Causal ordering of academic self‐concept and achievement: Effects of type of achievement measure

Background. The relation between academic self‐concept and achievement has been examined in a large number of studies. The majority of these studies have found evidence for a reciprocal effects model. However, there is an ongoing debate on how students' achievement should be measured and whether the type of achievement indicator (grades, tests, teacher ratings) affects the causal pattern found in these studies. Aims. The study aims at clarifying how the types of achievement measures and the way they are modelled can affect the results of causal ordering studies. In that sense, the study will yield recommendations for researchers in this domain and also provide some direction for practitioners seeking ways to enhance their students' achievement and/or academic self‐concept. Sample. Repeated measures of academic self‐concept and achievement (standardized tests and teacher ratings) were examined in a sample of 1,753 students in Grades 7, 8, 10, and 12. Method. Structural equation modelling was used. Several models (with different types and numbers of achievement measures) were compared. Results. Only small differences were found between models using one or two indicators of achievement. All models generally supported the reciprocal effects model. However, the final model, wherein tests and teacher ratings were used as separate latent variables, showed different developmental patterns in the causal relation between academic self‐concept and achievement. Conclusions. Researchers should interpret the results of causal ordering studies discerningly because the type of measure chosen as an indicator of achievement might affect the causal pattern between academic self‐concept and achievement.     

Cognitive ability,academic achievement and academic self‐concept: Extending the internal/external frame of reference model

Background. Marsh's internal/external (I/E) frame of reference model depicts the relationship between achievement and self‐concept in specific academic domains. Few efforts have been made to examine concurrent relationships among cognitive ability, achievement, and academic self‐concept (ASC) within an I/E model framework. Aim. To simultaneously examine the influences of domain‐specific cognitive ability and grades on domain self‐concept in an extended I/E model, including the indirect effect of domain‐specific cognitive ability on domain self‐concept via grades. Sample. Tenth grade respondents (628 male, 452 female) to a national adolescent survey conducted in Taiwan. Method. Respondents completed surveys designed to measure maths and verbal aptitudes. Data on Maths and Chinese class grades and self‐concepts were also collected. Results. Statistically significant and positive path coefficients were found between cognitive ability and self‐concept in the same domain (direct effect) and between these two constructs via grades (indirect effect). The cross‐domain effects of either ability or grades on ASC were negatively significant. Conclusions. Taiwanese 10th graders tend to evaluate their ASCs based on a mix of ability and achievement, with achievement as a mediator exceeding ability as a predictor. In addition, the cross‐domain effects suggest that Taiwanese students are likely to view Maths and verbal abilities and achievements as distinctly different.     

Positive academic emotions moderate the relationship between self‐regulation and academic achievement

Background. Research has shown how academic emotions are related to achievement and to cognitive/motivational variables that promote achievement. Mediated models have been proposed to account for the relationships among academic emotions, cognitive/motivational variables, and achievement, and research has supported such mediated models, particularly with negative emotions. Aims. The study tested the hypotheses: (1) self‐regulation and the positive academic emotions of enjoyment and pride are positive predictors of achievement; and (2) enjoyment and pride both moderate the relationship between self‐regulation and achievement. Sample. Participants were 1,345 students enrolled in various trigonometry classes in one university. Methods. Participants answered the Academic Emotions Questionnaire‐Math (Pekrun, Goetz, & Frenzel, 2005) and a self‐regulation scale (Pintrich, Smith, Garcia, & McKeachie, 1991) halfway through their trigonometry class. The students’ final grades in the course were regressed to self‐regulation, positive emotions, and the interaction terms to test the moderation effects. Results and Conclusions. Enjoyment and pride were both positive predictors of grades; more importantly, both moderated the relationship between self‐regulation and grades. For students who report higher levels of both positive emotions, self‐regulation was positively associated with grades. However, for those who report lower levels of pride, self‐regulation was not related to grades; and, for those who reported lower levels of enjoyment, self‐regulation was negatively related to grades. The results are discussed in terms of how positive emotions indicate positive appraisals of task/outcome value, and thus enhance the positive links between cognitive/motivational variables and learning.     

Academic self‐handicapping: Relationships with learning specific and general self‐perceptions and academic performance over time

Background. Academic self‐handicapping (ASH) tendencies, strategies students employ that increase their chances of failure on assessments while protecting self‐esteem, are correlated with classroom goal structures and to learners' general self‐perceptions and learning strategies. In particular, greater ASH is related to poorer academic performance but has yet to be examined with respect to learners' performance across a series of tests. Aims. This research was designed to examine the relationship between students' ASH tendencies and their self‐concept clarity, learning strategies, and performance on a series of tests in a university course. Sample. A total of 209 (153 female; 56 male) Canadian university psychology students participated in this study. Methods. Participants' ASH tendencies, self‐concept clarity, approaches to learning, and self‐regulatory learning strategies were assessed along with expected grades and hours of study in the course from which they were recruited. Finally, students' grades were obtained for the three tests for the course from which they were recruited. Results. Students reporting greater self‐handicapping tendencies reported lower self‐concept clarity, lower academic self‐efficacy, greater test anxiety, more superficial learning strategies, and scored lower on all tests in the course. The relationships of ASH scores and learner variables with performance varied across the three performance indices. In particular, ASH scores were more strongly related to second and third tests, and prior performances were accounted for. ASH scores accounted for a relatively small but significant proportion of variance for all three tests. Conclusions. These results showed that ASH is a unique contributing factor in student performance outcomes, and may be particularly important after students complete the initial assessment in a course.     

Self‐construal and students’ math self‐concept,anxiety and achievement: An examination of achievement goals as mediators

This study examines the role of self‐construal in student learning by testing a mediation model: through math achievement goals, self‐construal predicts math self‐concept and anxiety, which further predict math achievement. A sample of 1196 students from 104 secondary classes in Singapore took a survey and a math achievement test. The results from multi‐group structural equation modelling support measurement invariance and equal path coefficients in the mediation model between boys and girls. Interdependent self‐construal positively predicted mastery approach and avoidance goals, through which interdependent self‐construal had a positive total indirect effect on math anxiety. Independent self‐construal positively predicted mastery approach, performance approach and performance avoidance goals, and through the two approach goals, high independent self‐construal was associated with high math self‐concept. Overall, self‐construal was not associated with math achievement. The findings enhance our understanding of achievement motivation from a sociocultural perspective and help explain East Asian students’ relatively higher anxiety and lower self‐concept in comparison with their Western counterparts as reported in international studies.     

The effects of selective schooling and self‐concept on adolescents' academic aspiration: An examination of Dweck's self‐theory

Background. Dweck has emphasized the role of pupils' implicit theories about intellectual ability in explaining variations in their engagement, persistence and achievement. She has also highlighted the role of confidence in one's intelligence as a factor influencing educational attainment. Aim. The aim of this paper is to develop a model of achievement aspiration in adolescence and to compare young people who are educated at a selective grammar school with those who attend a non‐selective ‘secondary modern’ school. Sample. The sample consisted of 856 English secondary school pupils in years 7 and 10 from two selective and two non‐selective secondary schools. Method. Questionnaires were completed in schools. Results. The findings are consistent with the model, showing that achievement aspiration is predicted directly by gender, school type and type of intelligence theory. Importantly, school type also affects aspirations indirectly, with effects being mediated by confidence in one's own intelligence and perceived academic performance. Intelligence theory also affects aspirations indirectly with effects being mediated by perceived academic performance, confidence and self‐esteem. Additionally, intelligence theory has a stronger effect on aspirations in the selective schools than in the non‐selective schools. Conclusions. The findings provide substantial support for Dweck's self‐theory, showing that implicit theories are related to aspirations. However, the way in which theory of intelligence relates to age and gender suggests there may be important cross‐cultural or contextual differences not addressed by Dweck's theory. Further research should also investigate the causal paths between aspirations, implicit theories of intelligence and the impact of school selection.     

ADHD symptoms,academic achievement,self‐perception of academic competence and future orientation: A longitudinal study

In the investigation of the effect of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms on school careers there is a need to study the role of adolescent and childhood ADHD symptoms and academic achievement, and to incorporate measures that include the individual's perspective. Our aim was to gain an overview of the long‐term development of school careers in relation to ADHD symptoms. We studied associations between ADHD symptoms and academic achievement at different time‐points and future orientation at the end of high school, and assessed the role of self‐perceptions of academic competence in these associations. Participants were 192 children (47% girls) with a range of ADHD symptoms taken from a community sample. Collecting data at three time points, in 6th, 11th and 12th grade we tested a structural equation model. Results showed that ADHD symptoms in 6th grade negatively affected academic achievement concurrently and longitudinally. ADHD symptoms in 11th grade negatively affected concurrent academic achievement and academic self‐perception and future orientation in 12th grade. Academic achievement had a positive influence on academic self‐perception and future orientation. Given the other factors, self‐perception of academic competence did not contribute to outcomes. We concluded that early ADHD symptoms may cast long shadows on young people's academic progress. This happens mainly by way of stability in symptoms and relations to early low academic achievement.     

Parental involvement,adolescents' self‐determined learning and academic achievement in Urban China

Self‐determined learning is essential to academic success. The motivational resources development model argues that parents promote academic success in their children indirectly by nurturing self‐determined learner. In this study, applying a structural equation modelling and using data collected from 8th graders in Zhuhai, China (n = 1009) in 2012, we aim to answer 2 research questions: (a) What forms of parental involvement are highly correlated with self‐determined learning and (b) Can self‐determined learning fully mediate the relationship between parental involvement and students' academic performance? We find that parental leisure involvement is positively and significantly associated with the development of self‐determined learning, which in turn is significantly and positively correlated with academic achievement. Parental provision of structure or parental academic assistance is not significantly associated with students' self‐regulation and students' academic achievement.     

The contribution of personality traits and self‐efficacy beliefs to academic achievement: A longitudinal study

Background. The personal determinants of academic achievement and success have captured the attention of many scholars for the last decades. Among other factors, personality traits and self‐efficacy beliefs have proved to be important predictors of academic achievement. Aims. The present study examines the unique contribution and the pathways through which traits (i.e., openness and conscientiousness) and academic self‐efficacy beliefs are conducive to academic achievement at the end of junior and senior high school. Sample. Participants were 412 Italian students, 196 boys and 216 girls, ranging in age from 13 to 19 years. Methods. The hypothesized relations among the variables were tested within the framework of structural equation model. Results and conclusions. Openness and academic self‐efficacy at the age of 13 contributed to junior high‐school grades, after controlling for socio‐economic status (SES). Junior high‐school grades contribute to academic self‐efficacy beliefs at the age of 16, which in turn contributed to high‐school grades, over and above the effects of SES and prior academic achievement. In accordance with the posited hypothesis, academic self‐efficacy beliefs partially mediated the contribution of traits to later academic achievement. In particular, conscientiousness at the age of 13 affected high‐school grades indirectly, through its effect on academic self‐efficacy beliefs at the age of 16. These findings have broad implications for interventions aimed to enhance children's academic pursuits. Whereas personality traits represent stable individual characteristics that mostly derive from individual genetic endowment, social cognitive theory provides guidelines for enhancing students’ efficacy to regulate their learning activities.     

Relationships and the self‐concept

Progress in the study of relationships has depended in part on the recognition that relationships have properties not relevant to interactions or to the behavior of individuals, and may require additional principles of explanation. This has led to an emphasis on relationships as linking individuals. In this article we argue that relationship processes occur in the heads of individuals, with the participants having their own idiosyncratic views of the relationship as well as a shared one. The relationship is both affected by and affects the self‐concepts of the participants, so that the influences of the self‐concept may be critical for understanding the properties and dynamics of relationships Furthermore, consideration of the self‐concept can assist in the integration of different but not necessarily incompatible explanations for the same relationship phenomena.     

Losing a self‐expanding relationship: Implications for the self‐concept

Previous research suggests that new relationships expand the self‐concept. The present research applies concepts from the self‐expansion model to examine the conditions under which relationship dissolution may influence the self‐concept. We hypothesized that the more expansion provided by a relationship predissolution, the greater the contraction of the working self‐concept postdissolution, and that this pattern would remain when controlling for predissolution closeness. These hypotheses were tested using recall of relationship qualities for recently dissolved relationships (Studies 1 and 2), as well as with a priming experiment (Study 3). The findings over the 3 studies supported both hypotheses. Those with higher levels of self‐expansion in predissolution relationships showed more detrimental impact on their working self‐concept postdissolution, even after controlling for predissolution closeness.     

Urban Aboriginal‐Australian and Anglo‐Australian children: in‐group preference,self‐concept,and teachers' academic evaluations

The in‐group preference and self‐concepts of urban Aboriginal‐Australian and Anglo‐Australian children have never been compared, nor their relationships to teachers' evaluations of academic performance. In this study, 60 Aboriginal (primarily local Nyoongah) and 60 Anglo children aged 6–12 years were tested on in‐group preference; children aged 8+ were tested on self‐concept. Also, their teachers evaluated them on their general academic performance. Results indicated that Anglo children showed greater in‐group preference and scored higher on teacher evaluations than Aboriginal children, although there was no difference on self‐concept. No correlation existed between in‐group preference and self‐concept. It was concluded that the problems faced by Aboriginal children are only likely to be alleviated by a great deal of structural change. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of achievement goals and self‐efficacy on students' self‐regulation and performance

It is widely admitted that low self‐efficacy has a detrimental impact on the functioning and performance of a person mainly concerned with performance goals but has no impact when a person is mainly concerned with learning goals (Dweck, 1986 ). However, results from both correlational and experimental studies are divergent. Since these studies examined very few indicators of participants' cognitive functioning, they may have failed to detect those aspects that could be more vulnerable to a negative impact of the combination of performance goals and low self‐efficacy. Another concern is the lack of most studies to clearly distinguish the type of performance goal examined, particularly the performance‐avoidance versus the performance‐approach goal. In the current study, we decided to focus on performance‐approach and learning goals in order to examine how self‐efficacy intervenes in their effects on participants' self‐regulation and performance on a cognitive task. One hundred and forty participants (85 females and 55 males) were examined. They were randomly assigned either to the learning or the performance‐approach goals condition. In each condition, half of the participants received feedback aimed at inducing either high or low self‐efficacy beliefs with regard to the task prior to executing it aloud. Examination of participants' verbal reports, direct observation of some of their behaviours while solving the task, and responses to a retrospective questionnaire allowed the assessment of several indicators of their self‐regulation and performance. As already reported by many studies, self‐efficacy influenced various aspects of participants' self‐regulation and performance. However, contrary to Dweck's hypothesis ( 1986 ), when interaction effects between self‐efficacy and goals were observed, they always involved learning instead of performance‐approach goals. Findings of this study suggest that the nature of the goal might not matter as much as its personal significance or value.     

Predicting academic self‐handicapping in different age groups: The role of personal achievement goals and social goals

Background. Academic self‐handicapping refers to the use of impediments to successful performance on academic tasks. Previous studies have shown that it is related to personal achievement goals. A performance goal orientation is a positive predictor of self‐handicapping, whereas a task goal orientation is unrelated to self‐handicapping. Aims. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between academic self‐handicapping, goal orientations (task, performance‐approach, performance‐avoidance), social goals, future consequences and achievement in mathematics. An additional aim was to investigate grade‐level and gender differences in relation to academic self‐handicapping. Sample. Participants were 702 upper elementary, junior and senior high school students with approximately equal numbers of girls and boys. Results. There were no grade‐level or gender differences as regards the use of self‐handicapping. The correlations among the variables revealed that, when the whole sample was considered, self‐handicapping was positively related to performance goal orientations and pleasing significant others and negatively to achievement in mathematics. The results of hierarchical regression analysis showed that, in upper elementary and junior high schools, the association between achievement in mathematics and self‐handicapping was mediated by performance‐avoidance goals. In senior high school, only task goal orientation was a negative predictor of self‐handicapping.     

Sex-role androgyny and patterns of causal attribution for academic achievement

In order to test the role of social psychological factors in the underrepresentation of women in mathmatics and related academic fields, a two-wave panel survey was conducted among freshmen university students (88 females and 44 males). Before and during their first academic year, survey respondents completed questionnaires assessing their psychological androgyny (employing the Bem Sex-Role Inventory) and their causal attributions for success and failure in various areas of academic achievement. Results of cross-lagged panel correlation analyses confirmed the predicted causal relationship between sex-role identification and feelings of control over achievement in mathematics and science among female respondents. No such relationship was evidenced among male respondents or among females for nonmathematical areas of academic achievement.     

A longitudinal study of students' academic self‐concept in a streamed setting: The Singapore context

Background. Although several studies support the existence of a negative stream effect on lower‐ability stream students' academic self‐concept, there is not enough longitudinal research evidence to preclude the possibility that the stream effect may only be temporary. In addition, not much is known about the effect of streaming on changes in students' academic self‐concept over time. Aims. The main aims of the study were to examine the effect of streaming on (a) the students' academic self‐concept immediately after the streaming process, and at yearly intervals for 3 consecutive years, and (b) the changes in students' academic self‐concept over a 3 year period. Sample. The sample comprised 495 Secondary 1 students (approximate age 13) from three government coeducational schools in Singapore. Method. A longitudinal survey using a self‐reported questionnaire. Results. Results showed that the lower‐ability stream students had a more negative academic self‐concept than the higher‐ability stream students immediately after streaming, but they had a more positive academic self‐concept 3 years after being streamed. In addition, it was established that the students' academic self‐concept declined from Secondary 1 to Secondary 3. Nonetheless, the decline was more pronounced for the higher‐ability stream students than the lower‐ability stream students. Conclusions. Streaming may have a short‐term negative impact on lower‐ability stream students' academic self‐concept. However, in the long run, being in the lower‐ability stream may not be detrimental to their academic self‐concept.