Cross-sectional analysis of psychological aspects of adolescent underachievers

Background: Previous research supports that factors commonly associated with underachievement include low academic self-concept, low self-efficacy, low self-motivation, low goal valuation and negative attitude toward school and teachers. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the feeling a...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Sanjay Kumar Nayak, Masroor Jahan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2010-01-01
Series:Industrial Psychiatry Journal
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.industrialpsychiatry.org/article.asp?issn=0972-6748;year=2010;volume=19;issue=2;spage=105;epage=110;aulast=Nayak
Description
Summary:Background: Previous research supports that factors commonly associated with underachievement include low academic self-concept, low self-efficacy, low self-motivation, low goal valuation and negative attitude toward school and teachers. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the feeling about reading of adolescent underachievers, including emotional difficulties, physical problem (usually eye dysfunction), mechanism of reading, self-concept, and interest in reading. Materials and Methods: Forty-eight underachievers were compared with 40 achievers from 6 to 10 standard students on "My feeling about reading" checklist. Hypotheses were tested using t-test and χ2 (chi-square) test through statistical package for the social sciences. Results: The result suggests that underachievers significantly differ from achievers in all five domains, i.e. emotional difficulties, physical problems (usually eye dysfunction), mechanism of reading, self-concept, and interest in learning. Conclusion: Underachievers face different emotional and other psychological difficulties during their academic sessions. They must be taken care of properly within their academic environment.
ISSN:0972-6748