The Role of Resilience, Delayed Gratification and Stress in Predicting Academic Performance Vivienne Cheng & Jonathan Catling
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The role of resilience, delayed gratification and stress in predicting academic performance Vivienne Cheng & Jonathan Catling Transition to university is an important and potentially stressful life event for students. Previous studies have shown that resilience, delay of gratification and stress can affect the academic performance of students. However, none have shown the effect of these factors in predicting academic performance, hence the current study aimed to look at the predictive power of the combined effect of these factors on first-year undergraduate student’s academic performance. One-hundred-and-seventy-six first-year Psychology undergraduates from the University of Birmingham were recruited. All participants completed five scales (Demographic questionnaire, CD-RISC-25, Perceived Stress scale, College Students’ Stressful Event Checklist, and Academic Delay of Gratification scale). Linear Multiple Regression was conducted using the Stepwise method to assess for predictors of students’ academic performance. Results indicated that UCAS scores (previous academic performance) were the only significant predictor for first-years’ academic performance. Keywords: Academic performance. TTENDING UNIVERSITY is becoming Penny and Armstrong-Hallam (2010) a more and more common event: the conducted a survey assessing the relation - A UK tertiary education enrolment ship between students’ stress-coping strategy ratio rose from 19 per cent in 1980 to 60 per and academic performance. They found that cent in 2011 (The World Bank, 2013). students with poor academic performance, Obtaining a place at university is increasingly (thus experiencing high academic pres - more competitive; 583,501 applicants sure), were more likely to binge drink. competed for about 400,000 degree courses Students with poor academic performance places in 2011 (UCAS, 2012). Moreover, reported that they perceived drinking as an getting into university may be considered an effective stress-coping strategy, as it allowed important but potentially stressful life event them to be pressure-free. Moreover, they for students (Fisher & Hood, 1987), and may found that students who used drinking as even potentially lead to an increase in the their stress-coping strategy were less capable vulnerability of students in developing in delaying gratification. Students drank mental illness – Topham and Moller (2011) whenever they felt stressed and enjoyed the found that about 25 per cent of the univer - feeling of being pressure-free, rather than sity students in UK reported they had quasi- dealing with the cause of high academic clinical levels of psychological distress. There stress; over 20 per cent of them skipped class is also an observed increasing suicide rate the day after drinking, hence they continued among full-time higher education students; to have poor academic performance. suicides grew by 47 per cent for female These studies demonstrated the impor - students and 36 per cent for males between tance of resilience, delay of gratification and 2007 and 2011 (Office for National Statistics, stress in affecting students’ well-being and 2013). This not only indicates potential high academic performance. A number of other stress level in students, but also implies that studies suggest that these factors also influ - students may have low resilience in coping ence future success (e.g. Harackiewicz et al., with academic stress and large changes. 2002; McLafferty, Mallet & McCauley, 2012; Psychology Teaching Review Vol. 21 No. 1, Spring 2015 13 © The British Psychological Society Vivienne Cheng & Jonathan Catling Wiggins & Blackburn, 1969). However, none groups (which are examples of risk factors have demonstrated the combined effect of for low resilience), also had a higher risk of these factors, thus the present study aimed to academic failure. However, this varies address this issue and assess the role of these between individuals, as minority children factors on academic performance. with higher self-efficacy, self-esteem and strong interpersonal skills (which act as Resilience protective factors for resilience), may still Resilience describes a process whereby have outstanding achievements (Wang, people bounce back from adversity and go Haertel & Walberg, 1994). Borman and on with their lives. It is a dynamic process Overman (2004) also found that minority highly influenced by protective factors, students, who were equipped with protective (Dyer, 1996). Protective factors have been factors, (such as school support, a greater defined as the specific competencies that are engagement in academic activities and a necessary for the process of resilience to strong locus of control), achieved good occur. The defining feature of a protective mathematic scores. Gonzalez and Padilla factor is a modification or adaptation of the (1997) demonstrated that not only did a person's response to a risk situation. supportive school environment protect A number of factors have been identified as students’ performance from the influence of having important roles in facilitating positive the risk factors of resilience, but family and adaptation. Werner (1989) clustered protec - peer support also had the same protective tive factors into three major categories: effect for resilience; they were positively (a) personal attributes of the individual, for correlated with resilience and were signifi - example, gender and locus of control; cant predictors of resilience. This suggested (b) affectional ties within the family; and a strong correlation between resilience and (c) existence of external support systems academic performance in students, and it is which arise at school or within the commu - possible that resilience is a significant predic - nity (Smokowskia, Reynoldsa & Bezruczko, tor of students’ academic performance. 1999). Alternatively, resilience has been defined Psychosocial and demographic factors as the ability to cope with and adapt to adver - Previous research has shown that psycho- sity and changes (Reich, Zautra & Hall, social and demographic factors are 2010); this may buffer people from the effect correlated significantly with academic of stress (McLafferty et al., 2012), thus performance. For example, social supports suggesting a possible relationship between have a direct impact on academic perform - resilience and stress. Petrie (2010) found a ance, specifically peer and parental support significant negative correlation between (Dennis, Phinney & Chuateco, 1996). More - perceived stress score and resilience score in over, Catling, Mason and Jones (2013) adolescents with cystic fibrosis: the higher conducted a study with Psychology under - the resilience level, the lower the perceived graduate students to find the predictors for stress level. Frigborg et al. (2006) also found academic performance using multiple similar result, with individuals with high regression. They found that peer support was resilience score reporting less stress, imply - a significant predictor for academic success. ing a protective effect of resilience against There is also an observed gender differ - stress. Resilience is a multi-dimensional ence in the relationship between resilience concept; previous studies have found multi - and academic performance. Sun and Stewart ple protective and risk factors for resilience (2007) reported that female participants and that resilience affects academic success – showed higher resilience than males, as well Natriello, McDill and Pallas (1990) found as performing better academically. Further - that children from poverty and minority more, parents’ education levels affect 14 Psychology Teaching Review Vol. 21 No. 1, Spring 2015 The role of resilience, delayed gratification and stress in predicting academic performance students’ academic achievement (Buch - final grades, test anxiety, and learning strate - mann & DiPrete, 2006); they found that a gies. Moreover ADOG was associated with mother’s education level had a significant self-efficacy, high task value and intrinsic and impact on their daughter’s academic extrinsic motivation. All these factors were achievement. Further studies found that also significantly correlated with academic students’ previous academic attainment, that success (Bembenutty & Karabenick, 2004). is, high school grades, was another signifi - cant predictor of current and future Stress academic performance (Harackiewicz et al., Stress is defined as a psychological arousal 2002). Hackett et al. (1992) demonstrated state that results from excess demand over that not only was past academic perform - our adapting ability (Sanders & Lustington, ance a predictor for academic performance, 2002). Stress can be measured by perceived but also that performance expectations, stress and life event stress. Both measures are clear career prospective and encouragement significant indicators for stress and have from school predicted academic success influential effects on performance. Lloyd et significantly. Additionally, it should be noted al. (1980) found that life event stress – that age is significantly correlated with including first semester of university life, was resilience and academic performance negatively correlated with the academic (Abubakar & Adegboyega, 2012): resilience performance of first and second year levels increase as students age, and thus they students. They also suggested life events as develop better skills in performing well the predictor of academic performance; this (Fergus & Zimmerman, 2005). was especially effective