Ethnic differences in secondary school students' achievement emotions toward mathematics : a comparative study between Chinese Dai and Han

Abstract

Most studies on achievement emotions are conducted within particular cultural settings. Few studies to date have investigated whether, and if so why, achievement emotions toward mathematics differ across cultures. The aim of the research conducted for this dissertation was to describe and explain the patterns of mathematics achievement emotions in Chinese Dai and Han students and identify the appraisal antecedents that may be responsible for the ethnic differences therein. To achieve these aims, a quantitative approach was adopted in a sample of 797 Chinese Dai and Han secondary school students aged 11 to 15 years, and qualitative analysis was conducted with 36 participants, including Dai temple students and their significant others. The dissertation consists of three interrelated studies. Study One evaluated the psychometric properties and measurement invariance of the mathematics-related Achievement Emotion Questionnaire (AEQ; Pekrun et al., 2011) across Chinese Dai and Han. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed that mathematics achievement emotions had an eight-factor structure for the Dai and Han samples. Measurement invariance testing indicated that the mathematics-related AEQ had strong invariance across Dai and Han. Furthermore, latent mean differences analyses revealed lower levels of positive achievement emotions (i.e., enjoyment, pride, and hope) and higher levels of negative achievement emotions (i.e., boredom, anxiety, anger, hopelessness, and shame) in the Dai students than in the Han students. Study Two explored the appraisal antecedents of mathematics achievement emotions that may be responsible for the ethnic differences therein by drawing on the control-value theory (Pekrun, 2006), which posits that differences in such emotions are caused by different levels of control and value appraisals. The results showed that Dai students’ perception of control and value appraisals to be significantly lower than those of Han students. Also, the assumption that ethnic differences in mathematics achievement emotions are mediated by ethnic differences in students’ control and value appraisals was supported. Finally, Study Three, which was qualitative in nature, enquired into the factors that could potentially explain the differences in mathematics-related control and value appraisals between the Dai and Han groups so as to elucidate and supplement the quantitative findings of Studies One and Two. Dai temple students are typical representatives of Dai culture, and the qualitative study was based on semi-structured interviews with them. The results suggested that the mathematics-related control and value appraisals of these students are affected by both micro-level factors (e.g., temple, school, peer, and family factors) and macro-level factors (e.g., socioeconomic and cultural factors). In sum, the three studies investigated the potential differences in mathematics achievement emotions and mathematics-related control and value appraisals between the Dai and Han groups and examined the hypothesis that ethnic differences in such emotions are mediated by differences in control and value appraisals. Furthermore, the studies clarified the socio-cultural factors that may affect control and value appraisals. Both the theoretical and practical implications of the studies are discussed, as are their limitations and potential directions for future research.