The Relationship Between Attitude Toward Science and Academic Achievement in Science: A Three-Level Meta-Analysis
Peipei Mao1, Zhihui Cai1, Jinbo He2
1School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China.
Frontiers in Psychology
|January 3, 2022
Summary
This study found a positive link between students' attitudes toward science and their academic success. Factors like self-efficacy significantly influence this relationship in science education.
Area of Science:
- Educational Psychology
- Science Education Research
Background:
- The relationship between attitude toward science and academic achievement is widely studied but lacks consistent conclusions.
- Investigating moderating factors is crucial for understanding this complex association.
Approach:
- A three-level meta-analytic approach was employed.
- Synthesized data from 37 studies, encompassing 132 effect sizes and over 1 million participants.
- Examined how study characteristics influence the attitude-achievement relationship.
Key Points:
- A moderate, positive relationship (r = 0.248) exists between attitude toward science and science achievement.
- Self-efficacy demonstrated a stronger association than interest, societal relevance, or mixed attitudes.
- Unstandardized measures of science achievement yielded larger effect sizes than standardized measures.
Conclusions:
- Attitude toward science is a significant, albeit moderate, predictor of academic achievement in science.
- Specific components of attitude, like self-efficacy, play a more influential role.
- Methodological choices in measuring achievement can impact observed effect sizes.
Keywords:
academic achievement in scienceattitude toward sciencemeta-analysismoderator analysisscience achievementMore Related Videos
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