Shyness and academic adjustment in Chinese high school students: The mediating role of self-focused attention model

This study examined the influence of self-focused attention (rumination and reflection) on the relationship between shyness and academic adjustment in a Chinese adolescent sample. Seven hundred and six senior high school students (383 girls, 323 boys; 231 grade one, 238 grade two, 237 grade three) from two Chinese public secondary schools completed anonymous questionnaires regarding shyness, self-focused attention, and academic adjustment. Results indicated that 1) shyness was negatively related to academic adjustment; 2) rumination mediated the association between shyness and academic adjustment; 3) the mediating role of reflection was not significant. These findings demonstrated the contribution of rumination to the academic adjustment of timid students. Shy students in high school tend to adopt rumination model rather than a reflection model in their daily academic life, and this approach may harm their academic adjustment.