The relations of temperamental effortful control and anger/frustration to Chinese children's academic achievement and social adjustment: A longitudinal study.

Abstract

The prospective relations of temperamental effortful control and anger/frustration to Chinese children's (N ϭ 425, age range ϭ 6.6-9.1 years) academic achievement (grade point average, or GPA) and social adjustment (externalizing problems and social competence) were examined in a 2-wave (3.8 years apart) longitudinal study. Parents and teachers rated children's temperament, and parents, teachers, and/or peers rated children's externalizing problems and social competence. Effortful control positively predicted children's GPA, controlling for prior level of GPA. Analyses examining the potential mechanisms underlying the temperament-achievement associations suggested that effortful control positively predicted social competence, and social competence positively predicted GPA. Moreover, anger/frustration positively predicted externalizing problems, and externalizing problems negatively predicted GPA. Mediational analyses suggested that the relations between temperament and GPA were mediated by social competence and externalizing problems. Evidence for the reciprocal relations between externalizing problems and GPA was also found. The study suggested that there are complex interplays among temperament, academic achievement, and social adjustment for school-age children.

The role of temperament in children's affective and behavioral responses in achievement situations

“…It has been suggested that high negative emotionality interferes with students' cognitive processes and lowers their motivation and engagement in classroom situations (Brand, Reimer, & Opwis, 2007;Zhou et al, 2010), because intense negative emotions can draw students' attention away from the task to threatening cues in the situation (Pekrun, 2005(Pekrun, , 2006. Empirical findings among middle school students have shown that negative emotionality is associated with low levels of academic performance and selfperceived competence (Guerin, Gottfried, Oliver, & Thomas, 1994;Gumora & Arsenio, 2002).…”

“…Temperament has been examined in relation to, for example, students' achievement, student-teacher interactions, problem behavior, and psychosocial functioning at school (e.g., Eisenberg et al, 2009;Nelson, Martin, Hodge, Havill, & Kamphaus, 1999;Valiente, Lemery-Chalfant, & Swanson, 2010;Zhou, Main, & Wang, 2010). For example, studies among kindergartners and elementary school students have found good self-regulation or high effortful control to be positively related to students' self-efficacy (Liew, McTigue, Barrois, & Hughes, 2008), academic competence (Liew et al, 2008;Valiente et al, 2010;Zhou et al, 2010), classroom participation (Valiente, Lemery-Chalfant, Swanson, & Reiser, 2008), school liking (Valiente, Lemery-Chalfant, & Castro, 2007), and work habits (Curby, Rudasill, Edwards, & Pérez-Edgar, 2011). Kindergarten and elementary school students' shyness or behavioral inhibition, TEMPERAMENT, AFFECTS, AND BEHAVIORS 6 on the other hand, has been shown to be negatively related to their academic engagement (Hughes & Coplan, 2010) and achievement (Hughes & Coplan, 2010;Valiente et al, 2010).…”

Self-Regulation and School Success

“…h ere is some evidence that the importance of self-regulation to school success generalizes to non-U.S. students. For instance, in a sample of Chinese primary schoolchildren, ef ortful control measured with parent and teacher ratings predicted report card grades, when baseline grades were controlled for (Zhou, Main, & Wang, 2010 ).…”

Emotional Aspects of Learning and Teaching: Reviewing the Field − Discussing the Issues

“…The way students feel in school and the way they value school subjects and achievement are not only influenced by peers and teachers, but also by parents and other family members. The social-cognitive approach of achievement emotions (Pekrun, 2000) points out that values are transmitted by direct verbal information or by the behavior of one's significant others, and are adopted by students as a result (Eccles, 2007;Zhou, Main, & Wang, 2010). Parents and teachers are seen as significant "interpreters of reality" (Eccles et al, 1993, pp.…”