Attention as a Factor in the School Performance of Adolescents
Abstract
Attention represents a core of cognitive activity, it is an essential element of meaningful information processing and a key factor in self-regulation which is necessary for academic success. Despite this, there is only a small number of studies that examine the relationship between attention and school performance of adolescents. The aim of this research is an attempt to identify the components of attention which are relevant for academic achievement in adolescence. In addition, the aim of the research is also to determine potential differences with regard to the respondents’ gender. The sample included 350 adolescents, aged between 14 and 16 years (M=15.2), matched for their intelligence quotient, from different towns in Serbia. The following instruments were used – the Digit Span Test, Digit Symbol-Coding, the Trail Making Test, the Stroop Test, the Concentration Achievement Test (for measuring the components of attention), Raven’s Progressive Matrices (as a measure of intelligence). The results indicate that academic achievement is highly significantly associated with a certain configuration of components of the function of attention (goal-oriented selectivity, resistance to distractions, attention maintenance and concentration), and that the performance of students with poor academic achievement differs significantly from the performance of students with better academic achievement (p < 0.01). The results imply that the academic achievement or failure of adolescents cannot be interpreted without taking into account the characteristics of their attention. In addition, the results also indicate the necessity to establish an educational program with an aim to encourage the development of the assessed components of attention, in order for adolescents to attain academic achievements adequate to their intellectual capabilities.
References
Astle, D. E., & Scerif, G. (2009). Using Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience to Study Behavioral and Attentional Control. Developmental Psychobiology, 51 (2), 107–118.
Awh E., Armstrong, K. M., & Moore, T. (2006). Visual and oculomotor selection: links, causes and implications for spatial attention. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 10, 124–130.
Anderson, V. A., Anderson, P., Northam, E., Jacobs, R., & Catroppa, C. (2001). Development of executive functions through late childhood and adolescence in an Australian sample. Developmental Neuropsychology, 20 (1), 385–406.
Baddeley, A. (2003). Working memory: looking back and looking forward. Nat. Rev. Neurosci, 4, 829–839.
Boekaerts , M., & Corno, L. (2005). Self-Regulation in the Classroom: A Perspective on Assessment and Intervention. Applied psychology: an international review, 54 (2), 199–231.
Brocki, K.C., Bohlin, G. (2004). Executive functions in children aged 6 to 13: A dimensional and developmental study. Developmental Neuropsychology, 26 (2), 571–593.
Banich, M. (2009). Executive function: The search for an integrated account. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18, 89–94.
Chan, R.C.K., Shum, D., Toulopoulou, T., Chen, E.Y.H. (2008). Assessment of executive functions: Review of instruments and identification of critical issues. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 23 (2), 201–216.
Colby, C. L. (1991).The neuroanatomy and neurophysiology of attention. Journal of Child Neurology, 6, 90–118.
DuPaul, G. J., Stoner, G., & O’Reilly, M. J. (2002). Best practices in classroom interventions for attention problems. In: A. Thomas & J. Grimes (Eds.), Best Practices in School Psychology, 2 (pp. 1115–1127). Washington, DC: National Association of School Psychologists. Attention problems and academic achievement 28.
Diamond, A. (2013). Executive functions. Annual Review of Psychology, 64, 135–168.
Deary, I. J., & Johnson W. (2010). Intelligence and education: Causal perceptions drive analytic processes and therefore conclusions. International Journal of Epidemiology, 39, 1362–1369.
Eisenberg N., Smith, C. L., Sadovsky, A., & Spinrad, T. L. (2004). Effortful control: Relations with emotion regulation, adjustment, and socialization in childhood. In: R. F. Baumeister, K. D. Vohs (Eds.), Handbook of self-regulation: Research, theory, and applications (pp. 259–282). New York: Guilford.
Eysenck, M., Kerakshan, N., Santos, R., & Galvo, M. (2007). Anxiety and cognitive performance: Attentional control theory. Emotion, 7 (2), 336–353.
Fields, D. R. (2014). Myelin Formation and Remodeling. Cell 156 (1–2), 15–17.
Guy, S. C., Isquith, P.K. Giola, G. A. (2004). Behavior rating inventory of executive function (Self-report version ed.). Odessa, Fl: Psychological Assessment Resources.
Gadžić, A. & Milojević, A. (2009). Školski uspeh i status adolescenata u razredu. Teme, 33 (4), 1379–1389.
Gottschling, J., Spengler, M., Spinath, B., & Spinath, F. M. (2012). The prediction of school achievement from a behavior genetic perspective: Results from the German twin study on cognitive ability, self-reported motivation, and school achievement (CoSMoS). Personality and Individual Differences, 53, 381–386.
Havelka, N. (2000). Učenik i nastavnik u obrazovnom procesu. Beograd: Zavod za udžbenike.
Hinshaw, S. P. (1992). Externalizing Behavior Problems and Academic Underachievement in Childhood and Adolescence: Causal Relationships and Underlying Mechanisms. Psychological Bulletin, 111 (1), 127–155.
Intrilligator, J., & Cavanagh, P. (2001). The spatial resolution of visual attention. Cognitive Psychology, 43 (3), 171–216.
Knudsen, E. (2007). Fundamental components of attention. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 30, (57–78).
Lezak, M. D., Howieson, D. B., & Loring, D. W. (2004). Neuropsychological Assessment (4th ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.
Luria, A. R. (1973). The working brain. Peguin: London.
Madeeha, K., & Abdulbari, B. (2009). Factors contributing to school failure among school children in very fast developing Arabian Society. Oman Medical Journal, 24 (3), 212–217.
Malenka, RC., Nestler, E. J., & Hyman, S. E. (2009). Chapter 13: Higher Cognitive Function and Behavioral Control. In: A. Sydor, RY. Brown (Eds.), Molecular Neuropharmacology: A Foundation for Clinical Neuroscience (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Medical, 313–321.
Moss, E., & St-Laurent, D. (2001). Attachment at school age and academic performance. Developmental Psychology, 37 (6), 863–874.
Milovanović, R. (2001). Pažnja i učenje. Beograd: Centar za primenjenu psihologiju.
Milovanović, R. (2012). Razvoj egzekutivnih komponenti funkcija pažnje u adolescenciji. Engrami, 34 (1), 5–20.
Mirkov, S. (2007). Samoregulacija u učenju – primena strategija i uloga orijentacija na ciljeve. Zbornik Instituta za pedagoška istraživanja, 39 (2), 309–328.
Montalvo, F. T & Gonzales Torres, M. C. (2004). Self-Regulated Learning: Current and Future Directions. Electronic Journal of Research in Educational Psychology, 2 (1), 1–34.
Maunsell, J.H, Cook, E.P. (2002). The role of attention in visual processing. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society Biological Sciences, 357, 1063–1072.
Nikolašević, Ž., Bugarski- Ignjatović, V., Milovanović, I., i Raković, S. (2014). Inteligencija i školsko postignuće u svetlu naslednih sredinskih činilaca. Primenjena psihologija, 7 (3), 381–400.
Navarro, J., Aguilar, M., Alcalde, C., Ruiz, G., Marchena, E., & Menacho, I. (2011). Inhibitory processes, working memory, phonological awareness, naming speed, and early arithmetic achievement. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 14 (2), 580–588.
Pintrich, P. R. (1999). The Role of Motivation in Promoting and Sustaining Self-Regulated Learning. International Journal of Educational Research, 31 (2), 459–470.
Raven, J., Raven, J. C., & Court, J. H. (1998). Raven manual: Section 1, general overview. Oxford, UK: Oxford Psychologists Press Ltd.
Rayneri, L. J., Gerber, B. L., & Wiley L. P. (2006). The relationship between classroom environment and the learning style preferences of gifted middle school students and the impact on levels of performance. Gifted Child Quarterly, 50 (2), 104–118.
Rueda, M. R., Posner, M. L., & Rothbart , M. K. (2005). The Development of Executive Attention: Contributions to the Emergence of Self-Regulation. Developmental Neuropsychology, 28 (2), 573–594.
Spinath, B., Spinath, F. M., Harlaar, N., & Plomin, R. (2006). Predicting school achievement from general cognitive ability, self-perceived ability, and intrinsic value. Intelligence, 34, 363−374.
Stroop, J. R. (1935). Studies of interference in serial verbal reactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 18, 643–662.
Sonuga-Barke, E. J. S., Koerting, J., Smith, E., McCann, D. C., & Thompson, M. (2011). Early detection and intervention for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics, 11 (4), 557–563.
Swanson, L. (2011). Working memory, attention, and mathematical problem solving: A longitudinal study of elementary school children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 103 (4), 821–837.
Vigotski, S. L. (1996). Problemi razvoja psihe. Beograd: Zavod za udžbenike i nastavna sredstva.
Vigotski, S. L. (1934). Thought and language. Cambridge, M. A: MIT Press.
Washburn, DA (2016). The Stroop effect at 80: The competition between stimulus control and cognitive control. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 105 (1), 3–13.
Zimmerman, B. J. (1990). Self-Regulated Learning and Academic Achievement: An Overview. Educational Psychologist, 25 (1), 3–17.
The details about the publication policy, including copyright and licensing, are available at: