Relationship between students’ academic self-concept, intrinsic motivation, and academic performance

ABSTRACT

This study examined the relationship between academic self-concept, intrinsic motivation, and academic performance of Senior High School students. A quantitative approach using a descriptive cross-sectional survey design was used in the study. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 346 participants. The results showed that students who had a positive perception of their academic self-concept were more likely to be intrinsically motivated. Intrinsic motivation and academic self-concept also predicted students’ academic performance. While the results from the study revealed that academic self-concept and intrinsic motivation are great recipes for predicting students’ academic success, it must be emphasized that academic self-concept and intrinsic motivation generally do not operate in isolation. Therefore, educators who wish to improve the academic performance of the students especially among Senior High School students must consider paying attention to other factors that affect students’ learning. Implications for policy and practice have been discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Academic self-concept
• motivation
• academic performance
• Ghana
• Senior High School

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Seth Sunu

Seth Sunu Seth is currently an educational psychology tutor at St Theresa’s College of Education in Ghana. He holds Master of Philosophy in Education Psychology from University of Cape Coast- Ghana. Seth’s research focus on the understanding how academic self-concept shape students academic achievements.

David Baidoo-Anu

David Baidoo-Anu recently completed his PhD in Education at the Faculty of Education, Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario Canada. David’s current research focuses on culturally responsive classroom assessment. His work has been published in reputable educational journals and has also presented at professional conferences.