Abstract
This study used latent transition analysis (LTA) to examine stability and change in the emotion profiles of university students during a two-semester course. Three positive emotions (i.e., hope, pride, and happiness) and five negative emotions (i.e., guilt, helplessness, anger, shame, and regret) derived from Weiner’s attribution theory of emotion (1985, 2007, 2018a, 2018b) were used to identify the emotion profiles of university students at the beginning (Time 1) and end (Time 2) of a two-semester course. We also examined changes in emotion profile memberships over time. Results showed 81% of participants remained in their Time 1 profiles at Time 2, with the majority classified in profiles defined by stable positive emotions or mixed emotions. ANCOVAs indicated that students in the stable positive emotion profile achieved better overall course performance than those with a stable mixed profile or a stable negative emotion profile. An ascending emotion transition profile (Time 1 mixed-to-Time 2 positive) performed better than a stable mixed emotion profile. The present findings extend our current understanding of multifaceted profiles of student emotion that can change over time.
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Students in our study did not consent to the data being made publicly available. In addition, the data also contain confidential student records.
Notes
There were multiple categories for students to enroll in undergraduate programs, in addition to direct entry from high school. In light of this, we asked students to self-report their overall percentage in their last year of high school and used this as a control variable to account for prior academic performance on their Introductory Psychology course. Students reported a wide range of possible high school GPAs, including less than 60%
Three participants had invalid scores on academic measures and hence they were not included in the ANCOVA.
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Funding
This research was supported by an award to Raymond P. Perry from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Insight program (435–2017-0804) and the Royal Society of Canada.
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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. The research procedures have adhered to the Declaration of Helsinki and received approval from the University Research Ethics Board. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the studies.
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Tze, V.M.C., Daniels, L.M., Hamm, J.M. et al. Stability and change in the achievement emotion profiles of university students. Curr Psychol 41, 6363–6374 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-01133-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-01133-0