Previous work has established how achievement emotions are related to the trichotomous model of achievement goals, and how they predict academic performance. In our study we examine relations using an additional, mastery-avoidance goal, and whether outcome-focused emotions are predicted by mastery as well as performance goals. Results showed that…

Empirical evidence on the association between the shifting component of executive functioning and academic performance is equivocal. In two meta-analyses children's shifting ability is examined in relation to their performance in math (k = 18, N = 2330) and reading (k = 16, N = 2266). Shifting ability was significantly and equally associated with…

A study was conducted on the involvement of visuospatial working memory (VSWM) in intuitive geometry and in school performance in geometry at secondary school. A total of 166 pupils were administered: (1) six VSWM tasks, comprising simple storage and complex span tasks; and (2) the intuitive geometry task devised by Dehaene, Izard, Pica, and…

It is known that there are many factors affecting students' problem-solving abilities. In this study, the influence of seventh-grade students' affective factors, their academic success, their gender and their families' educational levels on their problem-solving achievement was examined. To achieve this aim, a Problem-Solving Attitude Scale, a…

The present study examined the contribution of self-efficacy beliefs in self-regulated learning (SESRL) in predicting academic achievement at the end of junior high school above and beyond the effects of previous academic achievement, gender, socioeconomic status, intelligence, personality traits, and self-esteem. Participants included 170 (87…

Previous research has found perceived academic control (PAC) to be a better predictor of first-year college students' grades than self-esteem; however, it is uncertain which construct is more important for students' well-being. The current study compared PAC and self-esteem on first-year college students' emotions, perceived stress, and…

In this correlational research, we investigated to what extent achievement goals, in conjunction with need for achievement and fear of failure as well as perceived classroom goal structures, are related to learning strategies among upper elementary school students. After taking into account students' tendency to respond in a socially desirable…

Marsh and Koller (2004) combined the reciprocal-effects model and the internal/external frame-of-reference model into a unified model of relationships between academic self-concept and achievement. However, this model has only been examined with German adolescents. We decided to test this model with two-wave data drawn from a national survey of…

To gain insight in developmental trajectories of motivation during upper primary school, the present study focused on how different aspects of students' motivation, i.e., task-orientation, self-efficacy, and school investment develop from grade three to six of primary school and how these developments differ for boys and girls, and students with…

This study seeks to understand boys' lower academic success by analysing the relationship between sex, gender role self-concept, help seeking attitudes, and school performance in a sample of 182 German 11th grade students (83 girls, 99 boys), age 16. Grades at two points in time, intelligence test data, help-seeking attitudes, gender role…

Underpinned by the hierarchical model of approach and avoidance motivation, the study examined the differential relations of individual-oriented and social-oriented achievement motives to approach and avoidance achievement goals (mastery-approach, performance-approach, mastery-avoidance, performance-avoidance). A total of 570 Chinese high school…

Past research into the ability of students to "bounce back" from everyday academic setback (academic buoyancy) has lacked sensitivity to the contexts in which children demonstrate this behavior. Here we aimed to contextualize past findings by reporting the results of an exploratory investigation that featured: (1) repeated measurement of students'…

Although past research has shown the benefits of using approach coping in dealing with negative emotions, little is known about how students cope with a common negative achievement emotion, boredom, across cultures. Therefore, the goals of this study were to validate the Boredom Coping Scale (BCS) in Canada (n = 151, mean age = 23.29) and China (n…

Two classroom studies tested whether mastery-approach goals and performance-approach goals nudge students to pursue different learning agendas. Each showed that mastery-approach goals promote an interest-based studying approach in which students allocate study time disproportionately to personally interesting material over duller material. Study 2…

Identifying the best predictors of academic performance is crucial for postsecondary institutions seeking students with the greatest promise. We investigated the relative strength of standardized test scores (ACT), high school GPA, and non-cognitive, college readiness skills in predicting college GPA. College freshmen (505) completed the 108-item…