Relations between teaching practices and students' achievement emotions in mathematics: The role of control and value

Students' achievement emotions (AEs) are closely linked to their social environment. Consistent with control-value theory (CVT), extensive research has confirmed the relevance of control and value appraisals as antecedents of AEs. However, limited attention has been paid to the relations among students' perceptions of teaching practices, control and value appraisals, and AEs.

We investigated the associations among teaching practices (conceptualized based on CVT's distinction among task emotional and motivational qualities, autonomy support, and social interactions), control and value appraisals, and AEs.

The sample comprised 1538 fourth- and seventh-grade students (M_age = 11.10, SD_age = 1.57; 51.24% females).

Students self-reported Positive Teaching (referred to as displayed teacher enthusiasm and value-related motivational messages), Student Involvement, Teacher Warmth, control and value in mathematics, and AEs in mathematics lessons and tests.

Two structural equation models showed that Positive Teaching and Teacher Warmth were positively associated with control and value. Control showed a largely consistent pattern of positive associations with positive emotions and negative associations with negative emotions, whereas value showed a more differentiated pattern, including positive associations with anxiety. Also, a pattern of associations involving the two appraisals emerged, especially for control appraisals in the relations between Teacher Warmth and enjoyment, pride, relaxation, and anxiety across the two settings. Configural, metric, and (partial for school level) scalar invariance across sex and school level was supported, as well as structural invariance.

Our findings extend the generalizability of CVT and offer insights for supporting students' AEs through positive teaching practices.