A Dynamic Perspective on Changes in Conscientiousness, Academic Performance and the Role of Parental Academic Expectations in Chinese High School Students: A Longitudinal Study Across 2 Years

TL;DR

This study explores how changes in conscientiousness and parental expectations affect academic performance in Chinese high school students over two years.

Contribution

The study introduces a dynamic perspective on personality changes and their impact on academic outcomes through academic engagement.

Findings

Changes in conscientiousness predicted academic performance changes via academic engagement.

Changes in parental academic expectations did not moderate the relationship between conscientiousness and engagement.

Dynamic personality changes are important for understanding academic outcomes in adolescents.

Abstract

While static conscientiousness is known to predict academic success, personality can be particularly dynamic during adolescence. This study adopted a unique change-oriented perspective to examine the longitudinal relationship between within-person changes in conscientiousness and changes in academic performance among Chinese high school students, while also exploring the moderating role of changes in parental academic expectations. Four waves of longitudinal data were collected from 453 students (265 males, Mage = 15.42, SD = 0.76), with each wave spaced 6 months apart. Results indicated that the changes in conscientiousness (T2-T1) predicted the changes in academic performance (T4-T3) through the changes in academic engagement (T3-T2). However, the moderating effect of changes in parental academic expectations on the relationship between changes in conscientiousness and academic engagement was not significant. These findings go beyond static trait approaches by illustrating how dynamic changes in personality relate to evolving academic outcomes via engagement during the crucial high school years. The study highlights the importance of a dynamic perspective on personality, particularly within the developmental context of adolescence, and offers implications for interventions targeting both student traits and parental support in the Chinese educational context.

Figures