Trajectories of change in reading self-efficacy: A longitudinal analysis of self-efficacy and its sources

Tuija Aro,Pilvi Peura,Ellen L Usher,Helena Viholainen,Tuire Koponen,Mikko Aro,Eija Räikkönen

doi:10.1016/j.cedpsych.2021.101947

Tuija Aro, Pilvi Peura + Show 5 more

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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2021.101947

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Abstract

The beliefs children hold about their capabilities as readers are known to influence their reading achievement. The aim of this study was to extend previous work by examining trajectories of change in reading self-efficacy among primary school students (N = 1327) and the relations between the trajectories of self-efficacy and their hypothesized sources over 11 months. Using growth mixture modeling, we identified four trajectories of change in reading self-efficacy, involving increasing, stable, and declining trends. These trajectories of change in reading self-efficacy were associated with students’ varying experiences with the four sources of self-efficacy over time. Higher levels of mastery, verbal persuasion, and vicarious experiences and lower levels of physiological arousal were related to positive developmental trajectories of self-efficacy. Students with declining experiences of social sources of self-efficacy (i.e., verbal persuasions and vicarious experiences) had decreasing self-efficacy trajectories. These findings point to the importance of considering the variability in changes in reading self-efficacy and the interplay between changes in self-efficacy and sources of self-efficacy during primary school years, as well as the importance of monitoring these changes over time.

Highlights

Efficacy beliefs, which refer to beliefs about one’s own capabilities to execute certain actions or tasks, have been found to be significant pre dictors of effort (Galla et al, 2014; Schnell, Ringeisen, Raufelder, & Rohrmann, 2015) and achievement (Multon, Brown, & Lent, 1991; Talsma, Schüz, Schwarzer, & Norris, 2018)
To address our first research question, we investigated changes in reading self-efficacy using latent growth curve modeling (LGM)
The variance of the level of reading self-efficacy suggested that students differed in their initial levels of reading self-efficacy

Summary

Introduction

Efficacy beliefs, which refer to beliefs about one’s own capabilities to execute certain actions or tasks, have been found to be significant pre dictors of effort (Galla et al, 2014; Schnell, Ringeisen, Raufelder, & Rohrmann, 2015) and achievement (Multon, Brown, & Lent, 1991; Talsma, Schüz, Schwarzer, & Norris, 2018). Researchers have shown that, in the context of reading, efficacy beliefs are important predictors of reading-related behaviors (e.g., Hornstra, van der Veen, & Peetsma, 2016; Smith, Smith, Gilmore, & Jameson, 2012). Longitudinal self-efficacy research has taken a variablecentered approach (e.g., Hornstra, van der Veen, Peetsma, & Volman, 2013; Phan, 2012a). This approach does not account for the possibility that the direction of self-efficacy development likely varies significantly among children, as shown in person-centered research on children’s self-concepts (Archambault, Eccles, & Vida, 2010). These varying longitudinal changes in children’s self-efficacy may be based on their varying exposure to efficacy-building experiences (i.e., sources of self-efficacy; see Chen & Usher, 2013)

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