Background. There is ample evidence that motivational variables such as self-beliefs and mastery goals are important non-cognitive aspects for student learning and performance in school (Eccles & Wigfield, 2020; Linnenbrink-Garcia, Tyson & Patall, 2008). Likewise, research has consistently shown positive relationships between cognitive ability and achievement in school (Kriegbaum, Becker, & Spinath, 2018). Studies using both sets of variables have indicated that self-beliefs and motivation does have a significant effect on performance, but that this effect is often weak compared to the effect of cognitive ability and other aptitude measures (Kriegbaum, Becker, & Spinath, 2018). However, most previous research has been cross-sectional, and longitudinal studies on “what causes what and which variables are more important in the long run?” are not entirely conclusive and mostly based on small sampled assessed over a short time period. Thus, how relationships between early performance, motivational aspects and later performance look like is still less well known.
Purpose. The current study aimed to investigate whether students’ self-beliefs and mastery goals have an impact on later achievement over and above that of previous achievement and cognitive ability, and also whether previous achievement may have an impact of later self-beliefs and mastery goals. In essence, what role do these motivational beliefs seem to play during the course of schooling; how do they affect and how are they affected by cognitive outcomes in school?
Data and methodology. A longitudinal data set with 2,256 students assessed at three time points over six years was used. Data contained performance measures as well as motivational measures: information about cognitive ability (inductive reasoning and vocabulary) in grade 6 and national test scores in mathematics and the Swedish language in grade 9 and 12; measures of self-beliefs in these school subjects in grades 6, 9, and 12; and measures of mastery goals in grades 6 and 9. Methodologically, longitudinal structural equation modelling (an autoregressive cross-lagged panel path model with control variables) was used to investigate relationships between the different variables over time. Models were set up for both mathematics and Swedish language.
Findings. Autoregressive paths showed that earlier mastery goals and self-beliefs were strong predictors of later mastery goals and self-beliefs. Cognitive ability (inductive reasoning in the math model and vocabulary in the Swedish model) in grade 6 was predictive of national test scores in the respective subject in grade 9, while national test scores in grade 9 were moderate predictors of national test scores in grade 12. Findings further indicate that self-beliefs in grade 6 were significantly related to national test scores in grade 9, which in turn were significantly related to self-beliefs in grade 12. This was true for both math and Swedish. Within each time point, there were positive and significant correlations between all measured variables. For math, neither earlier self-beliefs nor mastery goals was significantly related to math score in grade 12. For Swedish, mastery goal orientation in grade 9 had a significant but weak effect on test score in grade 12.
Discussion and conclusion. As expected, findings suggest that earlier performance is a stonger predictor of later performance than motivational variables are. However, a more interesting finding is that motivational variables can be significant predictors over and above that of previous performance even over the long time spans that we have studied. For example, our models show that subject-specific self-beliefs in grade 6 seem to have an effect on subject-specific performance three years later, also when the effect of cognitive ability and current self-beliefs have been accounted for. This suggests that the skills and knowledge the students bring to school need not be decisive of later performance, but that other variables can contribute to academic improvement over time. Also, performance in Grade 9 had a positive effect on self-beliefs in Grade 12, indicating a reciprocal relationship. Overall, findings indicate that motivational aspects may be important for scholastic achievement ‘in the long run’. Motivational components feed into both learning and assessment in school, a changing assessment system and assessment practices may also consider incorporating assessment of student motivations and attitudes, and teachers may need encouragement in fostering sound self-beliefs in students.
2022.