1. Theory Many teachers are concerned that students with behavior problems may strain teaching, classmates, or themselves (MacFarlane & Woolfson, 2013). Although these concerns seem intuitively understandable, research has shown that the term “behavior problems” refers to a perspective-dependent phenomenon of various forms and degrees (Beaman et al., 2007; Crawshaw, 2015) that is susceptible to perception biases (Eckstein, 2019). Therefore, it is highly unclear what teachers mean when they use this expression without further explanation. This gives rise to a research desideratum we address in this paper: studies should investigate the extent to which the teacher-assigned label “behavior problems” is substantiated by students’ actual behaviors and to what extent it is due to other, idiosyncratic conditions. 2. Methods 85 elementary school teachers and 1412 students (11.7 years) answered a survey. The teachers reported the degree to which they consider each student in their class to have behavior problems. As presumed predictors of these labeling tendencies, we investigated the frequency of students’ undisciplined behaviors (ω = .84), non-behavioral student characteristics (sex; learning ability [ω = .72]), teacher characteristics (general sensitivity to disturbances [ω = .71]; work-related stress experience [ω = .80]), and context factors (latent class means of students’ indiscipline and learning ability). A two-level structural equation model was set up and estimated in Mplus 8.10 (Marsh et al., 2009; Muthén & Muthén, 2017-2023). All effects were estimated while controlling for the others. 3. Findings The model fitted the data well (X2 = 139.468, df = 71, p < .001; RMSEA = .024; CFI = .991). At level 1, significant effects on the teachers’ labeling tendencies were found for the individual students’ indiscipline (Beta = .50), sex (Beta = -.25), and learning ability (Beta = .21). At level 2, teachers’ general sensitivity to disturbances (Beta = .35) and work-related stress experience (Beta = .35) were found to be significant conditions of their general labeling tendency across all students; no significant effects were found for the latent class means of indiscipline and learning ability. In sum, the findings indicate that the label “behavior problems” was well substantiated by the students’ actual behaviors – but it was also due to various other conditions that had little or nothing to do with their behavior, such as teachers’ stereotypical beliefs (Anderson et al., 2012). Reflecting on the study’s strengths and limitations, we will discuss the implications of these results for future research and teaching practice.

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