Teacher Communion and Agency in Dyadic Interactions

We investigated how the quality of teacher behavior in dyadic interactions – as an aspect of constructive support – is related to students’ school adjustment. In 224 teacher–student dyads observed at two time points, teachers were rated on communion (warmth, sensitivity) and agency (guidance, monitoring), and students on school adjustment indicators (e. g., anger expression, cooperation). Teacher behavior marked by high communion and withdrawn agency was linked to better student adjustment. Cross-lagged panel analyses showed that higher teacher communion at T1 predicted lower student anger and higher student joy at T2, while other associations were nonsignificant. Conversely, well-adjusted students at T1 elicited more positive teacher behavior – higher communion and withdrawn agency – at T2, suggesting that teachers show more positive interpersonal behavior when interacting with well-adjusted students. We discuss how teachers can be supported in demonstrating strong communion and withdrawn agency adapted to each student’s developmental stage.