The role of study orientation and casual attribution in mathematics achievement
Abstract
English: This study was conducted to investigate and clarify the role that certain study orientation
variables play in predicting mathematics achievement. To achieve this, the empirical
relationship between study orientation as measured by the SOM (study attitude, mathematics
anxiety, study habits problem-solving behaviour and study milieu) and achievement in this
subject was investigated for grade 9 learners from jive racially integrated, secondary schools
in the Northern Cape. The role of gender and culture as possible moderator variables was
considered. A series of hierarchical regression analyses were performed to determine the
percentage of the criterion (mathematics achievement) variance that could be explained by
study orientation in mathematics. This investigation was augmented by the further
exploration of learners' perceived causes of their achievement in mathematics. Once again,
the contribution of the attribution of causes (internal or external factors) to the variance in
mathematics achievement for both gender and culture was investigated. The results
emphasized the importance of the set of study orientation variables as predictors of
achievement in mathematics for both genders and all three culture groups. Study milieu and
problem-solving behaviour appeared to be the most significant (at the 1% level) individual
predictors of mathematics achievement for both genders and both black and white grade 9
learners. The causal attribution of achievement scales jointly contributed significantly to the
explanation of the variance in mathematics achievement for the following groups: male,
white and coloured learners with positive perceptions of their achievement in mathematics
and male, white and black learners with negative perceptions of their achievement in
mathematics. The external factor only contributed significantly to the explanation of the
variance in mathematics achievement for the white learners with positive perceptions of their
achievement in mathematics. However, the internal factor made a significant contribution to
the explanation of the variance in mathematics achievement for the following groups: the
coloured learners with positive perceptions of their achievement in mathematics and both
male and female and black and white learners with negative perceptions of their achievement
in mathematics.
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