The linkages of achievement-related boredom with students' appraisals and performance outcomes were examined in a series of 5 exploratory, cross-sectional , and predictive investigations. Studies I and 2 assessed students' boredom in a single achievement episode (i.e., state achievement boredom); Studies 3, 4, and 5 focused on their habitual boredom (i.e., trait achievement boredom). Samples consisted of university students from two different cultural contexts (North America and Germany). In line with hypotheses derived from Pekrun's (2006) control-value theory of achievement emotions, achievementrelated subjective control and value negatively predicted boredom. In turn, boredom related positively to attention problems and negatively to intrinsic motivation, effo rt, use of elaboration strategies , sel fregulation, and subsequent academic performance. Findings were consi stent across different constructs (state vs. trait achievement boredom), methodologies (qualitative, cross-sectional, and predicti ve), and cultural co ntexts. The research is discussed with regard to the underdeveloped literature on achievement emotions.

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Affect and emotions are frequently seen as outcomes of mastery and performance goals, but affective experiences may also predict goal adoption. In a predictive study (N ϭ 669 first-year college students), the authors used structural equation modeling to estimate relationships from 2 initial affective experiences to mastery and performance-approach goals, from goals to discrete emotions, and from discrete emotions to final grades in a university course while controlling for prior achievement. Representing initial affective experiences, hopefulness positively predicted mastery and performance goals, whereas helplessness negatively predicted mastery goals. Mastery goals positively predicted enjoyment, which in turn positively predicted achievement, and negatively predicted boredom, which in turn negatively predicted achievement. Anxiety was negatively predicted by mastery goals, positively predicted by performance goals, and exerted a negative predictive influence on achievement. The findings suggest that predictive relationships between goals and achievement are mediated by students' emotions. Results are discussed with regard to the importance of affect and emotions for achievement goal theory.

This article reports about the development and validation of a measurement instrument assessing elementary school students' achievement emotions (Achievement Emotions Questionnaire-Elementary School, AEQ-ES). Specifically, the instrument assesses students' enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom pertaining to three types of academic settings (i.e., attending class, doing homework, and taking tests and exams). Scale construction was based on Pekrun's (2006) control-value theory of achievement emotions. The instrument was tested using samples from German and American elementary school classrooms. The results of Study 1 (German sample) corroborate the reliability and structural validity of the new emotion measure. Moreover, they show that students' achievement emotions were linked with their control and value appraisals as well as their academic performance, thus supporting the external validity of the measure as well as propositions of Pekrun's (2006) control-value theory of achievement emotions. Study 2 (American sample) corroborated the cross-cultural equivalence of the measure and the generalizability of findings across the German and American samples. Implications for research on achievement emotions and educational practice are discussed.

BACKGROUND. Boredom has been found to be an important emotion for students' learning processes and achievement outcomes; however, the precursors of this emotion remain largely unexplored. AIM. In the current study, scales assessing the precursors to boredom in academic achievement settings were developed and tested. SAMPLE. Participants were 1,380 grade 5-10 students in mathematics classes. METHOD. The Precursors to Boredom Scales were tested for structural and convergent validity with multi-level confirmatory factor analyses (ML-CFA), and differences in the perception of the precursors of boredom due to gender were investigated. RESULTS. The first ML-CFA found support for the structural validity of the Precursors to Boredom Scales. In a second ML-CFA, the newly developed boredom scales showed good convergent validity with several key aspects of instructional quality. Finally, the results supported previous research that found no gender differences in academic self-concept and interest. CONCLUSION. The precursors contained in our scales are empirically separable. Implications of the current findings for research on boredom among students are discussed.