Day-to-Day Variation in Students’ Academic Success: The Role of Self-Regulation, Working Memory, and Achievement Goals

Abstract

Self-regulation has been shown to be positively associated with school performance. Additionally, interrelations between self-regulation, working memory (WM), and achievement goals, in particular learning goals, have been established, as well as their associations with academic outcomes. It stands to reason that self-regulation, WM, and achievement goals are related on a day-to-day level, with implications for daily and long-term academic success. However, previous research largely considered between-person differences. Here, we therefore addressed the relations of daily self-regulation, WM, and achievement goals, and their relevance for daily and long-term academic success. Data were obtained through smartphone-based ambulatory assessments of 108 students (Mage=10.12, SDage=0.45) across 20 school days. Students reported about daily achievement goals prior to, daily self-regulation at, and daily academic success after school. Additionally, they informed about their report card grades at the end of the school year. Daily WM was assessed through two updating tasks at school. Results showed positive associations between daily learning goals (but neither performance-approach nor performance-avoidance goals), daily self-regulation, and WM. Together, daily learning goals and self-regulation uniquely contributed to daily academic success, while WM, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance goals did not. Average levels of WM, but neither achievement goals, nor self-regulation predicted report card grades. Results thus corroborate theoretical considerations on the importance of distinguishing self-regulation processes on between- and within-person levels. Further theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Fluctuations in children’s self-regulation and parent-child interaction in everyday life: An ambulatory assessment study

“…Some children are particularly impulsive when it comes to schoolwork, while others show self-regulation deficits in social interactions. Thus, for some children in our study, fluctuations in self-regulation might have mainly affected the academic domain (i.e., lower academic success on days of low self-regulation; Blume et al, 2022), while for other children, such fluctuations might have predominantly affected interpersonal behavior (i.e., talking back to the parent on days with lower self-regulation). Second, deficits in children’s self-regulation challenge parents to put additional effort into helping their children achieve their goals (i.e., helping out with their homework), which might be particularly difficult for parents with low executive control (Deater-Deckard et al, 2010).…”

“…As the first of its kind, this study aimed to investigate school children’s self-regulation in association with parent-child interaction quality in everyday life, considering daily self-regulation fluctuations in children (e.g., Blume et al, 2022; Ludwig et al, 2016). The use of ambulatory assessment across several days within 13 months allowed us to reliably capture between-person differences, as well as day-to-day within-person variations in children’s self-regulation within shorter time frames (i.e., on a day-to-day basis) and across a longer developmental period (i.e., within one school year).…”

“…The number of studies tracking children’s and adolescents’ self-regulation in everyday life is far more restricted. Initial studies showed substantial day-to-day variability in the self-regulation of children (Blume et al, 2022; Leonard et al, 2021; Ludwig et al, 2016; McCoy et al, 2022), and adolescents (Berg et al, 2014; Schmid et al, 2020). However, little is known about the circumstances under which young people’s self-regulation is attenuated or increased.…”

Special issue on development of self‐regulation, cognitive control, and executive function, Part II: Editorial note

“…Blume et al. (2022) implemented two studies to address the relations of daily SR, working memory (WM), and achievement goals, and their relevance for daily and general academic success. Study 1 results indicated that daily performance‐approach goals and SR, but not other goals or WM uniquely, contributed to daily perceived academic success.…”