Big-fish-little-pond effect on academic self-concept. A cross-cultural (26-country) test of the negative effects of academically selective schools

Academically selective schools are intended to affect academic self-concept positively, but theoretical and empirical research demonstrates that the effects are negative. The big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE), an application of social comparison theory to educational settings, posits that a student will have a lower academic self-concept in an academically selective school than in a nonselective school. This study, the largest cross-cultural study of the BFLPE ever undertaken, tested theoretical predictions for nationally representative samples of approximately 4,000 15-year-olds from each of 26 countries (N = 103,558) who completed the same self-concept instrument and achievement tests. Consistent with the BFLPE, the effects of school-average achievement were negative in all 26 countries (M beta = -.20, SD = .08), demonstrating the BFLPE's cross-cultural generalizability.     

Guidance in Hong Kong schools: Students' and teachers' beliefs

The perceptions which students and teachers in Hong Kong have of school guidance were investigated, with specific reference to the match and mismatch in their respective views. A survey of 2,045 secondary students and 267 teachers revealed that students and teachers held similar beliefs about school guidance, demonstrating convergence rather than divergence in perceptions. The results showed assent by both groups to proactive and developmental guidance, with some reservations about remedial guidance. Both groups affirmed the role of teachers in individual guidance and its helpfulness, and teacher participation in guidance as a means of school improvement of guidance. Divergence in views was mainly in the magnitude of agreement. Moscovici's theory of social representations is employed to explain the findings. Implications of the findings for the concept and development of guidance are discussed.     

The relative importance of global self-concept and self-concept of academic ability in predicting academic achievement

The aim of this study was to establish whether the relationship between self-concept of academic ability and academic achievement correlated more strongly than the relationship between global self-concept and academic achievement among high school students. Data on these variables were collected from 229 tenth-grade students in the U.S. Pacific Northwest public school district. The results indicate that global self-concept and self-concept of academic ability correlate positively with academic achievement, but the relationship between self-concept of academic ability and academic achievement correlated more strongly than the relationship between global self-concept and academic achievement. The results suggest that educational intervention strategies geared to raising academic achievement would probably be more likely to succeed if they were to focus on enhancement of the self-concept of academic ability rather than global self-concept.     

Contributions of moral education lectures and moral discussion in Hong Kong secondary schools

Moral education in the traditional form of classroom didactic lectures in secondary schools has been prevailing in Hong Kong since the initiation of moral education in the 1980s. However, such a traditional form has not received credit from research in the West. Instead, discussion of moral issues would be a more effective way of moral education than would didactic lectures. Because of the differential ways of moral education in Hong Kong, findings from other places can be subject to a test in Hong Kong. As such, this study employed panel data from 19,069 secondary school students in Hong Kong to analyze the impacts of moral education on moral commitment to sustain societal interests. Findings indicated a weak contribution of moral discussion and an even weaker contribution of moral education lectures to moral commitment. These findings therefore echo those in other places and suggest that real-life moral education contributes in the expected way, albeit weakly.     

Relation of academic support from parents, teachers, and peers to Hong Kong adolescents' academic achievement: the mediating role of academic engagement

The author tested a model hypothesizing that students' self-perceived academic support (from parents, teachers, and peers) is related to their achievement directly and indirectly through their own perceived academic engagement. The participants were 270 adolescents (M age = 15.41 years, range = 14-20 years) from 3 grade levels (Forms 3-5, equivalent to Grades 9-11 in the United States) in a Hong Kong secondary school. The school principal and teachers helped to collect data based on these adolescents' responses to a self-report questionnaire, consisting of a demographic profile and 4 scales assessing their self-perceptions of the extent of parental, teacher, and peer support, and their own academic engagement. Academic achievement was measured by self-reported grades in math, English, and Chinese. Structural equation modeling analyses revealed that adolescents' perceived parental, teacher, and peer support were all indirectly related to their academic achievement mediated by their own perceived academic engagement. The strength of the relationships, however, varied by support system, with perceived teacher support to achievement being the strongest, followed closely by perceived parental support, and then perceived peer support. In addition, both perceived parental support and perceived teacher support were directly related to academic achievement. However, perceived teacher support made the most total (direct and indirect) contribution to student achievement. Perceived peer support had the smallest, nonetheless significant, indirect relationship to academic achievement. However, the negative, direct influence of perceived peer support canceled out its positive, indirect influence on academic achievement.     

Predictors of suicide ideation and depression in Hong Kong adolescents: perceptions of academic and family climates

The unique dimensions of perceptions of school and family contributing to depression and suicide ideation in Hong Kong adolescents were examined in two studies. In Study 1, among 327 Hong Kong Chinese female students ages 13-18, 47% reported some suicide ideation. Suicide ideation was significantly associated with depression, test anxiety, academic self-concept, and adolescents' perceived parental dissatisfaction with academic performance. The correlation between test anxiety and depression was especially high (r = .51). Study 2 examined how three different aspects of perceived family relationship were associated with depression and suicide ideation. Among 371 Hong Kong Chinese adolescents ages 14-20, 52.6% reported suicide ideation. Low levels of family cohesion and support and high levels of parent-adolescent conflict were positively related to depression and suicide ideation in both genders. Across both studies, depression mediated associations between academic- and family-related variables and suicide ideation. Findings underscore the importance of both academic and family climate in understanding depression and suicide ideation among Chinese adolescents.     

Self-esteem, academic self-concept, and achievement: how the learning environment moderates the dynamics of self-concept

The authors examine the directionality of effects between global self-esteem, domain-specific academic self-concepts, and academic achievement. Special emphasis is placed on learning environments as potential moderators of the direction of these effects. According to the meritocracy principle presented here, so-called bottom-up effects (i.e., self-esteem is influenced by academic self-concept) are more pronounced in meritocratic learning environments than in ego-protective learning environments. This hypothesis was examined using a three-wave cross-lagged panel design with a large sample of 7th graders from East and West Germany, a total of 5,648 students who were tested shortly after German reunification. Reciprocal effects were found between self-esteem, academic self-concept, and academic achievement. In conformance with the meritocracy principle, support for bottom-up effects was stronger in the meritocratic learning environment.     

The relationship between the spiritual well-being of university students in Hong Kong and their academic performance#

The study aims to examine the relationship between the spiritual well-being of university students in Hong Kong and their academic performance measured by Cumulative Grade-Point Average, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. The quantitative part of the study consists of 1130 Year 2 and Year 3 students from three universities in Hong Kong. The questionnaire is adapted from the Spiritual Health and Life-Orientation Measure developed by John Fisher. Results indicate a moderately positive relationship between the spiritual well-being of the respondents and their academic performance. The qualitative part of the study is comprised of 11 focus group discussions. The findings of this support the quantitative findings and contribute to the exploration of how students’ spiritual well-being and their pursuits of academic success are correlated. The several spiritual attributes, namely, concentration, persistence, self-confidence, self-discipline and interpersonal relationships are found in the resulting positive relationship through the qualitative findings.     

A longitudinal multilevel model analysis of the within-person and between-person effect of effortful engagement and academic self-efficacy on academic performance

Using data from an accelerated longitudinal study, we examined the within-person and between-person effect of effortful engagement and academic self-efficacy on academic performance across students (N = 135) in elementary school. Teachers assessed participants' effortful engagement and participants rated their academic self-efficacy once per year for 3 years. Academic performance was assessed through standardized test scores in reading and math. Multilevel models indicated that within-person change in Effortful Engagement and Academic Self-Efficacy scores significantly predicted concomitant within-person change in reading test scores, B = 2.71, p = .043, Pseudo-R² = .02 and B = 4.72, p = .005, Pseudo-R² = .04, respectively. Participants with higher between-person levels of Effortful Engagement had higher initial reading test scores, B = 10.03, p = .001, Pseudo-R² = .09, and math test scores, B = 11.20, p < .001, Pseudo-R² = .15, whereas participants with higher between-person levels of Academic Self-Efficacy showed a faster rate of increase in math test scores across elementary school, B = 10.21, p = .036, Pseudo-R² = .25. At the between-person level, Effortful Engagement mediated the association between Academic Self-Efficacy and both reading and math test scores, although no support was found for mediation at the within-person level. Collectively, results suggest that trait-level psychological factors can vary meaningfully within school-aged children and that both within-person change and between-person individual differences in these traits have important consequences for academic performance.     

Relationship of visual motor development and academic performance of young children in Hong Kong assessed on the Bender-Gestalt test

This study compared the Qualitative Scoring System for the Modified Version of the Bender-Gestalt test and the Developmental Scoring System for the Bender-Gestalt test in predicting performance on the Standardized Attainment Test of young children in Hong Kong. The study was done in two phases. First, 748 middle class children ages 4 to 8 years from 6 kindergartens and 6 primary schools were given the Bender-Gestalt test individually in kindergarten and in groups for older children, respectively. Both scoring systems were used to measure the children's visual motor development. Second, among the participants' protocols, 257 Primary 1 to Primary 3 children ages 6 to 8 years were selected to compare the Qualitative Scoring System for the 6 designs of the Modified Version of the Bender-Gestalt test and the Developmental Scoring System for the 9 designs of the Bender-Gestalt test in predicting performance on the Standardized Attainment Test. Results indicated that the Qualitative Scoring System differentiates better than the Developmental Scoring System in evaluating visual-motor development among young Chinese children from Hong Kong. Results also indicated that the Qualitative Scoring System correlated significantly with achievement in Chinese and English at all three levels. Scores on the Developmental Scoring System correlated significantly with only marks for Primary 1 and Primary 2 Chinese.     

Reciprocal effects between academic self-concept, self-esteem, achievement, and attainment over seven adolescent years: unidimensional and multidimensional perspectives of self-concept

In their influential review, Baumeister, Campbell, Krueger, and Vohs (2003) concluded that self-esteem--the global component of self-concept--has no effect on subsequent academic performance. In contrast, Marsh and Craven's (2006) review of reciprocal effects models from an explicitly multidimensional perspective demonstrated that academic self-concept and achievement are both a cause and an effect of each other. Ironically, both reviews cited classic Youth in Transition studies in support of their respective claims. In definitive tests of these counter claims, the authors reanalyze these data-including self-esteem (emphasized by Baumeister et al.), academic self-concept (emphasized by Marsh & Craven), and postsecondary educational attainment-using stronger statistical methods based on five waves of data (grade 10 through 5 years after graduation; N=2,213). Integrating apparently discrepant findings under a common theoretical framework based on a multidimensional perspective, academic self-concept had consistent reciprocal effects with both achievement and educational attainment, whereas self-esteem had almost none.     

Childhood obesity, gender, actual-ideal body image discrepancies, and physical self-concept in Hong Kong children: cultural differences in the value of moderation

Childhood obesity is increasingly prevalent in Western and non-Western societies. The authors related multiple dimensions of physical self-concept to body composition for 763 Chinese children aged 8 to 15 and compared the results with Western research. Compared with Western research, gender differences favoring boys were generally much smaller for physical self-concept and body image. Objective and subjective indexes of body fat were negatively related to many components of physical self-concept, but--in contrast to Western research--were unrelated to global self-esteem and slightly positively related to health self-concept. In support of discrepancy theory, actual-ideal discrepancies in body image were related to physical self-concept. However, consistent with the Chinese cultural value of moderation, and in contrast to Western results, being too thin relative to personal ideals was almost as detrimental as being too fat. The results reflect stronger Chinese cultural values of moderation and acceptance of obesity than in Western culture and have implications for social and educational policy in China.     

A comparison of fathers' and mothers' contributions in the prediction of academic performance of school-age children in Hong Kong

Asystematic study of the linkages between gender issues and parenting is made among Chinese families. This study examines sex differences in parenting attributes across fathers and mothers and towards sons and daughters, and compares the contributions of fathers and mothers to the prediction of academic performance across boys and girls. Four parenting attributes are included: nurturance, psychological control, parental involvement in education, and parental academic efficacy. Data were collected from 461 Chinese father-mother-child triads of children studying Grade 3 to 5 in Hong Kong. Findings of this study, based on multivariate analysis of variance, showed that parental roles followed traditional Chinese cultural expectations. Compared to the fathers, Chinese mothers of school-age children in Hong Kong were more loving and caring, more involved in children's education, and more efficacious in promoting children's academic performance. Results of hierarchical regression analysis examining the role of child's sex as a moderator showed cross-sex influence in parental contribution to academic performance with respect to parental psychological control and academic efficacy. Specifically, boys benefited more from maternal efficacy than girls did and they were also more hampered by mothers with high psychological control, while girls' academic performance was more enhanced by paternal academic efficacy than boys. A gender-balance approach that highlights the significance of gender in moderating parental contributions to academic performance was thus supported. Future research should continue to focus on psychological control and domain-specific parental attributes as potential sources of gender-linked parent-child associations. Investigations should also explore other cognitive and noncognitive domains of child outcome, different child age groups, as well as Chinese populations in various geographical regions.     

The impact of AIDS/sex education by schools or family doctors on Hong Kong Chinese adolescents

Despite the rapid increases of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in East Asia, the sex-related knowledge among Chinese adolescents is limited and the standard of sex education is both variable and inconsistent in Hong Kong. The aim of this study is to review the overall effectiveness of the school-based or doctor-based sexual health education currently provided for Hong Kong adolescents. In 1999 - 2000, a large survey on youth risk behaviours was carried out among 15 - 18-year-old students from 21 secondary schools. Of the 8,039 questionnaires, 377 students (4.7%) admitted sexual experience. Multiple logistic regression showed that students who had received school AIDS education were found to be less likely to have sexual intercourse in the past 3 months (odds ratio, OR 0.5; 95% confidence interval, CI 0.3 - 0.9) or use drugs or alcohol before the previous intercourse (OR 0.5; 95% CI 0.3 - 0.9). They were twice as likely to discuss emotional (95% CI 1.4 - 4.0) or puberty issues (95% CI 1.1 - 3.0). Although not statistically significant, sex education by family doctors showed a similar pattern. This result provides the strongest available evidence that school-based sex education programmes can modify sexual behaviour, which, in turn, reduces risk among Chinese students.     

The effects of being spurned and self-esteem on depersonalization and coping preferences in kindergarten teachers: the case of Hong Kong

The primary objective of this study was to examine, based on a model of spurned helpers’ reactions: (a) the degrees to which kindergarten teachers in Hong Kong, China, experienced recurrent rejections of their offers of help (being spurned) by peer teachers; (b) whether being spurned by peers would induce depersonalization; (c) the ways teachers with higher or lower self-esteem coped with recurrent rejection; and (d) effects of coping in reducing depersonalization. A sample of serving kindergarten teachers in Hong Kong participated in the study. Their levels of self-esteem were first measured. Five months afterwards the extent to which they were spurned by their peers and the way they coped with such rejections were assessed. Another 5 months later the degrees to which they experienced depersonalization were measured. The results showed (a) that the teachers were fairly spurned; (b) that the more spurned the teachers were, the more depersonalized they were towards their peers; and (c) teachers with higher self-esteem and teachers with lower self-esteem coped with being spurned in different ways. The findings suggest that kindergarten teachers should be aware of recurrent rejection of their offers of help by peer workers and also the adverse effects of such rejection, and that administrators should provide training to teachers to assist them to deal with recurrent rejection of help by peers.     

What my parents make me believe in learning: The role of filial piety in Hong Kong students' motivation and academic achievement

Chinese students are well‐known for their academic excellence. However, studies that explore the underlying mechanism of how cultural factors relate to the motivational process and academic achievement of Chinese students have been limited. This study aimed to examine the role of filial piety in shaping Chinese students' theories of intelligence so as to obtain a clearer understanding of the process by which parent–child connectedness is linked to Chinese students' academic achievement. A sample of 312 university students in Hong Kong were assessed concerning their filial piety beliefs, theories of intelligence and academic achievement. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling. The results indicated that different filial piety beliefs relate to students' academic achievement by shaping different theories of intelligence. Reciprocal filial piety beliefs were found to facilitate an incremental view of intelligence, which in turn contributes to students' academic achievement. Authoritarian filial piety beliefs were shown to be associated with an entity view of intelligence, which consequently deteriorates students' academic achievement. Cultural views of motivational processes can shed light on how motivational beliefs are developed as a product of cultural or socialization processes, which, in turn, contribute to students' academic success.     

Ethnicity,gender, and academic self-concept: a preliminary examination of academic disidentification and implications for psychologists

This study examined data from 358 African American students and 229 European American students to determine if the phenomenon of academic disidentification occurred. Analyses revealed that among African American male students, the relationship between academic self-concept and grade point average (GPA) significantly decreased, whereas the relationship between academic self-concept, self-esteem, and GPA significantly increased for European American female students. The relationship between academic self-concept and GPA remained significant for African American female and European American male students. Research and counseling implications are discussed.     

无为而治，王化天下——《道德经》与香港的和谐社会

《道德经》是修心养性、治国安邦的大典,道家内圣外王之学,尽在此经。汉朝初年奉行的黄老道术,缔造战国以来中国首次的太平盛世。唐朝李姓,唐初