Assignment task:
Briefly describe how the authors did their research. Describe how many participants were in the study, their ages, where the study was done, and any other identifying details or demographics, and how the researchers gathered their information (observations, testing, questionnaires, interviews, etc.) Participants were 16 students (9 girls, 7 boys) attending Grade 3 at a large public school in the southwestern United States. Using purposeful sampling, the school was recruited to focus on supportive learning conditions and how students in this setting might appraise and respond to common stressors at school. The school serves approximately 550 students in grades K-6 in a suburban, low-poverty setting (13.8% eligible for free- or reduced-lunch) and is consistently rated an 'excelling' school by the state's achievement profile system (i.e. the school has met or exceeded state performance on standardised testing over the past three years). Despite its large school size, the average class size is below the national average, and staff generally report high parental involvement. With regard to recruitment, the prin-cipal had recommended that two Grade 3 teachers invite their respective students to par-ticipate in brief interviews about school stress and coping. The teachers were invited because their classrooms represented middle childhood and these experienced educators (both with 12 years of teaching in primary schools) had previously shown interest in children's well- being and mental health. Grade 3 students from these two classrooms were invited via their teachers to participate in the study. A letter explaining the purpose of the project and consent documents were sent home to parents/guardians semi-structured interview guide was designed to evaluate student stress and coping strat-egies (see Appendix 1). Interviews were conducted by one interviewer with an educational psychology background and prior teaching experience in primary schools. Interviews took place during non-instructional times during the school day in private spaces to ensure a safe, trusting relationship. The interviewer asked questions in a respectful way through which comments were taken seriously and children were viewed as experts on school life. As pre-sented, students were first asked to describe what the word 'stress' means to them. Second, students were then asked to identify common sources of school stress and relief for them. Third, students were asked to describe if and how stress-free and stressful days at school might influence their own learning and social behaviours. Fourth, students were asked to describe three instances of stress and coping using a modified version of Band and Weisz's (1988) coping strategy interview procedure.Interview transcripts were analysed using qualitative content analysis (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2011) to illustrate depth and breadth in student responses. Considering manifest (obvious components of text) and latent (underlying meaning of text) content, transcripts were independently coded by the interviewer and a research assistant trained in coping strategies and child development. First, the process of content analysis began with decisions on appropriate units of analysis. Second, on carefully reviewing the transcribed interview data, thematic codes were identified. Third, identified codes were compared to pre-existing survey items and interview responses in stress and coping literature (e.g. Connor-Smith et al., 2000; Skinner et al., 2003) to establish validity. Codes that matched examples from existing literature were constructed and included as categories for analysis. If a code was not represented in the existing literature, then a new category was created. Through an iterative process, a coding guide was compiled. Next, comparison of categories by the two coders was continuously checked as a formative check of reliability