Effect of Levels of Self-Regulation and Situational Stress on Achievement Emotions in Undergraduate Students: Class, Study and Testing

First-year students' achievement emotions at university: A cluster analytic approach to understand variability in attendance and attainment

BACKGROUND

Students' initial experiences at university often shape their attendance and attainment. For some students, university is a positive experience, whereas others seemingly struggle and have more negative emotions. Unearthing distinctions in first-year students' emotionality may be valuable in understanding their academic engagement and performance.

AIMS

The study's aim was to identify distinct profiles of students based on their achievement emotions and explore whether these profiles differed in university attendance and attainment. At least three emotional profiles were hypothesized (positive; moderate; negative) with a positive profile expected to display the highest attendance and attainment.

SAMPLE

Participants were 294 first-year undergraduate students from a university in the United Kingdom (Mage = 19.33 years; 127 men; 162 women).

METHODS

Students completed self-report measures of eight achievement emotions for general learning. Attendance and attainment data were collected from official records. Hierarchical cluster analysis was performed to profile students on their achievement emotions. Analysis of covariance explored profile differences in attendance and attainment.

RESULTS

Four emotional profiles emerged: positive; moderate; negative; mixed-valence (both positive and negative activating emotions). The positive and mixed-valence groups displayed equally high attendance compared to the moderate and negative groups. The positive group obtained higher academic attainment than the mixed-valence and negative emotion groups, but not the moderate group.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings highlight the diverse emotional experiences of first-year university students and the existence of co-occurring positive and negative activation emotions. This evidence may be of practical worth to educators in understanding variability in students' emotions, attendance and attainment.

Self- vs. External-Regulation Behavior ScaleTM in different psychological contexts: A validation study

The self- vs. external-regulation behavior theory, SR-ER Theory (2021) model has postulated the Self-Regulation /Non or De-Regulation/Dys-regulation (SR-NR-DR) continuum in the person and in their context. The model also generates a behavioral heuristic that allows us to predict and explain the variability of other dependent behavioral variables in a range of scenarios (clinical, educational, health and technology contexts). Consequently, the objective of this study was to validate the different scales prepared on the basis of the theory presented. A total of 469 students voluntarily completed at different times the five questionnaires presented, to give a total of 1,385 completed questionnaires. Using an ex post facto design, descriptive, correlational, confirmatory factorial analysis (CFA), reliability, and concurrent validity analyses were carried out. The scales were analyzed individually and as a whole. The results showed the acceptable structure of scale and consistent levels of reliability. The five levels generated by the SR-NR-DR (personal and contextual) combinatory heuristic that arises from the theoretical model determined significant differences in the levels of the variables analyzed for each psychological context. We discuss the theoretical implications and the implications for the assessment and improvement of the behaviors analyzed in function of the personal and contextual regulation levels evaluated.

Advances on Self-Regulation Models: A New Research Agenda Through the SR vs ER Behavior Theory in Different Psychology Contexts

The aim of this paper is to demonstrate how Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory (1986) influenced the development of several complementary models of the construct of Self-Regulation. Building on the foundation of Self-Determination Theory, SDT (2000), and Zimmerman's Self-Regulation Theory, SR (2001), with their assumptions, contributions, goddesses, and limitations, we come to the Self- vs. External Regulatory Theory, SR-ER (2021). Finally, we integrate recent evidence demonstrating the explanatory adequacy of the SR vs. ER model for different psychological constructions in different settings related to education, health, clinical practice and social work. Complementary, a new theoretical and empirical research agenda is presented, to continue testing the adequacy of SR vs. ER assumptions, and to better understand the behavioral variability of the different constructs studied.

School Burnout Inventory: Factorial Validity, Reliability, and Measurement Invariance in a Chilean Sample of High School Students

This brief report assessed the psychometric validity and gender invariance of the School Burnout Inventory (SBI) -a measure of students' exhaustion, cynicism, and inadequacy- in a convenience sample of 972 high school Chilean students ranging between 12 and 18 years old. The results showed that: (1) the SBI produces adequate scores in terms of reliability; (2) two models (one solution of three related factors and one of second-order and three first-order factors) fitted adequately fit to our sample and was invariant across gender; and (3) the SBI scores were significantly related to other related constructs (i.e., study-related emotions, academic psychological capital, and academic engagement). Overall, the SBI was found to be a reliable and valid inventory to assess school burnout in Chilean high school students.

A Path Analysis Model of Protection and Risk Factors for University Academic Stress: Analysis and Psychoeducational Implications for the COVID-19 Emergency

The aim of this research was to empirically validate hypothesized predictive relationships of protection and risk factors for experiencing academic stress. A synthesis of models-the presage-process-product model; the studying, learning and performing under stress competency model; and self- vs. external-regulatory theory-underlies the investigation and is important for assessment and guidance in stress situations within the university context. Over the course of an academic year, a sample of 564 Spanish university students voluntarily completed validated questionnaires, in an online format, on several psychological variables connected to academic stress. Correlational analysis and the path analysis model, within an ex post facto design, were used to build empirical models of the presage-process-product factors that constitute protection or risk factors in academic stress. Two statistically acceptable models appeared: one with protection factors and another with risk factors in predicting and preventing academic stress at a university. These results support the need for psychology units at university that have a preventive, health and education focus, going beyond the merely clinical. Focus on an individual is insufficient, given that there are also contextual factors that predispose academic stress. Discussion, conclusions, and implications for assessment and intervention in academic stress in university students and teachers, within the present COVID-19 crisis, are offered.

How Has the COVID-19 Crisis Affected the Academic Stress of University Students? The Role of Teachers and Students

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have required substantial adjustments in terms of university teaching-learning processes. The aim of this study was to verify whether there were significant differences between the academic year of 2020 and the two preceding years in factors and symptoms and stress. A total of 642 university students (ages 18-25 years) participated by filling out validated self-reports during the months from March to August 2020. Using an ex post facto design, SEM analyses and simple and multiple ANOVAs were performed. Structural results showed that stress factors from the teaching process had a predictive value for the learning process, emotions, and academic burnout, and being a man was a factor predicting negative emotion. In a similar way, inferential results revealed no significant effect of academic year but did show an effect of gender on stress experiences during the pandemic. Aside from certain specific aspects, there was no significant global effect of the year 2020 on factors and symptoms of stress. The results showed that studying in the year of the COVID-19 outbreak did not have a significant effect on stress triggered by the teaching process. From these results, we draw implications for specific guidance interventions with university teachers and students.

Satisfaction with Self and External Regulation of Learning in Higher Education Students in Brazil

The satisfaction of university students with the variables that regulate their learning provides very valuable information to improve the quality of teaching processes. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the learning of Brazilian university students, exploring both self-regulation variables, such as study techniques; and more external regulation variables, namely, satisfaction with the teaching–learning process and with the infrastructure, based on three variables: gender, the institution of higher education and the academic year of the students. To achieve this, 560 students of the Pedagogy degree were evaluated with two questionnaires: a questionnaire of satisfaction with the educational infrastructure and the teaching–learning process and a questionnaire on study techniques. Statistically significant differences were obtained, especially depending on the type of institution and the academic year. The students of private schools and earlier academic years were the ones who obtained the most satisfaction with the study techniques and with the infrastructure. Those from private centers also expressed more satisfaction with the teaching–learning processes. These results provide greater knowledge about the processes of self-regulation and external regulation of university learning and of their satisfaction with them, which can contribute to improving educational policies in Brazil.

Regulation/Non-Regulation/Dys-Regulation of Health Behavior, Psychological Reactance, and Health of University Undergraduate Students

The Self-Regulation vs. External-Regulation Theory (2017) has postulated a continuum of regulation/non-regulation/dys-regulation that is present both in the individual and in the individual’s context. This gives rise to a behavioral heuristic that can predict and explain other health-related variables, such as psychological reactance and student health. On a voluntary basis, 269 university students completed validated questionnaires on variables of regulation, reactance and health. Using an ex post facto design, we performed correlational analysis and structural linear regression to build a structural equations model (SEM) with acceptable statistical values. The results showed various predicted relationships: self-regulation was associated with and positively predicted self-regulated health behavior; external health-regulating contexts were associated with and positively predicted self-regulated health behavior; non-regulatory and dysregulatory contexts negatively predicted self-regulated health behavior and students’ health itself, as well as positively predicting psychological reactance behavior. Implications are established for explaining variability in general and health-related self-regulation, as well as for intervening in these variables in health programs.

Cross-Sectional Study of Resilience, Positivity and Coping Strategies as Predictors of Engagement-Burnout in Undergraduate Students: Implications for Prevention and Treatment in Mental Well-Being

In a population of young adults, this study analyzes possible linear relations of resilience and positivity to coping strategies and engagement-burnout. The aim was to establish a model with linear, associative, and predictive relations, to identify needs and make proposals for therapeutic intervention in different student profiles. A population of 1,126 undergraduate students with different student profiles gave their informed, written consent, and completed validated questionnaires (CD-RISC Scale; Positivity; Coping Strategies of Stress; Engagement, and Burnout). An ex post-facto design involved bivariate association analyses, multiple regression and structural predictions. The results offered evidence of associations and predictive relationships between resilience factors, positivity, coping strategies and engagement-burnout. The factors of resilience and positivity had significant differential associations (positive and negative) with factors of coping strategies. Their negative relationship to burnout factors, and positive relation to engagement factors, is especially important. Results of structural analysis showed an acceptable model of relationships between variables. We conclude with practical implications for therapeutic intervention: (1) the proactive factors of resilience reflect a perception of self-efficacy and the ability to change adaptively; (2) the reactive factors of resilience are usually associated with withstanding experiences of change, uncertainty or trauma.

Differential Effects of Self- vs. External-Regulation on Learning Approaches, Academic Achievement, and Satisfaction in Undergraduate Students

The aim of this research was to determine the degree to which undergraduate students’ learning approach, academic achievement and satisfaction were determined by the combination of an intrapersonal factor (self-regulation) and a interpersonal factor (contextual or regulatory teaching). The hypothesis proposed that greater combined regulation (internal and external) would be accompanied by more of a deep approach to learning, more satisfaction and higher achievement, while a lower level of combined regulation would determine a surface approach, less satisfaction and lower achievement. Within an ex post facto design by selection, 1036 university students completed validated questionnaires using an online tool. Several multivariate analyses were conducted. Results showed that the combination of self-regulation and external regulation can be ordered as levels along a five-point scale or heuristic. These levels linearly determine type of learning approach, academic achievement and satisfaction. Implications are established for quality and improvement of the teaching and learning process at university.

Key Teacher Attitudes for Sustainable Development of Student Employability by Social Cognitive Career Theory: The Mediating Roles of Self-Efficacy and Problem-Based Learning

Higher education policy and talent training are failing to meet the ever-changing expectations of employers and society in Taiwan, resulting in a gap between university education and employment. This study used social cognitive career theory (SCCT) to explore the relationships among self-efficacy, transformational leadership (TL), student employability (SE), and problem-based learning (PBL) in higher education institutions (HEIs). The analysis of 637 undergraduates from 16 Taiwanese HEIs using structural equation modeling (SEM) shows significant positive correlations among self-efficacy, PBL, TL, and SE, with PBL and self-efficacy as key mediators. Based on these findings, the researchers propose feasible suggestions for related issues and future research.

Do Learning Approaches Set the Stage for Emotional Well-Being in College Students?

The research aim of this paper was two-fold: to generate evidence that personality factors are linear predictors of the variable approaches to learning (a relevant cognitive-motivational variable of Educational Psychology); and to show that each type of learning approach differentially predicts positive or negative achievement emotions, in three learning situations: class time, study time, and testing. A total of 658 university students voluntarily completed validated questionnaires referring to these three variables. Using an ex post facto design, we conducted correlational analyses, regression analyses, and multiple structural predictions. The results showed that Conscientiousness is associated with and predicts a Deep Approach to learning, while also predicting positive achievement emotions. By contrast, Neuroticism is associated with and significantly predicts a Surface Approach to learning, as well as negative achievement emotions. There are important psychoeducational implications in the university context, both for prevention and for self-improvement, and for programs that offer psychoeducational guidance.