This study compared the social—emotional implications of academic achievement for students with and without learning disabilities (LD) and identified predictors of effort investment. Students with LD showed lower levels of achievement, effort investment, academic self-efficacy, sense of coherence, positive mood, and hope, and higher levels of loneliness and negative mood. When compared to peers without LD (n = 447) at four different academic achievement levels, students with LD showed higher achievement than the low-average group, but their social—emotional profiles were similar to the low and low-average groups. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis showed that achievement, academic self-efficacy, negative mood, and hope predicted effort investment for students with LD. These results demonstrated the importance of hope in understanding the functioning of students with LD.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Antonovsky, A. (1987). Unraveling the mystery of health. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Antonovsky, A., & Sourani, T. (1988). Family sense of coherence and family adaptation . Journal of Marriage and the Family, 50(2), 79—92.
2.
Asher, S.R., Parkhurst, J.T., Hymel, S., & Williams, G.A. (1990). Peer rejection and loneliness in childhood. In S. R. Asher & J. D. Coie (Eds.), Peer rejection in childhood (pp. 253—273). Cambridge , UK: Cambridge University Press.
3.
Bacchini, D., & Magliulo, F. (2003). Self-image and perceived self-efficacy during adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 32, 337—350.
4.
Baer, G.C., Clever, A., & Proctor, W.A. (1991). Self-perceptions of nonhandicapped children and children with learning disabilities in integrated classes. The Journal of Special Education, 24, 409—426.
5.
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: Freeman.
6.
Barber, B.K., & Olsen, J.K. (2004). Assessing the transitions to middle and high school . Journal of Adolescent Research, 19, 3—30.
7.
Baumeister, R.F. (1999, August). Bad is stronger than good. Paper presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Boston.
8.
Bear, G.G., Minke, K.M., & Manning, M.A. (2002). Self-concept of students with learning disabilities: A meta-analysis. School Psychology Review, 31, 405—427.
9.
Bong, M., & Skaalvik, E.M. (2003). Academic self-concept and self-efficacy: How different are they really?Educational Psychology Review, 15, 1—40.
10.
Caprara, G.V., Barbaranelli, C., Pastorelli, C., & Cervone, D. (2004). The contribution of self-efficacy beliefs to psychosocial outcomes in adolescence: Predicting beyond global dispositional tendencies . Personality and Individual Differences, 37, 751—763.
11.
Caraway, K., Tucker, C.M., Reinke, W.M., & Hall, C. (2003). Self-efficacy, goal orientation and fear of failure as predictors of school engagement in high school students. Psychology in the Schools, 40, 417— 428.
12.
Chapman, J.W. (1988). Cognitive—motivational characteristics and academic achievement of learning disabled children: A longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 80, 357—365.
13.
Chapman, J.W., & Tunmer, W. (2003). Reading difficulties, reading-related self-perceptions, and strategies for overcoming negative self-beliefs. Reading and Writing Quarterly, 19, 5—24.
14.
Clever, A., Bear, G., & Juvonen, J. (1992). Discrepancies between competence and importance in self-perceptions of children in integrated classes. The Journal of Special Education, 26, 125—138.
15.
Eccles, J.S. (2004, July). Ability self concepts, expectancies for success, subjective task values, and achievement-related choices. Paper presented at the Self conference, Berlin , Germany.
16.
Eccles, J.S., Barber, B.L., Stone, M., & Hunt, J. (2003). Extracurricular activities and adolescent development . The Journal of Social Issues, 59, 865—889.
17.
Eccles, J.S., & Wigfield, A. (2002). Motivational beliefs, values, and goals. Annual Review ofPsychology, 53, 109—132.
18.
Elbaum, B., & Vaughn, S. (2003). For which students with learning disabilities are self-concept interventions effective?Journal of Learning Disabilities, 36, 101—108.
Forgan, J.W., & Vaughn, S. (2000). Adolescents with and without LD make the transition to middle school. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 33, 33—44.
21.
Frederickson, N., & Jacobs, S. (2001). Controllability attributions for academic performance and the perceived scholastic competence, global self-worth and achievement of children with dyslexia. School Psychology International , 22, 401—416.
Hamptona, N.Z., & Mason, E. (2003). Learning disabilities, gender, sources of efficacy, self-efficacy beliefs, and academic achievement in high school students. Journal of School Psychology, 41, 101—112.
24.
Heath, N.L., & Wiener, J. (1996). Depression and nonacademic self-perceptions in children with and without learning disabilities. Learning Disability Quarterly, 19, 34—44.
25.
Kaufman, A.S., & Kaufman, N.L. (1983). Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children: Administration and scoring manual. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.
26.
Koppitz, E.M. (1975). The Bender-Gestalt Test for Young Children: Research and application, 1963—1973. Orlando, FL: Grune & Stratton.
27.
Linnenbrink, E.A., & Pintrich, P.R. (2003). The role of self-efficacy beliefs in student engagement and learning in the classroom. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 19, 119—137.
28.
Lorsbach, A.W., & Jinks, J.L. (1999). Self-efficacy theory and learning environment . Learning Environments Research, 2, 157—167.
29.
Margalit, M. (1994). Loneliness among children with special needs: Theory, research, coping, and intervention. New York: Springer Verlag.
30.
Margalit, M. (2003). Resilience model among individuals with learning disabilities: Proximal and distal influences. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 18, 82—86.
31.
Margalit, M. (2004). Second-generation research on resilience: Social—emotional aspects of children with learning disabilities. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 19, 45—48.
32.
Margalit, M., & Al-Yagon, M. (2002). The loneliness experience of children with learning disabilities. In Y. L. Wong & M. Donahue (Eds.), The social dimensions of learning disabilities (pp. 53—75). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
33.
Margalit, M., & Efrati, M. (1995). Loneliness, coherence, and companionship among children with learning disorders. Educational Psychology, 16, 69—79.
34.
Margalit, M., Leyser, Y., Ankonina, D.B., & Avraham, Y. (1991). Community support in Israeli kibbutz and city families of disabled children: Family climate and parental coherence. The Journal of Special Education, 24, 427—440.
35.
Masten, A.S., & Coatsworth, J.D. (1998). The development of competence in favorable and unfavorable environments. The American Psychologist , 53, 205—220.
36.
Meltzer, L.J., Reddy, R., Pollica, L.S., Roditi, B., Sayer, J., & Theokas, C. (2004). Positive and negative self-perceptions: Is there a cyclical relationship between teachers' and students' perceptions of effort, strategy use, and academic performance?Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 19, 33—44.
37.
Moos, R.H., Cronkite, R.C., Billings, A.G., & Finney, J.W. (1987). Revised health and daily living form manual. Palo Alto, CA: Veterans Administration and Stanford University Medical Centers.
38.
Morrison, G.M., & Cosden, M.A. (1997). Risk, resilience, and adjustment of individuals with learning disabilities. Learning Disability Quarterly , 20, 43—60.
39.
Pearl, R. (1992). Psychosocial characteristics of learning disabled students. In N. N. Singh & I. L. Beale (Eds.), Learning disabilities: Nature, theory, and treatment (pp. 96—125). New York: Springer Verlag.
40.
Pintrich, P.R. (1999). The role of motivation in promoting and sustaining self-regulated learning. International Journal of Educational Research, 31, 459—470.
41.
Pintrich, P.R. (2003). A motivational science perspective on the role of student motivation in learning and teaching contexts. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, 667— 686.
42.
Raskind, M.H., Goldberg, R.J., Higgins, E.L., & Herman, K.L. (2002). Teaching “life success” to students with LD: Lessons learned from a 20-year study. Intervention in School and Clinic, 37, 201—208.
43.
Roeser, R.W., Eccles, J.S., & Sameroff, A.J. (2000). School as a context of early adolescents' academic and social—emotional development: A summary of research findings. The Elementary School Journal, 100, 443—473. Rutter , M., & Rutter, M. (1992). Developing minds. Harmondsworth, UK: Penguin Books.
44.
Shorey, H.S., Snyder, C.R., Rand, K.L., Hockemeyer, J.R., & Feldman, D.B. (2002). Somewhere over the rainbow: Hope theory weathers its first decade. Psychological Inquiry, 13, 322—331.
45.
Snyder, C.R. (2002). Hope theory: Rainbows in the mind. Psychological Inquiry, 13, 249—275.
46.
Stone, C.A., & May, A.L. (2002). The accuracy of academic self-evaluations in adolescents with learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities , 35, 370—384.
47.
Tillema, J.L., Cervone, D., & Scott, W.D. (2001). Negative mood, perceived self-efficacy, and personal standards in dysphoria: The effects of contextual cues on self-defeating patterns of cognition. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 25, 535—549.
48.
Vakil, E., & Blachstein, H. (1993). Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test: Structure analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 49, 883—890.
49.
Valas, H. (1999). Students with learning disabilities and low-achieving students: Peer acceptance, loneliness, self-esteem, and depression. Social Psychology ofEducation, 3, 173—192.
50.
Vaughn, S., Elbaum, B., Schumm, J.S., & Hughes, M.T. (1998). Social outcomes for students with and without learning disabilities in inclusive classrooms. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 31, 428—436.
51.
Watson, D., Wiese, D., Vaidya, J., & Tellegen, A. (1999). Two general activation systems of affect: Structural findings, evolutionary considerations, and psychobiological evidence. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76, 820—826.
52.
Wechsler, D.C. (1991). Wechsler intelligence scale for children (3rd ed.). San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corp.
53.
Wiener, J. (2004). Do peer relationships foster behavioral adjustment in children with learning disabilities?Learning Disability Quarterly, 27, 21—30.
54.
Wolters, C.A. (1999). The relation between high school students' motivational regulation and their use of learning strategies, effort, and classroom performance . Learning and Individual Differences, 3, 281—299.
55.
Yeo, G.B., & Neal, A. (2004). A multilevel analysis of effort, practice, and performance: Effects of ability, conscientiousness, and goal orientation. TheJournal of Applied Psychology, 89, 231—247.
56.
Zimmerman, B.J., Bandura, A., & Martinez-Pons, M. (1992). Self-motivation for academic attainment: The role of self-efficacy beliefs and personal goal setting. American Educational Research Journal, 29, 663—676.
