Academic achievement and self-concepts of Latvian adolescents in a changed social context

Abstract

Three questions were posed. Would low achieving 13 to 14 year olds in Latvia have followed the predictions derivable from Social Identity Theory and formed a counter-culture or would they display depressed scores on measures of self-evaluation and other aspects of self-concept? With ethnic Russians having been "relatively deprived" vis-a-vis ethnic Latvians since 1989, would these effects be particularly evident in their experience and behaviour? Given that both groups are materially impoverished in comparison with their English peers would this be reflected in their seljperceptions and evaluations?While differences associated with differential achievement were found across a wide range of perceptual, evaluative, attitudinal and reported behavioural measures in line with the hypothesis that low achievement is associated with depressed school-valued dispositions and behaviour, neither the relative deprivation of ethnic Russians, nor the lower material resources ofboth groups showed effects.Suggestions are offered as to the consequences ofthese results for policy makers and the challenges they present to social psychologists in education.

Self-concept, self-esteem and academic achievement: strategies for maintaining self-esteem in students experiencing academic failure

“…In a study with 150 students from three different countries (England, France and Japan), Robinson and Tayler (1991) show that students who are underachieving display lower levels of self-esteem. Robinson and Breslav (1996) obtained similar results with a sample of 504 Lithuanian adolescents. In both studies, the students who achieved the least also exhibited low scores in a number of school-related variables, thereby reflecting a low level of commitment to academic life.…”

“…However, other studies by Robinson and colleagues (Robinson and Breslav 1996;Robinson and Tayler 1991) arrive at different conclusions. In a study with 150 students from three different countries (England, France and Japan), Robinson and Tayler (1991) show that students who are underachieving display lower levels of self-esteem.…”

“…A study by Osborne (1995) offers results that provide a degree of support for the thesis put forward by Robinson and Breslav (1996). In an attempt to explain the seemingly paradoxical results of comparative studies which found that among students the self-esteem of African Americans was the same as or greater than that of Americans with European origins, Osborne suggests the hypothesis of a reduction in the identification with school.…”

“…In both studies, the students who achieved the least also exhibited low scores in a number of school-related variables, thereby reflecting a low level of commitment to academic life. These results led Robinson and Breslav (1996) to claim that the reconstruction of a threatened social identity probably only occurs in extreme social contexts in which the social structure facilitates categorisation-i.e. when belonging to the "bad student" category is concurrent with belonging to a clearly identifiable social group (based on differences in ethnicity, social class or other factors).…”

“…Both strategies seek to reduce the discrepancy between that which the person wants to be and that which he/she thinks he/she is (perceived competence). So, in Harter's model, self-esteem depends on the distance between perceived competence and the importance attributed to the different dimensions of selfconcept, which has a degree of affinity with social identity theory (Robinson and Breslav 1996;Robinson andTayler 1986, 1991;Robinson et al 1990). Despite the individual emphasis on the strategies for maintaining self-esteem, Harter (1993) considers that in certain facets of selfconcept-particularly the school-related dimensions-it is difficult for individuals to attach less importance to those facets because of social pressure in the opposite direction.…”