Online Searching Skills: Development of an Inventory to Assess Self-Efficacy

Final revised version of article and the instrument.An instrument measuring online searching self-efficacy beliefs was developed. Several hypotheses related to self-efficacy and performance on assignments were tested. Students' efficacy beliefs rose significantly after an online course, and were related to good performance on assignments. The instrument may be used to measure changes in student attitudes after instruction

Academic Motivation and Achievement Among Urban Adolescents

Although researchers report that motivational variables, such as interest and self-efficacy, positively relate to forms of achievement (e.g., standardized test scores, grades, number of problems solved correctly), other studies indicate that motivation\u27s contribution to achievement is not consistent. Fewer studies, however, have examined these connections within African American samples. This 2-year, cross-sectional investigation of eighth- and ninth-grade students specifically focused on motivation and GPA in a large, urban, predominantly African American, school district in the Midwest. Regression analyses of self-report levels of three motivational variables (i.e., self-efficacy beliefs, goal orientations, and domain interest) revealed that significant gender differences existed in goal orientation and achievement scores in both grades. Furthermore, self-efficacy and learning goals contributed to domain interests but the predictive value of these three motivational variables on achievement differed at each grade level

Academic Motivation and Achievement Among Urban Adolescents

Although researchers report that motivational variables, such as interest and self-efficacy, positively relate to forms of achievement (e.g., standardized test scores, grades, number of problems solved correctly), other studies indicate that motivation\u27s contribution to achievement is not consistent. Fewer studies, however, have examined these connections within African American samples. This 2-year, cross-sectional investigation of eighth- and ninth-grade students specifically focused on motivation and GPA in a large, urban, predominantly African American, school district in the Midwest. Regression analyses of self-report levels of three motivational variables (i.e., self-efficacy beliefs, goal orientations, and domain interest) revealed that significant gender differences existed in goal orientation and achievement scores in both grades. Furthermore, self-efficacy and learning goals contributed to domain interests but the predictive value of these three motivational variables on achievement differed at each grade level