ERIC Number: EJ720040
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2005-Oct
Pages: 29
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0272-930X
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Parents' Causal Attributions Concerning Their Children's School Achievement: A Longitudinal Study
Rytkonen, Katja; Aunola, Kaisa; Nurmi, Jari-Erik
Merrill-Palmer Quarterly: Journal of Developmental Psychology, v51 n4 p494-522 Oct 2005
The present study investigated the causes to which parents attribute their children's academic successes and failures during children's transition from preschool to primary school. It followed 182 mothers and 167 fathers of 207 children. The parents completed a questionnaire concerning their causal attributions, level of education, and parenting styles in the middle of the preschool year and during Grades 1 and 2. The children's performance in reading and mathematics was tested at the beginning of the preschool year. The results showed that, while the children were in preschool, parents attributed their children's success to ability and teaching. When the children moved to primary school, parents increasingly attributed their children's success to ability, whereas they typically attributed failure to lack of effort. Furthermore, the higher the level of performance the children showed, the more the parents attributed their children's success to ability and the less they attributed it to teaching.
Descriptors: Grade 1, Parenting Styles, Academic Achievement, Attribution Theory, Longitudinal Studies, Questionnaires, Academic Ability, Parent Attitudes, Preschool Education, Learning Motivation
Wayne State University Press, The Leonard N. Simons Building, 4809 Woodward Avenue, Detroit, MI 48201-1309. Tel: 800-978-7323 (Toll Free); Fax: 313-577-6131.
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Preschool Education; Primary Education; Grade 1
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A