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Academic expectations and actual achievements: the roles of hope and effort

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Abstract

This study sought to extend the research on adolescents' hope, academic expectations, and average grades. The hope theory (Snyder, Psychological Inquiry 13(4):249–275, 2002), the salutogenic paradigm (with a focus on sense of coherence (SOC) (Antonovsky 1987)), and Bandura's (Journal of Management 38(1):9–44, 2012) social learning theory (with a focus on three self-efficacy (SE) constructs: academic SE, social SE, and emotional SE), were used as an integrated conceptual framework for predicting expected and actual academic performance. The sample consisted of 289 10th grade high school students (152 girls and 137 boys). The structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis provided support for the hypothesized modified model. The results demonstrated that hopeful thinking had a direct effect on grade expectations, which, in turn, predicted academic achievement. In addition, SOC, social SE, emotional SE, and academic SE were interrelated, but only emotional SE and SOC contributed directly to hope. Academic SE predicted effort, which also contributed to hope. Thus, the relations between students' investment of effort and actual grades were predicted indirectly through hopeful thinking and grade expectations. The implications for future research and the field of educational psychology of using hope, SOC, and SE as an integrated conceptual framework for predicting academic outcomes are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Behavior Sciences, Peres Academic Center, Rechovot, Israel

    Uzi Levi, Michal Einav & Malka Margalit

  2. Department of Psychology, The Academic College of Yaffo - Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Michal Einav

  3. School of Education, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Orit Ziv, Ilana Raskind & Malka Margalit

Authors
  1. Uzi Levi
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  2. Michal Einav
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  3. Orit Ziv
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  4. Ilana Raskind
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  5. Malka Margalit
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Correspondence to Malka Margalit.

Additional information

Uzi Levi, Ph.D. Lecturer at the School of Behavior Sciences, Peres Academic Center, Rechovot, Israel. E-mail: uzil@pac.ac.il

Current themes of research:

Social, clinical and educational psychology with a focus on Stigma.

Michal Einav, Ph.D. Lecturer at the School of Behavior Sciences, Peres Academic Center, Rechovot and at the Department of Psychology, Tel Aviv - Yaffo Academic College. E-mail: einav.michal@gmail.com

Current themes of research:

Social, emotional and clinical processes, with a focus on children' adolescents and family dynamics.

Orit Ziv, Ph.D. School of Education, Tel-Aviv University. E-mail: oritziv@post.tau.ac.il

Current themes of research:

Counselor specializing in children and adolescents.

Ilana Raskind, MA. Research Assistant, School of Education, Tel-Aviv University. E-mail: ilraskind@gmail.com

Malka Margalit, Ph.D., Professor and Dean of School of Behavior Sciences, Peres Academic Center, Rechovot, and Professor Emeritus, School of Education, Tel-Aviv University. E-mail: malka@post.tau.ac.il

Current themes of research:

Social and emotional processes in school: Children and adolescents with a focus on resilience, hope theory, and positive psychology in school.

Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:

Margalit, M. (2010). Lonely children and adolescents: Self perceptions, social exclusion and Hope. New York: Springer.

Idan, O., & Margalit, M. (2013). Socio-emotional self-perceptions, family climate, and hopeful thinking among students with learning disabilities and typically achieving students from the same classes. Journal of Learning Disabilities. doi:10.1177/0022219412439608.

Al-Yagon, M., Cavendish, W., Cornoldi, C., Fawcett, A., Grünke, M., Hung, L. Y., Jiménez, J.E., Karande, S., van Kraayenoord, C. E., Lucangeli, D., Margalit, M., Montague, M., Sholapurwala, R., Sideridis, G., Tressoldi, P. E., & Vio, C. (2013). The Proposed Changes for DSM-5 for SLD and ADHD: International Perspectives—Australia, Germany, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, Spain, Taiwan, United Kingdom, and United States. Journal of Learning Disabilities. 46(1), 58-72.

Einav, M., Levi, U., & Margalit, M. (2012). Mothers' coping and hope in early intervention. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 27(3), 265-280.

Sharabi A., Levi, U & Margalit, M. (2012). Children's loneliness, sense of coherence, family climate and hope: Developmental risk and protective factors. The Journal of Psychology, 146, 61-83.

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Levi, U., Einav, M., Ziv, O. et al. Academic expectations and actual achievements: the roles of hope and effort. Eur J Psychol Educ 29, 367–386 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-013-0203-4

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