The Developmental Associations Between Science Anxiety and Science Achievement in middle to high school

• In Event: Poster Session 03
  In Poster Session: PS 03 Topic - Education, Schooling

Abstract

In line with Control-Value Theory of achievement emotion, previous research has continually demonstrated the negative reciprocal relations between academic anxiety (e.g. math anxiety) and academic achievement (Gunderson et al. 2018; Pekrun et al. 2017; Wang et al. 2020). However, the bidirectionality between science anxiety and science achievement has received scant attention. The present study aims to address this major gap in the literature. Science anxiety refers to students’ fearful and nervous emotion specifically when dealing with science related activities (Mallow 1986). Science learning is critical for adolescents, as their attitudes and emotions toward science can have a lasting impact on career decisions making in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Based on previous research regarding the negative reciprocal relations between anxiety and achievement in other academic domains, we hypothesized that there would be a negative reciprocal relation between science anxiety and science achievement over time. Autoregressive cross-lagged model (ARCL) has been commonly used to examine the bidirectionality between two variables. However, the conflation of the between- and-within-person processes in ARCL has raised some concerns regarding this model (Berry & Willoughby, 2017). Thus, the present study utilized an alternative model, bivariate Latent Curved Model with Structured Residual (LCM-SR; Curran et al., 2014), to better understand the relation between science anxiety and science achievement at both the between-person and within-person levels (Figure 1).

Data was drawn from the Longitudinal Study of American Youth (LSAY; 1987- 2011). For the current study, we utilized a subsample of 3114 students whose data were available from Grade 7 to Grade 12. Students’ science achievement was measured in Grades 7 to 12 using problem sets from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP, 1986). Science anxiety was measured using three items that were developed by the LSAY team (Miller, 1987- 2011).

At the between-person level, the mean level of science anxiety stayed fairly constant over time. Students’ science achievement followed a decelerated increase trajectory over time. Students who had higher science anxiety in the seventh grade also had lower science achievement in the seventh grade and showed slower growth in science achievement over time.

At the within-person level, there were significant autoregressive stability paths in both science anxiety and science achievement. However, the results suggested no significant reciprocal association between the cross-lagged effects of science anxiety and science achievement at the within-person level.

By disaggregating the within-person and between-person effects, our finding suggested that the relation between science anxiety and science achievement existed at between-person level, not the within-person level Compared to students with lower science anxiety in Grade 7, students who had higher science anxiety tended to have lower science achievement in Grade 7 and showed slower growth in science achievement over time. However, for any given student, a higher science anxiety compared to his/her overall growth trajectory did not seem to predict changes in his/her science achievement and vice versa.

Authors

• Tianyu Li, Austin Peay State University
  Presenting Author

• Leslie Monique Hasty, Texas Tech University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Michaela Quintero, Texas Tech University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Zhe Wang, Texas A&M University - College Station
  Non-Presenting Author