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Undergraduate Student Gender, Personality and Academic Confidence

Author

Listed:
  • Paul Sander

    (Department of Psychology, Teesside University, Middlesbrough, Tees Valley TS1 3BX, UK)

  • Jesús de la Fuente

    (School of Education and Psychology, University of Navarra, 31009 Pamplona, Spain
    School of Psychology, University of Almería, 04120 Almería, Spain)

Abstract

Within a socio-situational and socio-behavioural context, the relationships between the Big Five personality traits and the academic confidence of university students and how they differed by sex of the student was explored. Previous research has identified both conscientiousness and academic confidence as being linked to university performance. In respect of sex, female students have been found to score higher on all of the Big Five measures, whereas the relationship between sex and academic confidence has been mixed. Using self-report measures of personality and academic confidence from 1523 Spanish students, it was found that the female students were more confident in their grades, studying and attendance components of academic confidence and had higher scores for conscientiousness, agreeableness and neuroticism personality measures. A multiple regression analysis found that personality predicts academic confidence, with conscientiousness being the trait that statistically loaded the most strongly. This research further confirms the validity of the Academic Behavioural Confidence scale and suggests that measures of personality and, especially, academic confidence could be usefully used in student support situations to help students acquire the strategies and skills that lead to successful university study. It is suggested that further research in the area needs to include outcome or achievement measures and measures of hypothetical constructs, such as personality and academic confidence, that go beyond self-report measures.

Suggested Citation

  • Paul Sander & Jesús de la Fuente, 2020. "Undergraduate Student Gender, Personality and Academic Confidence," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(15), pages 1-15, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:15:p:5567-:d:393301
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jesús de la Fuente & Paola Paoloni & Douglas Kauffman & Meryem Yilmaz Soylu & Paul Sander & Lucía Zapata, 2020. "Big Five, Self-Regulation, and Coping Strategies as Predictors of Achievement Emotions in Undergraduate Students," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-20, May.
    2. Alberto Alesina & Paola Giuliano & Nathan Nunn, 2013. "On the Origins of Gender Roles: Women and the Plough," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 128(2), pages 469-530.
    3. Martin, Ashley E. & Phillips, Katherine W., 2017. "What “blindness” to gender differences helps women see and do: Implications for confidence, agency, and action in male-dominated environments," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 28-44.
    4. Broecke, Stijn & Hamed, Joseph, 2008. "Gender gaps in higher education participation: An analysis of the relationship between prior attainment and young participation by gender, socio-economic class and ethnicity," MPRA Paper 35595, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Casper Hansen & Peter Jensen & Christian Skovsgaard, 2015. "Modern gender roles and agricultural history: the Neolithic inheritance," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 20(4), pages 365-404, December.
    6. Stephanie R. Psaki & Katharine J. McCarthy & Barbara S. Mensch, 2018. "Measuring Gender Equality in Education: Lessons from Trends in 43 Countries," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 44(1), pages 117-142, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jesús de la Fuente & Erika Andrea Malpica-Chavarria & Angélica Garzón-Umerenkova & Mónica Pachón-Basallo, 2021. "Effect of Personal and Contextual Factors of Regulation on Academic Achievement during Adolescence: The Role of Gender and Age," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-18, August.
    2. Antonio Granero-Gallegos & Ginés D. López-García & Antonio Baena-Extremera & Raúl Baños, 2023. "Relationship between Psychological Needs and Academic Self-Concept in Physical Education Pre-Service Teachers: A Mediation Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-13, February.
    3. Xu, Zhiwei & Zhang, Miao & Zhang, Pengfei & Luo, Jiawen & Tu, Mengting & Lai, Yuanhang, 2023. "The neurophysiological mechanisms underlying brand personality consumer attraction: EEG and GSR evidence," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).

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