relation to vignettes of an overreactive and underreactive child. The gender and grade in the vignettes also were varied. A factor analysis of the PTAQ demonstrated that the most salient dimensions were Teacher Competence and Parent Competence. Parent and teacher attitudes on these dimensions were compared as a function of vignette behavior type, gender, and grade, using an analysis of variance with repeated measures. The results showed that parent and teacher perceptions did not vary according to child characteristics, but there was a significant interaction between parents and teachers on the PTAQ dimensions.