Academic Self-Concept and Performance Goals: Do Their Reciprocal Effects Differ for Academic Over- and Underachievers?

• In Event: Current Theoretical Perspectives and Methodological Approaches in Underachievement Research

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to examine the longitudinal interplay of motivational and self-concept variables within academic subgroups of over- and underachievers.

Academic self-concept and performance goals have proven to be important predictors of academic learning and performance. With respect to the latter, two different goal orientations have been highlighted: approach and avoidance. Whereas performance-approach goals have been shown to be positively related to academic success, the opposite holds for performance-avoidance goals. Particularly in the field of academic underachievement, both constructs are of great importance. As underachievement is defined as a discrepancy between ability and expected performance, it is supposed to depend highly on individual’s motivation and self-concept. However, and not only for underachievers, the longitudinal relationship of these functional mechanisms is yet largely unexplored.

We specified a multiple-group, two-wave latent variable cross-lagged model. Therefore, we differentiated two subgroups of academic over- and underachievers. These groups were defined as studentized residuals from regressing academic achievement in mathematics on fluid intelligence. The hierarchical sample structure (students clustered in different classes) was taken into account for data analysis.

The data for this study were obtained from two waves of an ongoing longitudinal study focusing on self-concept development in high school. The sample comprised N = 217 underachievers and 206 overachievers in thirty-four classes at five different academic-track schools. The students were examined across a 12-month period shortly after the mid-term reports in grade 5 (Time 1) and 6 (Time 2), respectively. Intelligence was assessed at Time 1 with the KFT 4–12 + R (Heller & Perleth, 2000; German adaption of the Cognitive Abilities Test, Thorndike & Hagen, 1971), academic self-concept and performance goals were measured twice (at Time 1 and Time 2, respectively) using self-description questionnaires (short versions of the SDQ II and the AGQ, Marsh, 1990, 2007; Elliot & McGregor, 2001).

We found a generalizable reciprocal relationship between performance-avoidance goals and academic self-concept. Performance-avoidance goals at Time 1 showed a negative linkage to academic self-concept at Time 2, whereas academic self-concept at Time 1 was negatively related to performance-avoidance goals at Time 2. Performance-approach goals, for their part, were not significantly interrelated with academic self-concept but showed negative reciprocal effects with performance-avoidance goals. Although the weights of several cross-lagged paths differed for over- and underachievers, none of the group differences in crossed-lagged paths reached statistical significance (p < .05). Thus, the same dynamics seem to apply.

Decreases in academic self-concept need to be taken seriously, due to potentially undesirable effects on academic achievement, such as persisting underachievement. Academic self-concept is sensitive to the adoption of individual performance-avoidance goals. Hence, educational interventions should focus more on motivational avoidance tendencies in students.

Authors

• Franzis Preckel, University of Trier

• Christoph Niepel, University of Trier