Comparisons of Self-Efficacy, Mood, Effort, and Hope Between Students with Learning Disabilities and Their Non-LD-Matched Peers

Abstract

The goals of this study were to compare self-perceptions of self-efficacy, mood, effort, and hope between 123 adolescents with learning disabilities (LD) and a group of 123 Non-LD peers, who were matched for their level of academic performance and gender, and to explore the relations between measures of self-perception and achievement. The results showed that students with LD reported lower academic self-efficacy and lower social self-efficacy. They also rated their mood as more negative and reported lower levels of hope and less investment of effort in their academic work. At the same time, no significant differences were found for emotional self-efficacy in comparison to the Non-LD peer group. In addition, among students with LD who were successful in their studies, a subgroup continued to report low levels of hope. The results demonstrated that even when the academic performance of students with LD is similar to their Non-LD peers, their specific and global self-perceptions continue to reflect their distress. It is not clear if these results represent past difficulties, day-to-day struggles, and/or future worries. Resilience models are proposed and research limitations are specified.