The Impact of Motivation, Psychological Functioning, and Perceived Teacher Support on Academic Achievement: A Multilayered Approach
Archibald, Alva
Citations
Abstract
While there is extensive research on numerous factors that influence students’ academic achievement, there is little research that captures the dimensionality of the learning experience by simultaneously taking into account motivational, psychological and classroom contextual factors. For this study, multiple predictors of academic achievement are assessed for a predominantly Latinx sample. Investigating various configurations of determinants becomes especially important during adolescence, a time when motivation tends to wane with age and grade level (Caprara et al., 2008; Fredricks & Eccles, 2002; Jacobs, Lanza, Osgood, Eccles, & Wigfield, 2002; Watt, 2004). An appraisal of the interplay among the sources of influence can be particularly instructive in identifying unique combinations of determinants that contribute to student achievement and may potentially offer a window of opportunity to put empirically-based findings into practice to improve academic outcomes for students. This study examined ethnicity, English Language Learner (ELL) status, academic self-efficacy, cost value, internalizing risk, and perceived teacher support as predictors of academic achievement. Interactions were also assessed. A hierarchical multiple regression was used to examine the predictive value of ethnicity, ELL status, academic self-efficacy, cost value, internalizing risk, and perceived teacher support on academic achievement within a sample of middle school students (N=1,206). Ethnicity, internalizing risk, and perceived teacher support each predicted academic achievement. While ethnicity and internalizing risk negatively predicted academic achievement, teacher support positively predicted achievement. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
