Explanatory Style, Ego-orientation and Primary School Mathematics Achievement

This project was concerned with the relationship between children's explanatory style (optimism vs pessimism) and achievement in mathematics indexed by the Progressive Achievement Test. A total of 145 children from Grades 4, 6 and 7 (aged 8 to 12 years) participated as subjects. The Children's Attributional Styles Questionnaire (CASQ) correlated significantly (r= 0.34) with current achievement and scores on the negative subscale of the CASQ correlated with achievement data collected 2 and 3 years previously. On a further questionnaire concerned with motives for learning, optimistic children endorsed task-orientation goals, whereas ego-orientation goals were endorsed by both optimistic and pessimistic children. Significant sex differences were found on the CASQ, with a greater number of boys displaying a relatively depressogenic pattern.