PRESENTING A CAUSAL MODEL FOR PREDICTING ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT BASED ON INTELLIGENCE BELIEFS AND SCIENTIFIC OPTIMISM MEDIATED BY ACADEMIC ENGAGEMENT AND SELF-EFFICACY

Abstract

One of the important indicators of the efficiency of educational systems is to examine the learners’ academic achievement and the related effective factors. This study aims to analyze the relationship between academic achievement, intelligence beliefs, scientific optimism, academic engagement, and academic self-efficacy in the form of a causal model. In this descriptive and correlational study, the population comprised all students at Kashan Paramedicine College in the 2022-2023 academic year, of which 247 students were selected through stratified random sampling. To collect data, Dupeyrat and Mariné’s Intelligence Beliefs Questionnaire, Tschannen-Moran and his colleagues’ Scientific Optimism Questionnaire, Zarang Academic Engagement Questionnaire, and McIlroy & Bunting Academic Self-Efficacy Questionnaire were used. Data were analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics in the SPSS and Smart PLS statistics software. The results revealed significant correlations among intelligence beliefs, scientific optimism, academic engagement, academic self-efficacy, and students' academic achievement. In addition, intelligence beliefs and scientific optimism with the mediating role of academic engagement and academic self-efficacy had a significant indirect effect on academic achievement. These results emphasize the fundamental importance of intelligence beliefs, academic optimism, academic engagement, and self-efficacy in students’ academic achievement.