Math achievement has been thought to be interrelated with self-concept, interest, and effort. In a recent longitudinal study published in Contemporary Educational Psychology, researchers examined how these factors influence each other over time using a sample of Grade 8 students in China.
A total of 702 students in Grade 8 from 14 classes in two public schools in East and South China completed an assessment of their math achievement, homework self-concept, interest, and effort at six weeks after the start of the school year and at the end of the school year. The analysis showed that:
Reciprocal effects were found between math self-concept and achievement, effort, and achievement, as well as interest and effort.