Predicting Undergraduate Statistics Course Performance and Transfer through Students' Implicit Theories and Achievement Goals

Rachel L. Ankney

Data is provided by the student.

Abstract

Students' implicit theories of intelligence (TOI), implicit theories of statistics ability (TOSA), and achievement goals were analyzed as individual differences predictors of both statistics course performance and statistics transfer. Students enrolled in an introductory undergraduate statistics course completed inventories for the three individual differences under investigation as well as measures of course performance and transfer. We hypothesized that TOSA would be a stronger predictor of achievement goals, course performance, and transfer, and would outperform TOI in competing path models. We also anticipated that achievement goals would predict both statistics outcomes. Results demonstrated that (1) TOSA is a stronger predictor of achievement goals than TOI, (2) course performance is predicted negatively by entity TOSA and positively by mastery approach achievement goals, and (3) transfer is negatively predicted by performance avoidance achievement goals and entity TOSA. Results of path analysis were inconclusive.