Self-Regulation and School Performance: Is There Optimal Level of Action-Control?

Authors: Lopez D.F.¹; Little T.D.²; Oettingen G.²; Baltes P.B.²

Source: Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, Volume 70, Number 1, July 1998 , pp. 54-74(21)

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Abstract:

Research on the self-regulatory implications of psychological control suggests that overestimations of ones capabilities may be associated with enhanced performance. We examined this hypothesis in a two-year (three-occasion) longitudinal study of 381 German school children (8-11 years of age). Controlling for gender, grade in school, prior academic achievement, and level of intelligence, we used path analysis to examine the longitudinal relations between overestimations of ones personal agency and subsequent school performance. We expected overestimations of ones agency to facilitate subsequent school performance. Furthermore, we expected that this relationship would be strongest for those with moderate overestimations of their agency. Supporting our first hypothesis, overestimations of ones capabilities were consistently associated with improvements in subsequent school performance. However, our second hypothesis was not supported. The results suggest that overestimating personal agency is one possible mechanism through which one maintains and improves performance. Copyright 1998 Academic Press.

Language: English

Document Type: Research article

Affiliations: 1: Bard College 2: Max Planck Institute For Human Development, Berlin, Germany

Publication date: 1998-07-01