The Temporal-Interactive Influence of Reading Achievement and Reading Attitude

Abstract

Although the relationship between attitudes toward reading and reading achievement has been well documented, the causal relationship between these constructs remains unclear.Using longitudinal covariance structure modeling, this study tested the hypothesis that 3 reading-related constructs in the primary grades (2nd-3rd grade) – reading attitude, behavior, and achievement – would predict reading achievement in the 7th grade. Results showed that primary attitude was not correlated with primary achievement yet both had causal paths to 7th-grade achievement, described as a “temporal-interaction” model. The resulting model suggests that while reading attitude and achievement may appear unrelated at the early stages of reading they become more closely linked over time, developing into important causal determinants of reading achievement by early adolescence.