Measures Of Self-concept Research Articles

Math and German motivation transitions in early adolescence

BackgroundSome students are more motivated that others in one or multiple academic domains, and more motivated in one domain than another. These inner hierarchies of motivational beliefs are important because they can influence students’ achievement and study or career choices. However, little is known about the heterogeneity in inner hierarchies of motivational beliefs during early secondary school, when motivation typically declines. AimsThe aims of this study were to (1) identify profiles of self-concept and intrinsic value in mathematics and German during the first two years of secondary school, (2) explore stability and change in these profiles, and (3) explore how profile membership relates to student competence and gender, and perceived teacher behaviour. SampleParticipants were 721 secondary school students from Germany. MethodsStudents completed measures of self-concept, intrinsic value, and competence in grades 5 and 6, and measures of perceived teacher behaviour in grade 5. Data were analysed using latent transition analysis. ResultsFive profiles characterised by inter- and intraindividual differences in self-concept and intrinsic value were identified. Membership in these profiles was relatively stable. Inner hierarchies of self-concept and value were related to competence, with students demonstrating higher competence in domains they were more motivated in. Gender and perceived teacher behaviour were related to profile membership, but not profile transitions. ConclusionsWhen supporting the motivational development of students during the first two years of secondary school, teachers may need to adopt a holistic approach that recognises the heterogeneity in students’ inner hierarchies of motivational beliefs.

‘Release them into the wild, but how far can they go?’ Improving social and emotional mental health through teaching bushcraft skills to children with special educational needs and disability: a preliminary case series evaluation study

ABSTRACT Previous research indicates that outdoor activity and learning programmes are a beneficial educational approach, but studies have neglected to consider how well this approach may address the social, emotional and mental health needs of children with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND). In this study, seven Key-Stage 3 children with SEND (aged 11 to 14) from a special educational needs provision within a mainstream school attended a five-week ‘bushcraft’ programme. Standardised psychometric measures of self-concept were completed by children before and after the intervention, and teachers rated pupils’ stress levels before and after. Results indicate that the programme was associated with a range of mental health, social and emotional benefits, suggesting that teaching bushcraft skills to this group is an acceptable, feasible and effective intervention leading to improvements in social and emotional function and mental health in children with SEND. Directions for future programme development and evaluation are considered.

Varying Beliefs in God and the Self-Concepts of Mattering and Dignity in a US Sample

The concepts of mattering and dignity have increasingly gained traction within the sociology of religion literature, as meaningful connections have been found between some measures of religiosity and these self-concept measures. Yet, questions remain regarding the connection between belief in God, religious doubts, or non-belief and the self-concept, as many prior studies presuppose religious faith or lack differentiation between different levels of belief. Using data from the 2017 Baylor Religion Survey (analytic n = 1,402), a cross-sectional and nationally representative survey of US adults administered by Gallup, we examined how current belief in God without doubts, in contrast to currently believing in God with doubts, agnosticism, and atheism, is associated with perceptions of mattering to others and a sense of dignity. Results from OLS regression analyses suggested that atheists and agnostics or those with no opinion regarding their belief in God may show slightly lower mattering scores compared to theists without doubts. By contrast, we observed that those with religious doubts or wavering faith reported slightly lower perceived dignity, yet atheists or agnostics showed no significant differences in perceived dignity with non-doubting theists. We interpret our findings in light of the existing literature and provide suggestions for future research.

Spanish Adaptation of the Social Worries Questionnaire (SWQ): A Tool to Assess Social Anxiety in Preadolescent Children

Social anxiety may appear during preadolescence, causing children to worry and avoid situations where they may be evaluated by others. Previous studies have shown that about 4% of preadolescents present clinically elevated levels of social anxiety, which is related to the later onset of other problems. Therefore, it becomes necessary to have available screening measures, with few items, that assess the different social situations that elicit anxiety, as is the case of the Social Worries Questionnaire (SWQ). The objective of this study was to adapt and assess the psychometric properties of the SWQ in Spanish preadolescent children. The sample was composed of 218 children aged 8 to 12 years (54.1% boys). The SWQ, along with other measures of depression, anxiety and self-concept, were online administered to children. An item addressing videoconference anxiety was added to the SWQ. Using Confirmatory Factor Analysis, a one-factor structure composed of 14 items demonstrated favorable fit indices. The results indicate evidence of concurrent and discriminant validity, good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.81; ordinal α = 0.87) and moderate-to-good test-retest stability. Despite some limitations, the Spanish adaptation of the SWQ shows good psychometric properties and enables the assessment of social anxiety generalization to several situations. The questionnaire can be a valuable self-reported tool for detecting risk cases and guiding the treatment in clinical settings.

A mixed-method case study of Readers’ Theatre with African immigrant and refugee students

ABSTRACT Readers' Theatre, a drama-based literacy intervention, has been studied for its academic benefit with the socio-emotional impacts largely neglected. In the current study, the Principal Investigator partnered with a summer Readers' Theatre intervention for public middle school students. Following, students completed a self-concept measure and participated in an interview on the experience. This study presents results of the first-and-second-generation African immigrant and refugee participants. Three themes from the interviews are explored: (1) culturally based-arts experiences and intervention buy-in, (2) emphasis on perceived achievement, and (3) the relationship of self-reported impact on middle school readiness, reading attitudes, and sense of ensemble.

Psychometric Synthesis of the Beck Youth Inventory for Children and Adolescents–Second Edition

The Beck Youth Inventory for Children and Adolescents–Second Edition (BYI-II) is the most current version of a widely used instrument across a variety of settings with both clinical and nonclinical clients ages 7–18 years as a self-report measure of anxiety, depression, anger, disruptive behavior, and self-concept. This synthesis of 17 studies from 2005 through 2022 using the BYI-II resulted in aggregated internal consistency of .88−.96 across the five subscales. Convergent validity comparisons were very limited, and no test–retest reliability, diagnostic validity, or structural validity studies were located. Intrascale analysis indicated the Depression and the Anxiety subscales yielded the strongest correlation (r = .73). Implications for counseling practice and research are discussed, including use of the multifaceted BYI-II for screening and outcome research with youths. Many more studies of the BYI-II are needed to establish the usefulness of this legacy assessment with school-aged youth.

Self-concept as related to emotional intelligence: a study of tribal and non-tribal students

Purpose Emotional intelligence (EI) and self-concept (SC) play a very important role in one’s life. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the SC and EI of tribal and nontribal university students. Design/methodology/approach The research used a quantitative approach, 100 nontribal (50 male and 50 female) and 100 tribal (50 male and 50 female) students were selected by nonprobability sampling method. The Bangla version of the self-concept questionnaire (Beck et al., 2001) and the emotional intelligence questionnaire (Hyde et al., 2002) were used to measure the SC and EI of students. Pearson correlation, t-test and post hoc tests were used for statistical analysis. Findings The findings of this study showed that the tribal and nontribal students differ significantly on the measure of SC and EI (p < 0.01). Although nontribal students showed higher SC than tribal students, tribal students showed a higher level of EI than nontribal students. The results also showed that gender significantly affects SC and EI (p < 0.01). Males have higher SC and EI than females. Furthermore, the study revealed that socioeconomic status differs significantly in the case of SC. Finally, the result also showed a significant positive correlation (r = 0.245, p < 0.01) between SC and EI. Research limitations/implications The results of the research are only based on the students of one university besides the sample size is limited. Practical implications This research allowed the authors to determine the practical implications. The findings suggest that there is a significant difference in SC and EI between tribal and nontribal students, with nontribal students showing higher levels of SC. This implies that interventions and programs aimed at enhancing SC may be particularly beneficial for tribal students. The study also reveals that there are significant differences in SC and EI between tribal and nontribal adolescent boys and girls. This highlights the importance of considering gender differences when designing interventions to improve SC and EI among tribal and nontribal students. Moreover, educators, parents and policymakers can use these findings to develop targeted interventions and strategies to enhance SC among tribal students, with the aim of improving their overall well-being, academic achievements and success in life. Originality/value This paper adds to the literature on the SC and EI of tribal and nontribal university students by describing the difference in levels and a significant correlation. This paper obtains an innovative statistical approach to develop the findings so that information can be used in the future.

Evaluation of the Scales for Social Comparison of Appearance and Social Comparison of Well-Being

People constantly compare their appearance and well-being to that of other individuals. However, a measure of social comparison of well-being is lacking and existing appearance-related social comparison assessment is limited to comparison tendency using predefined social situations. This limits our understanding of the role of social comparison in appearance and well-being. Therefore, we developed the Scale for Social Comparison of Appearance (SSC-A) and the Scale for Social Comparison of Well-Being (SSC-W) to assess upward and downward social comparisons with regard to (a) frequency, (b) perceived discrepancy to the standard, and (c) engendered affective impact during the last 3 weeks. In one longitudinal and three cross-sectional studies (Ns = 500–1,121), we administered the SSC-A or SSC-W alongside measures of appearance social comparison, body satisfaction, self-concept, social rank, well-being, envy, rumination, depression, and anxiety. Confirmatory factor analyses supported the expected two-factor model representing upward and downward social comparison for both scales. Overall, upward comparison displayed the anticipated associations with the measured constructs, whereas downward comparison showed mostly small or nonsignificant correlations with the validators. The SSC-A and SSC-W are efficient measures of social comparison for appearance and well-being with good evidence for their reliability and validity in our samples.

The Conceptualization and Measurement of Sexual Self-Concept and Sexual Self-Schema: A Systematic Literature Review

ABSTRACT Sexual self-concept and sexual self-schema are multidimensional constructs critical to developing a more holistic theoretical understanding of the sexual self. With an increased amount of research exploring these constructs over the past few decades, a systematic review was warranted to highlight next steps for future research in this area. Therefore, utilizing a staged systematic review, we aimed to explore how these parallel concepts are measured and among which populations they are used. The evaluation of 236 unique manuscripts published 1990–2020 revealed the use of 38 established or constructed measures of sexual self-concept, and 16 established or constructed measures of sexual self-schema. Three distinct measures were used in more than one-fifth of the studies reviewed, although the use of full-form measures vs. subscales differed across studies. Although there was diversity in the samples used in the studies reviewed, these studies were conducted most commonly with samples consisting of individuals who were primarily, if not solely, cisgender, women, heterosexual, White, non-college attending, U.S. residents, and/or had no unique characteristics identified (e.g., cancer patient/survivor, pregnant). The largest proportion of studies reviewed examined sexual self-concept during emerging adulthood, followed by early adulthood and middle adulthood. Suggested directions for future research in this area include (a) reexamining and testing how current measures are capturing these constructs and among whom; (b) expanding samples to include and/or target specifically gender, sexual, and racial/ethnic minoritized groups as well as individuals with unique characteristics that would affect sexual well-being; and (c) utilizing samples in childhood, adolescence, and late adulthood.

A Comparative Study of Self-Concept of Male and Female Secondary Students of Panipat District

Man is considered to be superior to other living beings. The context of self and identity relates to the environment around us. As man comes out of his childhood, that is, grows up, his self develops. He becomes aware of the environment around him. The context of human self-concept is always related to his parents, guardians, teachers, friends etc. He reacts, interacts etc., he experiences and these experiences give him meaning and these experiences become the basis of his self, due to which his self-reflecting images are formed. The present study aimed to compare the self-concept of the difference between male and female secondary students of Panipat district. For the present study, descriptive survey method was used. Fifty secondary students were selected randomly from various secondary schools of Panipat District. The number of male and female secondary students kept the same. For measurement of self-concept, Self-Concept Questionnaire (SCQ) by Dr. Raj Kumar Saraswat was administered to all fifty students. After the analysis, the result showed a high level of self-concept in both groups and no significant difference in self-concept of male and female secondary students of Panipat district. Thus, the study found the same level of self-concept in male and female secondary students.

Muslim Self-Concept Measurement Model: Towards Filling the Research Gap of Self-Concept Among Muslims

A person’s understanding of self is significantly associated with the world view that he or she believes in. This self-understanding concept shall only be well established if it is viewed from the perspective that is connected to real epistemology. The importance of this understanding is due to its influence on human perception in all matters related to themselves. As a Muslim with an ultimate goal, which is the happiness of the world and the hereafter, then the real conceptualisation of oneself is essential. However, the influence of secularism and dualism that exist in the education stream is disconcerting in this regard. Therefore, the concept of self in Islam shall be examined and re-assessed. To evaluate the self-concept of a Muslim, the concept and instrument used must be based on the Islamic philosophy and realm. However, the variety of instruments used to evaluate the existing self-concept are in accordance with the Western epistemology, which contradicts the Islamic world view to describe the self-concept of a Muslim. Thus, this study aims to propose an ideal self-concept evaluation model for studies involving Muslims. In conclusion, there are limited studies carried out and leave a decent impact to researchers, especially in the field of Education and Psychology and Humanities.

Tonic immobility (freezing) during sexual and physical assaults produces stronger memory effects than other characteristics of the assaults

ABSTRACT Tonic immobility (TI) is a phylogenetically conserved, passive, obligatory defense mechanism commonly engaged during sexual and physical assaults. During TI, people become immobile while remaining conscious and later reexperience intrusive memories of both their assault and of its accompanying immobility. Here we show that this well-studied biological process has powerful effects on memory and other processes. Participants had experienced either a serious sexual (n = 234) or physical (n = 137) assault. For both the assault and its accompanying immobility, the standard measure of the peritraumatic severity of TI correlated between .40 and .65 with post-assault effects on memory, including memory of the assault and memory of the immobility, the two memory-based self-concept measures of self-blame and event centrality, and post-assault anxiety and depression. The correlations with TI were much higher than other peritraumatic characteristics commonly used to predict and describe posttraumatic effects in assaults and other traumas. The results suggest that TI should be considered for a broader, more biologically based and ecologically valid understanding of the effects of trauma on memory and memory-based reactions.

Evaluating Self-Concept Measurements in Adolescents: A Systematic Review.

(1) Background: To evaluate the self-concept of adolescents, a proper evaluation of several existing self-concept measurements is needed. The objectives of this study are to conduct a systematic review of the available measures used to assess self-concept in adolescents, to evaluate the psychometric properties of each measurement, and to assess the attributes of patient-reported outcome measurements (PROMs) of self-concept in adolescents. (2) Methods: The systematic review was conducted on six databases: EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cochrane, PubMed, CINAHL, and Web of Science, from inception to 2021. A standardized evaluation of psychometric properties was carried out using the Evaluating the Measurement of Patient-Reported Outcomes (EMPRO). The review was conducted independently by two reviewers. Each attribute in EMPRO was assessed and analyzed to obtain an overall score. Only scores that exceeded 50 were considered acceptable. (3) Results: From 22,388 articles, we reviewed 35 articles with five self-concept measurements. Four measurements were obtained that had values above the threshold (SPPC, SPPA, SDQ-II, and SDQII-S). However, there is not enough evidence to support the interpretability attribute in self-concept measurement. (4) Conclusions: There are various measurements of self-concept in adolescents accompanied by their psychometric properties. Each measurement of adolescent self-concept has a characteristic of psychometric properties and measurement attributes.

Non-conscious processing of fear faces: a function of the implicit self-concept of anxiety

BackgroundTrait anxiety refers to a stable tendency to experience fears and worries across many situations. High trait anxiety is a vulnerability factor for the development of psychopathologies. Self-reported trait anxiety appears to be associated with an automatic processing advantage for threat-related information. Self-report measures assess aspects of the explicit self-concept of anxiety. Indirect measures can tap into the implicit self-concept of anxiety.MethodsWe examined automatic brain responsiveness to non-conscious threat as a function of trait anxiety using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Besides a self-report instrument, we administered the Implicit Association Test (IAT) to assess anxiety. We used a gender-decision paradigm presenting brief (17 ms) and backward-masked facial expressions depicting disgust and fear.ResultsExplicit trait anxiety was not associated with brain responsiveness to non-conscious threat. However, a relation of the implicit self-concept of anxiety with masked fear processing in the thalamus, precentral gyrus, and lateral prefrontal cortex was observed.ConclusionsWe provide evidence that a measure of the implicit self-concept of anxiety is a valuable predictor of automatic neural responses to threat in cortical and subcortical areas. Hence, implicit anxiety measures could be a useful addition to explicit instruments. Our data support the notion that the thalamus may constitute an important neural substrate in biased non-conscious processing in anxiety.

Children and Parents' Perceptions of Access to Science Tools at Home and Their Role in Science Self-efficacy.

Families play a vital role in the development of the science interests and career aspirations of youth. Of particular interest ishow a family's science capital and science habitus impact how children see themselves in relation to science. One aspect ofscience capital that has emerged as foundational in children's levels of science self-efficacy and academic self-concept is theiraccess to science related tools outside of school. To learn more about the role of science tools in building the future scienceinterests of youth, this exploratory study examined reported access to science-related tools and tool experiences for 89participants (44 parents and 45 children). The results showed that more than half of the children reported a lack of homeaccess to science tools such as a meter stick, compass, or scale. There were significant differences in reported access toscience tools for African American and Latino/a youth. The reported access to tools for youth was significantly correlated withtheir science achievement value score (a measure of self-efficacy and self-concept). When comparing child and parent reportedtool access, the parents noted having significantly more tools at home than the child participants. The findings from this studysuggest that parents should provide opportunities for their children to explore these common household tools on their own aswell as in family contexts. Having prior experiences with science tools outside of school is an important form of science capitalthat could foster success for children in the science classroom.

Gender differences in grades versus grade penalties: Are grade anomalies more detrimental for female physics majors?

Creating equitable learning environments has been an area of significant focus for physics education researchers in recent years. Here we introduce a framework that posits that grade penalty is a measure of academic self-concept and investigate if there are gender differences in grade penalties in physics courses for students majoring in physics. In order to quantify grade penalty, we define grade anomaly as the difference between a student’s grade in a course under consideration and their grade point average (GPA) in all other classes thus far. A grade anomaly lower than students expected grade based on their GPA is a grade penalty and higher than expected average grade is a grade bonus. Our framework posits that since women have traditionally been marginalized in physics, female physics majors are more likely to be negatively impacted by a grade penalty in their courses since their academic self-concept as a physics major hinges on them securing a certain grade. In the study presented here, we examine the average grade anomalies across a number of courses for female and male physics majors. We find that these students received grade penalties in almost all physics courses studied, though there were grade bonuses in a few laboratory courses. We also find that in physics courses, on average, women often had larger grade penalties than men, especially in introductory courses. We hypothesize that, because their grade penalties are often larger than men’s, women’s decisions to pursue a physics major and career may be particularly affected by grade penalties received in their various courses. Furthermore, the grade penalty measure can be easily computed by the physics programs concerned with equity.Received 19 January 2022Accepted 11 July 2022DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.18.020127Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.Published by the American Physical SocietyPhysics Subject Headings (PhySH)Research AreasDiversity & inclusionLearning environmentLearning theoryProfessional TopicsLower undergraduate studentsUpper undergraduate studentsPhysics Education Research

Developmental changes in students' use of dimensional comparisons to form ability self-concepts in math and verbal domains.

Dimensional comparisons (i.e., comparing own performances across domains) may drive an increasing differentiation in students' math and verbal self-concepts over time, but little longitudinal research has directly tested this assumption. Using cross-sequential data spanning Grades 1-12 (N=1069, ages 6-18, 92% White, 2% Black, 51% female, collected 1987-1996), this study charted age-related changes in the role of dimensional comparisons in students' ability self-concept formation. It used three types of self-concept measures: peer comparisons, cross-domain comparisons, and no comparisons. Results indicated that the increase in students' use of dimensional comparisons in self-evaluations substantially contributed to the increasing differentiation in students' math and verbal self-concepts over time. Findings highlight the importance of dimensional comparisons in the development of students' ability self-concepts.

Measuring mathematical self-concept in four- to six-year-olds: A comparison of picture and puppet supported procedures

In three mixed designed experiments with four- to six-year-olds we explored the comparability of different measurement tools for mathematical self concept (SC). All participants were asked to perform a picture scale (PIS) and a puppet interview (PUI) in the first experiment (N = 25), a PIS and a puppet scale (PUS) in the second experiment (N = 25) and a PUI and a PUS in the third experiment (N = 26). In all experiments, the order of presenting the scales was manipulated between participants. Mathematical competencies, German grammar comprehension and intelligence were measured. The experiments showed that all of the scales were reliable. In addition, no differences were revealed between the individual procedures for the assessment of mathematical SC. Due to the rather small sample sizes, data was merged across experiments to allow a one-way subject-to-subject comparison of the procedures, resulting in increased statistical power. Again, no differences between the SC scales were observed. Findings of moderate correlations between the PIS with mathematical skills and the PUI with mathematical skills indicated construct validity, but this was not observed for the PUS. When the sample is divided according to median split, a difference emerges in the older age group between PUS and PUI. In general, our findings showed that puppets and pictures are useful supporting materials in the SC measurement of four- to six-year-olds.

The gamer identity scale: A measure of self concept as a video gamer

Research examining video game players from a psychological and behavioral perspective is prominent however there is still a need to better distinguish casual from serious video game players (i.e., gamers). The present research developed a nine-item scale for assessing the extent to which an individual self-identifies as a gamer and tested the scale with variables of interest. Professors involved with a university esports program and athletes from a university esports team developed a list of 18 items portraying aspects of a gamer identity (e.g., self-concept, social group membership, role performance). These items were included in a larger survey completed by 591 frequent video game players. Using established methods, the nine item, single factor, “Gamer Identity Scale” was developed and determined to be valid and reliable. Using t-tests, ANOVAs, and multiple regression, the Gamer Identity Scale was tested against variables common to the gaming literature. Using the new scale, gamer identity was significantly and positively related to behavioral intentions (i.e., intentions to play video games, interact with gamers, watch streaming video games), time spent playing video games, esports team membership, and age. Gamer identity was not related to gender, race, ethnicity, or money spent on video games. Implications and future directions are discussed.

How selves differ within and across cognitive domains: self-prioritisation, self-concept, and psychiatric traits

BackgroundHow we build and maintain representations of ourselves involves both explicit features which are consciously accessible on reflection and implicit processes which are not, such as attentional biases. Understanding relations between different ways of measuring self-cognition both within and across such cognitive domains is important for understanding how selves may differ from one another, and whether self-cognition is best understood as largely uni-dimensional or more multi-dimensional. Further, uncovering this structure should inform research around how self-cognition relates to psychiatric and psychological conditions. This study explores the relations between different constructs of self-cognition and how variability within them relates to psychiatric traits.MethodsOur final dataset includes within-subject (n = 288, general population) measures of explicit self-concept (using both the Self Concept Clarity Scale and Self Concept and Identity Measure), implicit self-prioritisation in a shape-label matching task (for both reaction time and sensitivity) and measurement of traits for five psychiatric conditions (autism, borderline personality disorder, schizophrenia, depression and anxiety). We first test whether self-cognitive measures within and across domains are correlated within individuals. We then test whether these dimensions of self-cognition support a binary distinction between psychiatric conditions that either are or are not characterised in terms of self, or whether they support self-cognition as transdiagnostically predictive of the traits associated with psychiatric conditions. To do this we run a series of planned correlations, regressions, and direct correlation comparison statistics.ResultsResults show that implicit self-prioritisation measures were not correlated with the explicit self-concept measures nor the psychiatric trait measures. In contrast, all the psychiatric traits scores were predicted, to varying degrees, by poorer explicit self-concept quality. Specifically, borderline personality disorder traits were significantly more strongly associated with composite explicit self-concept measures than any of depression, anxiety, or autism traits scores were.ConclusionsOur results suggest that selves can differ considerably, along different cognitive dimensions. Further, our results show that self-cognition may be a promising feature to include in future dimensional characterisations of psychiatric conditions, but care should be taken to choose relevant self-cognitive domains.