Association Between Measures of Academic Performance and Psychosocial Adjustment for Asian/Pacific-Islander Adolescents

Abstract

This study examined the association between different measures of academic performance and psychological adjustment for a sample of under-researched Asian/Pacific-Islander adolescents from Hawaii. The participants included Native Hawaiians, Filipinos, Japanese, mixed/non-Hawaiians and Caucasians. The results supported the use of the actual quantification of academic performance (i.e. cumulative grade-point average [GPA] or self-reported 'last-report-card' evaluation) in predicting psychiatric symptoms and school-related behavioural difficulties. As hypothesized, the larger the absolute difference between actual and self-reported performance, the higher were the levels of adjustment difficulties. Students who had a full evaluation grade discrepancy or more between their actual and self-reported evaluations were at higher risk based on the six adjustment outcomes. Implications were discussed from methodological-psychometric and practice-based perspectives. Further research was delineated.