Browsing by Author "Häkkänen, Matias"

Objective. The aim of this intervention study is to examine which character strengths sixth graders spot in themselves and how do they present the character strengths in their everyday lives. The effect of the intervention is being determined as the changes in an observation group are discussed. This study is a part of Tämä Elämä –project, which emphasizes co- working and aims at preventing social exclusions of teenagers. Method. The study was carried out with a sixth grade class (19 students) in the Spring 2019. The class was given lessons on character strengths for a week with the help of Huomaa Hyvä! –materials which are composed for the purpose of bringing out the strengths of an individual. The students filled out an online form both at the start and in the beginning of the week so the effect of the intervention was opened for evaluation. The observation group of 24 students took part in the study. They didn’t receive classes on character strengths during the week. Results and conclusions. The most presented character strengths in the class are fairness, prudence and creativity. The students discussed the strengths through the topics of me-oth- ers, values, cognitive skills, emotions, emotional skills and attitude. The activities they pre- sented discussing their character strengths were e.g. games, activities with friends, home- work and exams. The knowledge and usage of character strengths expressed by the students was tested with repeated measures ANOVA in the software of Statistics Analysis Software SPSS. The factors of time or being a member of either of the groups was not classified as primary effect. The knowledge and usage of character strengths expressed by the students didn’t change signif- icantly.