Academic Adversity Research Articles

Unraveling the Relationship Between English Learning Burnout and Academic Achievement: The Mediating Role of English Learning Resilience

Although burgeoning research has been conducted on the role of negative emotions (e.g., English learning burnout) in affecting students’ academic achievement, there are limited studies on the intricate working mechanism between these two factors. Academic resilience is an adaptive response to academic adversity and might therefore offer protection against negative emotions (e.g., English learning burnout). Hence, this study focused on the complex interplay among students’ English learning burnout, English learning resilience, and academic achievement. A total of 334 senior high school students were recruited in the current study. The findings displayed that students’ English learning resilience mediated the relationship between English learning burnout and English academic achievement. This study may generate suggestions and implications for English teaching and learning.

Negotiable fate-engagement relationship in higher education: The mediation role of hope for success and fear of failure

Studies concerning students’ ability to deal with everyday academic challenges (‘academic buoyancy’) and adjust to changes (‘adaptability’) were investigated in educational research over the last two decades (e.g., Martin & Marsh, Journal of School Psychology, 46:53–83, 2008; Martin et al., Journal of Educational Psychology, 105:728–746, 2013). However, how students deal with challenges imposed by fate has not been well-studied. Other than students’ abilities, students’ belief plays an important role in dealing with the academic adversity that fate imposes. The present study harnessed the Hope Theory to examine (1) the relation between negotiable and achievement motivation (hope for success and fear of failure), (2) the relation between achievement motivation and engagement, and (3) the mediation effect of achievement motivation in the relation between negotiable fate and engagement. University students in Hong Kong (n = 339) responded to an online cross-sectional survey. Mediation analyses demonstrated that the relation between negotiable fate and engagement was mediated by hope for success but not by fear of failure. In addition, hope for success only mediated cognitive engagement and affective engagement. The relation between negotiable fate and behavioral engagement was not mediated by hope for success and fear of failure. The findings contribute to the literature on the negotiable fate-engagement theoretical relation in educational research. Also, practical insights were discussed to manage student cognitive and affective engagement with negotiable fate and hope for success under fate constraints.

Out of the comfort zone, into the learning zone: An exploration of students’ academic buoyancy through the 5-Cs in English-medium instruction

In English-medium instruction (EMI), the learning of academic content in English may present a considerable challenge for students. Therefore, analyzing EMI students' academic buoyancy is crucial to understand how they manage everyday academic obstacles. By employing the 5-Cs Framework (Confidence, Coordination, Control, Composure and Commitment), this study aims to understand how 14 highly buoyant EMI students from a higher education institution in Spain handle daily academic adversity. Qualitative data were generated from four focus groups and one interview and were analyzed employing a person-oriented approach to academic buoyancy. Findings reveal that highly buoyant EMI students: (1) exhibit high self-efficacy and confidence in using English; (2) maintain composure and low academic anxiety; (3) demonstrate sustained commitment by adopting proactive “fight” responses, driven by future-oriented mindsets; (4) display strong coordination skills and effectively employ self-regulated learning strategies; and (5) show a strong sense of control over their academic success, facilitated by a focus on effective communication and content learning. Based on these findings, a framework for the assessment and enhancement of (EMI) students’ academic buoyancy has been developed. Overall, this study highlights the significance of the 5-Cs framework in the study of academic buoyancy while unveiling the multidimensional and interconnected nature of its components.

Latent profiles of academic resilience in undergraduate nursing students and their association with resilience and self-efficacy

AimThis study aimed to investigate the heterogeneity of academic resilience among nursing students using latent profile analysis and its associated influencing factors. BackgroundNursing students experience higher levels of stress compared to their peers in other professions, and the cultivation of academic resilience plays a pivotal role in their ability to effectively cope with this stress. Academic resilience not only facilitates success in the face of academic adversity but also contributes to the promotion of mental well-being among nursing students. However, the current research on the academic resilience of nursing students has predominantly focused on a scale-centered total score approach, disregarding individual variability, and hindering the development to inform personalized interventions for enhancing academic resilience. DesignA cross-sectional study. MethodsA convenience sampling method was used to collect a total of 644 nursing students from two medical schools in Guangzhou City. The participants were recruited through an online survey conducted from January to March 2023. The questionnaires consisted of a general information form, the Chinese version of the Academic Resilience Scale-30 (C-ARS-30), the 10-item Connor Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10), and the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES). Latent profile analysis was used to identify distinct categories of academic resilience among nursing students, and influencing factors were examined through ordinal logistic regression analysis. ResultsThe academic resilience levels of nursing students can be divided into three potential categories: 'low academic resilience' (13.0%), 'moderate academic resilience' (70.0%), and 'high academic resilience' (17.0%). Level of grade, GPA, self-reported physical health level, resilience and self-efficacy were significantly influenced the different categories of academic resilience of nursing students (P<0.05). ConclusionsThe majority of undergraduate nursing students were placed in the moderate academic resilience group, however, educational institutions should pay special attention to nursing students demonstrating low levels. Regular assessments of academic resilience are recommended, and personalized interventions should be tailored to address specific academic resilience characteristics across different grades of nursing students. Strategies aimed at enhancing academic resilience among nursing students may include improvements in GPA performance, attention to physical health, and the reinforcement of resilience and self-efficacy.

That Which Does Not Kill You on Wednesday Makes You Stronger On Friday: A Bidirectional Relationship between Resilience and Time

Empirical studies on the influential factors of temporal conceptualization have evinced that emotions and personality traits involving the approach-related motivation tend to produce a preference for the ego-moving perspective. Building on this insight, the current research introduced the positive and approach-oriented trait of resilience and investigated its influence on the contextualized interpretation of movement of event in time. Results indicated that resilience correlated positively with the ego-moving perspective, such that participants with higher resilience scores were more likely to adopt the ego-moving perspective when reasoning about a temporal ambiguity than those with lower such scores (Study 1). Furthering the correlation, Study 2 made a causal inquiry and revealed that participants primed with a resilient attitude chose to perceive themselves as approaching an academically stressful event (in line with the ego-moving perspective) more frequently than did those primed with a maladaptive attitude. Finally, Study 3 examined the reverse impact of temporal perspective on resilience and the results showed that participants exposed to the ego-moving perspective-framed academic adversity tended to vicariously approach the scenario with a resilient attitude more than did those subjected to the same scenario phrased from the time-moving perspective. Taken together, the pattern of results supports the embodied cognition theory by evidencing that conceptually disparate domains may be reciprocally influenced via a shared embodied link.

Exploring Senior High School Students’ English Academic Resilience in the Chinese Context

Abstract While academic resilience has been a hot topic in positive psychology, there is still scope for researchers to explore it in the field of applied linguistics. Drawing on the framework of L2 (second language) learners’ resilience proposed by T. Y. Kim and Y. K. Kim (2017), the current study aims to examine senior high school students’ English academic resilience (EAR) and its relationship to their English achievement (EA). This study comprises a survey of 454 senior high school students. Follow-up interviews were carried out to triangulate the quantitative findings. The descriptive results demonstrate that students’ EAR is above the average, and its five subscales obtain medium to medium-higher levels due to the mean scores. It shows that students have good EAR that enables them to deal with academic adversity. The correlational analysis shows a low positive correlation between EAR and EA in general, and the subscales share medium to low correlations with students’ EA. EAR has a certain influence on EA, but the correlation may be influenced by other learner variables. Based on the results, suggestions on improving students’ EAR are provided.

Achievement emotions and academic achievement: Reciprocal relations and the moderating influence of academic buoyancy.

Control-value theory proposes that achievement emotions impact achievement, and that achievement outcomes (i.e., success and failure) reciprocally influence the development of achievement emotions. Academic buoyancy is an adaptive response to minor academic adversity, and might, therefore, offer protection from achievement being undermined by negative achievement emotions. At present, however, there is little empirical evidence for these hypothesized relations. In this study we examined reciprocal relations between three achievement emotions (enjoyment, boredom, and anxiety) and test performance in the context of mathematics, and whether academic buoyancy moderated relations between these emotions and test performance. Data were collected from 1,242 primary school students (mean age = 9.3 years) over four waves within one school year. Achievement emotions (T1 and T3) and test performance (T2 and T4) were measured alternately. Academic buoyancy was measured at T3. A structural equation model showed negative relations of anxiety to subsequent test performance, and negative relations of test performance to subsequent anxiety. Test performance also predicted enjoyment and boredom, but not vice versa. A latent-interaction structural equation model showed buoyancy moderated relations between anxiety and test performance. Test performance was highest when anxiety was low and buoyancy high. Practitioners should consider using interventions to reduce anxiety and downstream effects on achievement.

Academic resilience among international students: lived experiences of postgraduate international students in Malaysia

In previous studies, scholars have noted that challenges experienced by international students have an impact on their academic success. However, limited research has been conducted on how international students overcome the challenges they face in non-Western countries, such as Malaysia. This paper aims to fills this gap by investigating essential resilience strategies adopted by international students in overcoming academic obstacles, thus contributing to the literature regarding international student development. To achieve this, it adopts a qualitative approach based on 33 semi-structured interviews with postgraduate international students that were analyzed thematically. The results reveal that international students develop resilience strategies through group assignments, in classroom settings, and by seeking university and personal support services. Understanding the resilience strategies adopted by postgraduate international students in Malaysia has imperative implications for all universities as it influences the manner in which they develop guidelines to promote international students’ resilience strategies and help them cope with academic adversity and difficulties.

Changing Social Contexts to Foster Equity in College Science Courses: An Ecological-Belonging Intervention

In diverse classrooms, stereotypes are often “in the air,” which can interfere with learning and performance among stigmatized students. Two studies designed to foster equity in college science classrooms (Ns = 1,215 and 607) tested an intervention to establish social norms that make stereotypes irrelevant in the classroom. At the beginning of the term, classrooms assigned to an ecological-belonging intervention engaged in discussion with peers around the message that social and academic adversity is normative and that students generally overcome such adversity. Compared with business-as-usual controls, intervention students had higher attendance, course grades, and 1-year college persistence. The intervention was especially impactful among historically underperforming students, as it improved course grades for ethnic minorities in introductory biology and for women in introductory physics. Regardless of demographics, attendance in the intervention classroom predicted higher cumulative grade point averages 2 to 4 years later. The results illustrate the viability of an ecological approach to fostering equity and unlocking student potential.

Hubungan Adversity Quotient dan Dukungan Sosial Dengan Optimisme Akademik Pada Siswa SMP Negeri 1 Wanadadi

The Relationship Between Adversity Quotient and Social Support with Academic Optimism for Students of SMP Negeri 1 Wanadadi. The porpose of this research was to examine the relationship of adversity quotient and social support with academic optimism of junior high school 1 Wanadadi. This research used quantitative research methods. The research subjects were 234 students of junior high school 1 Wanadadi. The data were collected using learning academic optimism scale, adversity quotient scale and social support scale. The data were analyzed using product moment correlation. The result showed the value of correlation coefficient of 0,479 with a probability level of 0,000 (p<0,05) it's meaning that there is a significant relation adversity quotient and social support with academic optimism of junior high school 1 Wanadadi. Positive value indicates the higher adversity quotient and social support, the higher the academic optimism. Keyword: Academic Optimism, Adversity Quotient, And Social Support

Replicating a Scalable Intervention That Helps Students Reappraise Academic and Social Adversity During the Transition to Middle School

Recent evidence suggests that helping students reappraise common social and academic worries during the difficult transition to middle school can improve their academic achievement. To further test this outcome, we conducted a pre-registered randomized controlled trial at scale among students transitioning to middle school in seventh grade (N = 2,171). The intervention increased students’ seventh-grade grade point average, the sole confirmatory outcome proposed in preregistration, and reduced course failures when compared to controlgroup students. Differences in effects between those found for white students and for other racial/ethnic groups were not statistically significant. These results reinforce previous findings suggesting that reappraising stressful school situations during the transition to middle school may improve academic achievement for students across all demographic groups.

CONTEXTUALIZE PROGRAM OF STRENGTHENING ACADEMIC RESILIENCE LEVEL OF THE SECONDARY EDUCATION STUDENTS

In the rise of artificial intelligence where Industrial Revolution 4.0 becomes the trend of the Education 2030 as reflected in the UNESCO’s Sustainable Development Goals, challenging and advanced learning opportunities are now exposed to every learner especially in the collegiate level. Now, it is the responsibility of the institution and educators to guide the students properly by determining the appropriate and suited delivery of instruction based on their specialization through examining students’ academic resilience despite of academic adversity as a result of the changing trend in innovations. The study aimed to create a comprehensive and contextualized program that will strengthen the academic resilience of the first-year college students in either private or local college so that they are armed as they continue their college journey. Specifically, it determined the (i) the profile of the respondents. (ii) It examined the perceived level of academic resilience of the respondents through Vignette 1, Vignette 2, and Combined Vignette Perspectives. While last is to analyze significant difference on the perceived academic resilience level when grouped according to profile through Vignette 1, Vignette 2, and combined Vignette perspectives. The researchers made used of the descriptive comparison method so that necessary contextualization of the enhanced program can identify in the first-year college students taking Bachelor of Secondary Education (BSE) degree program in two colleges in CALABARZON. Nevertheless, findings showed that the institution is in great need of a thorough contextualized curriculum of BSE students, as there is a substantial difference in the degree of academic resilience when grouped according to specialization courses. It implied that when the students have different lenses in facing academic adversity through the influence of their chosen specialization, it is important to create not a generalized program but for specific areas of specialization. Also, the age group of students although in the same year level needs to be considered in enhancing the program since it is as well significant. The researchers believed that a contextualized program for future teachers is the key to nation building as the primary goal of education and hence must be planned carefully through the proposed program of this paper.

Investigating the reciprocal relations between academic buoyancy and academic adversity: Evidence for the protective role of academic buoyancy in reducing academic adversity over time

What is the relationship between academic buoyancy and academic adversity? For example, does the experience of academic adversity help build students’ academic buoyancy in school—or, does academic buoyancy lead to decreases in subsequent academic adversity? This longitudinal study of 481 high school students (Years 7–12) investigated the relations between academic buoyancy and academic adversity. Harnessing a cross-lagged panel design spanning two consecutive academic years, we employed structural equation modeling to investigate the extent to which prior academic buoyancy predicted subsequent academic adversity and the extent to which prior academic adversity predicted subsequent academic buoyancy—beyond the effects of sociodemographics, prior achievement, and auto-regression. We found that prior academic buoyancy significantly predicted lower subsequent academic adversity, but prior academic adversity did not significantly predict higher subsequent academic buoyancy. Interestingly, however, there was a marginal interaction effect such that students who experienced academic adversity but who were also high in academic buoyancy were less likely to experience academic adversity one year later. We conclude that it is important to instill in students the capacity to effectively deal with academic adversity—that is, academic buoyancy. We also conclude that some experience of academic adversity can have positive effects but predominantly when accompanied by high levels of academic buoyancy. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

The Role of Personality Traits in Predicting Senior High School Students’ Academic Buoyancy

All students have to face academic pressures, setbacks and challenges that are part of their everyday academic life. The capacity to deal with this, i.e. ‘academic buoyancy’, is needed to reduce the impact of academic adversity. Since academic buoyancy may be associated with personality, our study explored the role of personality trait, especially the ‘big five’, as predictors of the academic buoyancy in senior high school students in an Eastern culture. Methods: Using quota sampling, 356 respondents were sampled from the eight largest senior high schools in Bandung, Indonesia. Five personality factors were measured using the Big Five Inventory. Furthermore, academic buoyancy was assessed utilizing the Academic Buoyancy Scale. Multiple regression analysis was used to analyze the predictive value of each trait for academic buoyancy. Result: Academic buoyancy appears to be related to personality differences. We found three personality traits which predicted positively and significantly academic buoyancy, namely Conscientiousness, Agreeableness and Extraversion. Conclusions: The study has provided a new understanding of the relevance of personality for academic student’s life. Implications and differences in relation between personality and academic buoyancy in senior high school’ student are discussed.

Development of an Instrument to Measure Academic Resilience Among Pharmacy Students

Objective. To develop a valid and reliable academic resilience scale for use in the didactic portion of the Doctor of Pharmacy curriculum to identify those pharmacy students who have greater capacity to overcome academic adversity. Methods. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among first-year, second-year, and third-year pharmacy students to assess psychometric properties of a 30-item adapted academic resilience scale. Data were also collected using the Short Grit Scale (Grit-S). Demographic characteristics were collected from student records. Exploratory factor analysis was applied to determine the number of underlying factors responsible for data covariation. Principal components analysis was used as the extraction method. Varimax rotation method was used, and the Cronbach alpha was estimated. Validity testing was conducted by calculating Pearson's r correlations between the adapted academic resilience scale and Grit-S. Results. The survey response rate was 84%. The final version of the scale, the Academic Pharmacy Resilience Scale (APRS-16), had four subscales and 16 items (14 items failed to load on any of the factors and were deleted). The Cronbach alpha was .84, indicating strong internal consistency. The APRS-16 and its subscales were significantly correlated to the Grit-S and its subscales, providing evidence of effective convergent validity. Conclusion. Evidence supports the reliability and validity of the APRS-16 as a measure of academic resilience in pharmacy students. Future studies should use the APRS-16 to investigate the relationship between academic resilience and performance outcomes among pharmacy students.

Exploring the relationships between academic buoyancy, academic self-concept, and academic performance: a study of mathematics and reading among primary school students

Academic buoyancy is a construct relevant to the schooling lives of students, defining how they overcome or ‘bounce back’ from everyday academic adversity. The present study was correlational in design and examined academic buoyancy in 191 upper primary-aged students, focusing on its association with reading and mathematics performance, and the extent to which this relationship is mediated by academic self-concept. This research work is important as the first to explore academic buoyancy in upper primary-aged students and across two key academic domains. The participants completed tests measuring academic buoyancy, academic self-concept, and academic performance in mathematics and reading. Structural equation modelling confirmed a significant relationship between academic buoyancy and academic performance via academic self-concept. Findings also confirmed domain-specificity, with significant relationships within mathematics and reading domains, but not across the two domains. In light of these findings, and acknowledging the limitations of our non-longitudinal design, educational applications and new avenues for research into academic buoyancy, academic self-concept, and academic performance are suggested.

Parting ways: Sex-based differences in premedical attrition

Despite women's greater propensity to enter college aspiring to careers in medicine, they are less likely than men to persist in these ambitions. Past research suggests that students' experiences in coursework strongly influence their decision to continue along or depart from the premedical track, yet it remains unclear whether women and men have differential experiences in coursework that contribute to sex-based disparities in premedical attrition. To gain insight into whether and how premeds' experiences in coursework contribute to gendered patterns of attrition, this study employs a mixed methods design that combines longitudinal survey data collected from premedical students at a large state university with in-depth interview data collected from a subset of respondents. Survey results (n = 268) demonstrate that while women report more stress from premedical coursework than men, these differences do not help to explain the female-male gap in attrition. Rather, it is women's lower levels of affinity for premedical coursework—specifically, their less positive evaluations of premed coursework, and greater enjoyment of non-premed courses—that contribute most notably to the gender gap in attrition. Qualitative results (n = 39) suggest that women's affinity for premed coursework is diminished by more frequent, negative interactions with faculty, and a tendency to interpret low grades in premedical coursework as a sign that this career track is a ‘poor fit’ for their strengths and aptitudes. These findings broadly align with scholarship on the role of self-expressive decision-making in curricular sex segregation. Interview data also point to a critical factor for sustaining women's medical career aspirations: clinical experiences. Ranging from shadowing, to volunteer experiences, to jobs in local hospitals, these experiences allow women to ‘try on’ the role of doctor and inspire resilience in the face of academic adversity. The implications of findings for future research on premedical education are discussed.

“Lose at the Starting Line, Win at the Finishing Line”: The Narratives Behind Beating Academic Adversity

This study examines media discourse of academic adversity and resilience to understand what are considered to be deterrents of academic success and what are believed to effectively counteract the deterrents and contribute to educational resilience. Data are drawn on discourse analysis of media coverage in Hong Kong of the success stories of students at risk after the release of university entrance examination results. In Hong Kong’s extremely competitive education system, only about 20% of secondary students are admitted to university degree programs. Hong Kong uses a centralized and uniform public examination as the only criterion of university entrance screening, reinforcing an examination-dominated culture. Success in public examination is equated with success in intellectual advancement or even in life. Underprivileged students are often described to be “losing at the starting line,” implying that they are doomed to failure right at the start. Every year after the announcement of the public examination results, success stories of students who have beaten the odds receive significant news coverage for days. This paper discusses how educational resilience experiences are represented in the mass media, how the students concerned articulate their situations, and the implications of such media discourse on academic resilience.

The Academic Resilience Scale (ARS-30): A New Multidimensional Construct Measure.

Resilience is a psychological construct observed in some individuals that accounts for success despite adversity. Resilience reflects the ability to bounce back, to beat the odds and is considered an asset in human characteristic terms. Academic resilience contextualizes the resilience construct and reflects an increased likelihood of educational success despite adversity. The paper provides an account of the development of a new multidimensional construct measure of academic resilience. The 30 item Academic Resilience Scale (ARS-30) explores process—as opposed to outcome—aspects of resilience, providing a measure of academic resilience based on students’ specific adaptive cognitive-affective and behavioral responses to academic adversity. Findings from the study involving a sample of undergraduate students (N = 532) demonstrate that the ARS-30 has good internal reliability and construct validity. It is suggested that a measure such as the ARS-30, which is based on adaptive responses, aligns more closely with the conceptualisation of resilience and provides a valid construct measure of academic resilience relevant for research and practice in university student populations.

Social support, academic adversity and academic buoyancy: a person-centred analysis and implications for academic outcomes

The present study employed person-centred analyses that enabled identification of groups of students separated on the basis of their perceptions of social support (home and community), academic support, academic adversity and academic buoyancy. Among a sample of 249 young people, including many from high-needs communities, cluster analysis revealed three distinct groups of students: the thriver, supported struggler and at-risk struggler. We compared the three groups on their academic motivation. Analyses revealed significant differences between groups in adaptive motivation outcomes, but no differences in impeding or maladaptive motivation outcomes. Combined, the results speak to the importance of support and academic buoyancy for positive student outcomes.