Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 2011, 52, 586594 DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9450.2011.00905.

Personality and Social Psychology

Academic self-concept in high school: Predictors and effects on
adjustment in higher education
SOFIE WOUTERS, VEERLE GERMEIJS, HILDE COLPIN and KARINE VERSCHUEREN
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, School Psychology and Child and Adolescent Development, Belgium

Wouters, S., Germeijs, V., Colpin, H. & Verschueren, K. (2011). Academic self-concept in high school: Predictors and effects on adjustment in higher edu-
cation. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 52, 586594.
Academic self-concept is considered a relevant psychological construct influencing many educational outcomes directly or indirectly. Therefore, the major
focus of the current study is on the predictors and effects of academic self-concept in late adolescence. First, we studied the simultaneous effects of individ-
ual, class-average and school-average achievement (i.e., assessed by school grades) on academic self-concept in the final year of high school, thereby repli-
cating and extending previous research on the big-fish-little-pond effect model. Second, the predictive value of high school academic self-concept for
academic adjustment and success in the first year of higher education was examined. The sample comprised 536 twelfth grade students (44% boys)
recruited from 24 schools (67 classes) that were representative with regard to geographical region and educational network in Flanders. Structural equation
modeling showed that, when examining the joint contribution of school- and class-average achievement, only class-average achievement was significantly
and negatively associated with academic self-concept. Furthermore, a significant effect of academic self-concept in high school on academic adjustment
and success in higher education (in addition to any effects of high school academic achievement) was found. These results highlight the importance of con-
sidering academic self-concept in educational research and policy.
Key words: Academic self-concept, achievement, success, higher education, adjustment.
Sofie Wouters, Tiensestraat 102 box 3717, 3000 Leuven, Belgium. E-mail: sofie.wouters@psy.kuleuven.be

INTRODUCTION achievement level of an important reference group (when control-

Research on self-concept has a rich theoretical and empirical
background comprising several decades. In educational research,
the academic components of self-concept are particularly impor-
tant. Academic self-concept (i.e., how one perceives ones abili-
ties in an academic or learning context; Bong & Skaalvik, 2003)
has been found to affect many other (educational) outcomes
directly or indirectly (e.g., Bong & Skaalvik, 2003; Dickhauser,
Reuter & Hilling, 2005; Marsh & Hau, 2003; Valentine, DuBois
& Cooper, 2004). Given the central role of academic self-concept
for many aspects of students academic and general functioning,
the current study focuses on the predictors and effects of academic
self-concept in late adolescence. First, we aim to study the simul-
taneous effects of individual, class- and school-average achieve-
ment (i.e., assessed by school grades) on academic self-concept in
the final year of high school, thereby replicating and extending
previous research on the big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE). Sec-
ondly, we aim to examine whether high school academic self-con-
cept predicts academic adjustment and success in the first year of
higher education. These relations are tested, while controlling for
high school individual and group-level achievement in one com-
prehensive model. Both aims are explained in more detail below.
Academic self-concept and achievement: testing and extending
the big-fish-little-pond effect model
An influential model for the study of academic self-concept devel-
opment is the BFLPE model (Marsh, 1984, 1987). Central
assumption in this model is that, although students academic
self-concept is positively associated with their individual
academic performance, it is negatively related to the average
ling for individual achievement). This could imply, for example,
that a student in a higher performing school has a lower academic
self-concept than an equally able student going to a lower per-
forming school. An abundance of empirical studies have already
confirmed this assumption (e.g., Marsh & Hau, 2003; Marsh,
Trautwein, Ludtke, Baumert & Koller, 2007; Trautwein, Ludtke,
Marsh, Koller & Baumert, 2006). Nevertheless, research has also
shown that students academic self-concept may be enhanced by
being a member of a higher performing group, also referred to as
the reflected glory or assimilation effect (e.g., Huguet, Dumas,
Marsh et al., 2009; Marsh, Kong & Hau, 2000; Preckel & Brull,
2010; Trautwein, Koller, Ludtke & Baumert, 2005; Trautwein et
al., 2006). Marsh et al. (2000) have indeed argued that what
researchers observe in an actual school context (i.e., negative rela-
tion between group achievement and individual self-concept) can
be conceived as the combined effect of two opposing social com-
parison processes (i.e., assimilation and contrast). Because the
resulting observed effect is negative, the contrast effect is
expected to be much stronger than the assimilation effect (Marsh,
Koller & Baumert, 2001). In the present study, as in most BFLPE
studies, the hypothesized social comparison processes cannot be
assessed directly, only the net effect on academic self-concept can
be observed.
Although the BFLPE model has received a lot of empirical sup-
port, some issues remain to be further explored. First, past BFLPE
research has focused primarily on one-frame analyses, mainly
using the school as a frame of reference. Nevertheless, students
everyday school context consists of a multitude of potential refer-
ence groups such as their school, course of study, class, or friends
which are all accessible to the students at the same time (Wu,
Chang & Huang, 2006). Up to now, few studies have focused on

2011 The Authors.

Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 2011 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 9600 Garsington
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Scand J Psychol 52 (2011)
the relative importance of these simultaneously occurring refer-
ence groups for students academic self-concept. Continuing to
ignore this complex nature of students school context may ulti-
mately lead to invalid conclusions. In the current study, we aimed
to extend BFLPE research by focusing on two achievement-based
frames that are frequently considered separately in BFLPE studies
(i.e., school- and class-average achievement). When both frames
are considered concurrently, we expected that the school would
be a less important reference frame compared with students class.
One reason is that the school is a more distant frame for the stu-
dents than their classroom. Zell and Alicke (2010) suggested a
continuum on which each social comparison can be located, going
from relatively local to relatively general. According to the local
dominance effect (see Zell & Alicke, 2010) individuals rely on the
most local comparison information for self-evaluation when
multiple comparison standards are present. In the current study,
this would entail a stronger association between class-average
achievement and students academic self-concept than between
school-average achievement and academic self-concept because
students classmates may be considered as a more local source of
information than students schoolmates. Additionally, students
may have less knowledge of the overall performance level of their
schoolmates than of their classmates. This effect may be
especially true for Flemish high schools. In the Flemish secondary
educational system, students have no knowledge of their school-
mates standardized achievement levels because there are no
inherent standardized testing procedures. When trying to estimate
the achievement levels of significant others, we therefore expect
Flemish students to mainly rely on grade assignment in the
classroom.
A related second issue, that needs further research, is the main
reliance of BFLPE research on standardized achievement tests as
measures of academic achievement (although a few studies have
used grades as an operationalization of achievement; e.g., Preckel
& Brull, 2010; Trautwein et al., 2006). Standardized achievement
tests provide an objective measure of the performance of all
students in a sample on a common metric. In contrast, grade
assignment may differ across classes and schools. Some research-
ers have argued that the BFLPE hypothesis cannot be tested
empirically with grades because percentages or grades tend to be
normally distributed within schools and classes (grading on a
curve effect; Marsh 1987). Consequently, when these grades are
averaged at the school or class level, these average performance
levels might not differ much from one school or class to another,
although large differences between these schools or classes in real
or true ability levels may be present (Marsh & Rowe, 1996;
Marsh et al., 2007). On the other hand, one may argue that stu-
dents are usually more aware of other students grades than of
other students results on standardized achievement tests espe-
cially in educational systems without inherent standardized testing
(Marsh, Seaton, Trautwein et al., 2008; Trautwein et al., 2006).
As a result, particularly in such contexts, grades may be used fre-
quently as a basis for social comparison and they may possibly be
an adequate measure of achievement when examining the BFLPE
on academic self-concept. Preckel, Zeidner, Goetz and Schleyer
(2008), for instance, found a negative effect of class-average
achievement (measured through school grades) on the academic
self-concept of gifted elementary and high school students in
2011 The Authors.
Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 2011 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations.
Academic self-concept in high school 587
Israel. Furthermore, the use of grades would have significant prac-
tical advantages for future research, in that it takes less effort in
time and financially to collect information about grades than to
administer standardized achievement tests. In the current study,
we therefore used school grades as an operationalization of aca-
demic achievement.
Effects of high school academic self-concept on academic
adjustment and success after the transition to higher education
The second aim of the current study was to examine the effect of
high school academic self-concept on academic adjustment and
success in higher education. In todays society, an increasing
number of adolescents enrol in higher education (Buote, Pancer,
Pratt et al., 2007). The transition to higher education, also delin-
eating the shift to emerging adulthood, requires adolescents to
adjust in various relevant life domains such as the academic
domain with its changing educational demands (Gall, Evans &
Bellerose, 2000; Gerdes & Mallinckrodt, 1994). Research has
shown that many first-year students experience a wide range of
problems as a result of not adjusting to their new roles (Beyers &
Goossens, 2002; Buote et al., 2007) and, additionally, that a lot of
students prematurely end their study program. For example, in
Belgium, more than half of the students who enter higher educa-
tion do not obtain a degree (Groenez, Van den Brande & Nicaise,
2003). According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation
and Development (OECD, 2007), similar findings have been
reported all over the world, resulting in an average success rate of
36% for university students across 24 OECD countries. At the
same time, it becomes increasingly important in our technologi-
cally advanced society to obtain a degree in higher education
(Gerber & Schaefer, 2004; Lan & Lanthier, 2003). Therefore,
more insight is needed into predictive factors of academic adjust-
ment and success in higher education (Tenenbaum, Porche, Snow,
Tabors & Ross, 2007).
In our study, we focus on academic self-concept as a predictor
of success (i.e., succeeding or failing) and academic adjustment in
the first year of higher education. According to Beyers and Goos-
sens (2002), academic adjustment refers to the extent to which
students are able to manage the educational demands of the col-
lege experience. In particular, this concept includes aspects such
as motivation to learn and a clear sense of purpose (Baker & Sir-
yk, 1984; Gerdes & Mallinckrodt, 1994). Previous research has
already identified global self-concept or self-esteem as a signifi-
cant positive predictor of academic adjustment in higher education
(Mooney, Sherman & Lopresto, 1991; Napoli & Wortman, 1998).
However, to our knowledge, there are no previous studies examin-
ing the predictive link between academic self-concept and aca-
demic adjustment in higher education.
Additionally, numerous studies have shown that achievement
may not only predict academic self-concept, but that academic
self-concept also acts as a positive predictor of academic achieve-
ment, indicating reciprocal effects (see Bong & Skaalvik, 2003;
Guay, Marsh & Boivin, 2003; Marsh, Trautwein, Ludtke, Koller
& Baumert, 2005; Pinxten, De Fraine, Van Damme & DHaenens,
2010; Skaalvik and Hagtvet, 1990). Based on these findings, on
the recent empirical support for the relevance of social-cogni-
tive variables for outcomes in higher education in general (e.g.,
588 S. Wouters et al.
Dickhauser et al., 2005; Durik, Vida & Eccles, 2006; Lent, Brown
& Hackett, 2000; Lindley, 2005), and on the assumption that stu-
dents who have a positive perception of their abilities are also bet-
ter equipped to meet new academic demands (Rosenberg, 1979),
we expected that academic self-concept would be a significant
positive predictor of future success and academic adjustment.
Study goals
In sum, we aimed to examine the predictors, as well as conse-
quences of academic self-concept in late adolescence. In the cur-
rent study, these two central aims were addressed by testing one
integrated model (see Fig. 1), which presented us with the opportu-
nity to answer some additional questions. First, using this compre-
hensive model, the effect of academic self-concept above and
beyond possible effects of individual and group-average achieve-
ment on subsequent academic adjustment and success in higher
education could be investigated. As a result, our second main goal
was extended in that we were able to search for unique effects of
high school academic self-concept controlling for any effects of
high school achievement. Additionally, this model allowed us to
examine if there were any direct or indirect effects of high school
individual and group-average achievement on academic adjust-
ment and success in higher education. Based on previous research
(e.g., Bernier, Larose, Boivin & Soucy, 2004; Jansen & Bruinsma,
2005; Napoli & Wortman, 1998), we expected a positive effect of
individual achievement in high school on academic adjustment
and success in higher education. Although we have no knowledge
of any previous BFLPE studies searching for a longitudinal effect
of high school group-average achievement on success and adjust-
High school
Sex
Individual
achievement
Academic
self-concept
School-average
achievement
Class-average
achievement
Fig. 1. Integrated model of relationships between sex (1 = boys, 2 = girls), individual achievement, school-average achievement, class-average
achievement, and academic self-concept in Grade 12, and academic adjustment and success in higher education.
2011 The Authors.
Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 2011 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations.
Scand J Psychol 52 (2011)
ment in higher education, Marsh (1991) did report small, but sig-
nificant longitudinal effects of group-average achievement on
other post-secondary outcomes, such as college attendance, that
were generally mediated by academic self-concept. Additionally,
we added sex as a control variable to the integrated model. Previ-
ous research has shown that sex may affect the three main depen-
dent variables in our study. Specifically, previous studies have
shown that adolescent girls have a lower academic self-concept
than boys (e.g., De Fraine, Van Damme & Onghena, 2007; Marsh,
1989). Additionally, girls have been found to adjust better to the
new educational demands in higher education than boys (e.g.,
Napoli & Wortman, 1998) and they also show higher success rates
in higher education than boys (e.g., Jansen & Bruinsma, 2005).
METHOD
Participants and procedure
The sample of the current study was a subsample of a larger dataset.
More specifically, we contacted 700 students at the beginning of Grade
12 (i.e., the final year in high school); all students participated. In the
current study, we only used data from a subsample of 536 students (236
boys and 300 girls) for whom we had complete data regarding the
achievement predictors in high school and sex, and who completed at
least one of the following outcome measures: academic self-concept, aca-
demic adjustment, and/or success. The participating students came from
24 schools (67 classes) from general secondary education1 in Flanders,
the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium. Participating schools were represen-
tative with regard to geographical region and educational network.2 The
mean age of the students was 17.1 years (SD = 6.0 months).
We used a longitudinal design. In high school (Grade 12), academic
self-concept was assessed using a take-home questionnaire. In higher
Higher education
Academic
adjustment
Success
Scand J Psychol 52 (2011)
education, data were gathered in two waves.3 In the first semester of the
first year (November), questionnaires were delivered to the students by
mail (with stamped envelopes) or e-mail; students who did not respond
after one month received a reminder by mail or e-mail (December). In
the beginning of the second year (i.e., after the final exams), information
was obtained on students success in the first year; non-responders were
contacted by phone to limit the impact of drop-out even more.
Comparison of the students who filled out all items for the key vari-
ables with the students with one or more missing items only revealed
small differences (cf. Cohen, 1992) in success in the first year of higher
education (v2 (1, N = 334) = 4.78, p = 0.029, Cramers u = 0.12).
Students in the missing group were somewhat less likely to experience
success than students in the non-missing group.
Questionnaires
Background variables. In Grade 12, students were asked to mention their
sex, age, class,4 and the name of their high school.
Academic achievement in high school. Academic achievement was opera-
tionalized as students average percentage (score between 0 and 100) in
Grade 12, based on two percentages at the end of each semester, col-
lected from the school record data. To create measures of school-average
and class-average achievement, these percentages were averaged for
every school and for each class within a school.
Self-concept in high school. In high school, students academic self-con-
cept was assessed at the beginning and at the end of Grade 12 with a
10-item academic self-concept subscale of the Self-Concept Scale (Ger-
meijs & De Boeck, 2002; Mertens, 1997). A sample item is I am a
smart student. Students were asked to indicate how they feel or think
about themselves on a four-point Likert-type rating scale ranging from 1
(does apply to me) to 4 (does not apply to me at all). In a sample of 700
Belgian high school students, evidence was found for the reliability
(Cronbachs a > 0.85) and convergent validity of the subscale (i.e., high
correlations with parallel subscales from Harters Self-Perception Profile
for Adolescents (SPPA) (r = 0.65) and from Marshs Self-Description
Questionnaire II (SDQ-II) (r = 0.76)) (Germeijs & De Boeck, 2002; Mer-
tens, 1997). In the current study, items from the beginning and the end
of Grade 12 were averaged, resulting in one 10-item scale that measures
students level of academic self-concept across Grade 12. The Cron-
bachs alpha coefficient of this scale was 0.87.
Academic adjustment and success in higher education. To examine the
extent to which students are adjusted to their study at the beginning of
their first year we used a Dutch translation (Beyers & Goossens, 2002)
of the academic adjustment subscale of the Student Adaptation to Col-
lege Questionnaire (SACQ; Baker & Siryk, 1984). The subscale contains
24 items scored on a five-point Likert-type rating scale ranging from 1
(does not apply to me at all) to 5 (applies to me very well). A sample
item is Im finding academic work at college difficult (reverse scored).
Beyers and Goossens (2002) found the SACQ to be reliable (Cronbachs
a = 0.84 for the academic adjustment subscale) and valid in a sample of
368 Belgian university students. The concurrent and predictive validity
of the academic adjustment subscale was supported by significant associ-
ations with academic motivation and academic achievement (Beyers &
Goossens, 2002; 0.68 and 0.14 respectively). Internal consistency of the
subscale in the current study was also good (Cronbachs a = 0.82).
Additionally, in the beginning of the second year of higher education,
students were asked to report on their academic success in their first year
in higher education. More specifically, we asked them whether or not
they had stopped with the study they started and whether or not they had
succeeded in this study at the end of the first year in higher education. In
contrast with the new bachelor and master programs (developed after the
Bologna Declaration), students were still evaluated yearly at the time of
our data gathering. This led to two categories: students who succeeded
and students who failed (i.e., students who took all exams but failed as
well as students who stopped before participating in all exams).
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Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 2011 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations.
Academic self-concept in high school 589
Data analyses
We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to analyze the integrated
model. Analyses were performed with Mplus Version 5.2 (Muthen &
Muthen, 19982008). To correct for measurement error, we used latent
variable analysis for two variables with multiple indicators (i.e., academic
self-concept and academic adjustment). To account for possible depen-
dency effects among students clustered in the same school, all analyses
were conducted using the complex analysis feature in Mplus, which
resulted in an adjustment of the standard errors of the estimated coeffi-
cients and of the chi-square tests of model fit (Liew, McTigue, Barrois &
Hughes, 2008).5 Furthermore, we used Full Information Maximum Like-
lihood (FIML) in Mplus (i.e., the missing analysis feature) which
enabled us to maximize the data that are present, without actually replac-
ing any missing values. Utilizing this procedure, our estimates should be
less biased than with other procedures like listwise or pairwise deletion
even if the missings are not missing (completely) at random (i.e., MCAR
or MAR) (Collins, Schafer & Kam, 2001; Schafer & Graham, 2002).
Finally, because we used the complex analysis feature and because
multivariate non-normality was indicated, we used the MLR option in
Mplus which provides standard errors and a chi-square (when applicable)
that are robust to non-normality and non-independence (Muthen &
Muthen, 19982007).
RESULTS
Correlations and descriptive analyses
Table 1 presents the means, standard deviations, and intercorrela-
tions of our key variables. Results indicate that academic self-con-
cept correlated positively and strongly with individual
achievement in high school (cf. Cohen, 1988). Academic self-con-
cept was also positively correlated with success in higher educa-
tion. Zero-order correlations of academic self-concept with
school- and class-average achievement in high school and aca-
demic adjustment in higher education were also positive, but
smaller. Furthermore, all other variables were significantly corre-
lated with success, whereas there were no significant correlations
between academic adjustment in higher education and the
achievement variables in high school. Additionally, school- and
class-average achievement were positively interrelated. Although
the correlation between both variables was strong, we conclude
that there was no multicollinearity between both variables based
on the small variance inflation factors (i.e., below 10), the large
tolerances, and the fact that the correlation was smaller than the
critical value of 0.85 (Field, 2005; Kline, 2005). Finally, sex was
only significantly related to individual achievement in high school
and success in higher education.
Structural equation modeling
Measurement phase. Two separate confirmatory factor analyses
were performed, one for each of our latent variables (i.e., aca-
demic self-concept and academic adjustment) and their indicators
to correct for measurement error. Both constructs were each repre-
sented by four randomly selected parcels of items. The fit of the
measurement model for academic self-concept was acceptable
(Bollen, 1989; Hu & Bentler, 1999; Kline, 2005): scaled model
v2 (2) = 5.70, p = 0.058, NC = 2.85, RMSEA = 0.06 (90% CI
[0.000.12]), CFI = 1.00, SRMR = 0.01. Completely standard-
ized factor loadings ranged between 0.81 and 0.87 and were
590 S. Wouters et al. Scand J Psychol 52 (2011)

Table 1. Intercorrelations, means, and standard deviations for all variables

Variable 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

High school
1. Sex
2. Academic self-concept 0.01a
3. Individual achievement 0.15**a 0.58**
4. School-average achievement )0.06a 0.23** 0.39**
5. Class-average achievement )0.06a 0.27** 0.53** 0.74**
Higher education
6. Academic adjustment 0.11a 0.23** 0.07 )0.01 0.02
7. Success 0.15*a 0.35**a 0.42**a 0.15*a 0.17*a 0.32**a
Mb 3.05 3.41 3.40 3.39 3.68
Original SD 0.47 7.26 2.84 3.73 0.50
SDb 0.47 0.36 0.14 0.19 0.50
N 536 486 536 536 536 235 334

a
Biserial correlation coefficients for the dichotomous (continuous dichotomy) variable success, point-biserial correlation coefficients for the
dichotomous (discrete dichotomy) variable sex (Field, 2005).
b
All achievement variables were divided by 20 to make the standard deviations more homogenous (Kline, 2005).
* p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01.

significant (p < 0.001). The fit of the measurement model for aca-
demic adjustment was good (Bollen, 1989; Hu & Bentler, 1999;
Kline, 2005): scaled model v2 (2) = 0.69, p = 0.71, NC = 0.35,
RMSEA = 0.00 (90% CI [0.000.10]), CFI = 1.00,
SRMR = 0.01. Completely standardized factor loadings ranged
between 0.77 and 0.90 and were significant (p < 0.001). In sum,
both measurement models seemed to adequately fit the data and
were therefore used in subsequent structural models.
Structural phase. Because of the specific nature of our model
(i.e., one categorical dependent variable: success), Mplus does not
provide standard chi-squares and related standard fit indices for
the structural models. However, we did test for differences in log-
likelihood between the baseline model and our hypothesized
model and between nested models. The first model, including all
direct effects, fit the data significantly better than the baseline
model (scaled model v2diff (22) = 1273.50, p < 0.001). Several
longitudinal paths in this first model were not significant (i.e., the
path from school-average achievement to academic self-concept,
the paths from individual achievement, school- and class-average
achievement to academic adjustment and the paths from sex,
school- and class-average achievement to success). Therefore, a

High school Higher education

Sex

-.10*
.18
Individual
achievement
.28* Academic
.28** adjustment
.66***
Academic R = .11
self-concept

R = .38 .20*
Success

School-average R = .19
achievement

-.07*

Class-average
achievement

Fig. 2. Final structural model of relationships between sex (1 = boys, 2 = girls), individual achievement, school-average achievement, class-average
achievement, and academic self-concept in Grade 12, and academic adjustment and success in higher education. Standardized path coefficients are shown.
* p < .05. ** p < .01. *** p < .001.

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Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 2011 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations.
Scand J Psychol 52 (2011)
more parsimonious model was estimated removing all the non-
significant paths from the model. This final model did not signifi-
cantly differ from the first in terms of model fit (scaled model
v2diff (7) = 8.29, p = 0.308), suggesting that the non-significant
paths may indeed by fixed to zero.
As is shown in Fig. 2, the final model shows a significant direct
association between sex, individual achievement, and class-aver-
age achievement, on the one hand, and academic self-concept, on
the other. More specifically, we found that individual achievement
was positively associated with academic self-concept and that
girls had a lower academic self-concept than boys, even when
controlling for individual achievement. In the model, the effect of
both group achievement variables was simultaneously modeled.
We found that class-average achievement had a significant
negative association with academic self-concept, whereas school-
average achievement was not significantly related to academic
self-concept. Furthermore, high school academic self-concept had
significant direct effects on both academic adjustment and success
in higher education, whereas high school individual achievement
only had a direct effect on success. In particular, academic self-
concept in high school had a unique, positive effect on academic
adjustment in higher education, beyond high school achievement
and sex. Moreover, students with a higher academic self-concept/
higher achievement levels in high school were more likely to suc-
ceed in higher education than students with a lower academic
self-concept/lower achievement levels, even when controlling for
sex or achievement/academic self-concept in high school (odds
ratios were 2.69 and 5.30 respectively). Regarding the indirect
effects, results only showed a significant indirect positive effect of
individual achievement on academic adjustment and success
through academic self-concept (Sobel z = 2.78, p = 0.005 and
Sobel z = 2.22, p = 0.026 respectively). Sobel-tests for testing the
significance of indirect effects with categorical dependent vari-
ables were calculated with standardized coefficients (MacKinnon
& Dwyer, 1993). In the final model, a considerable to large pro-
portion of the variance in academic self-concept, academic adjust-
ment, and success was explained by the variables included in the
model (Cohens f 2 = 0.61, 0.12, and 0.23 respectively; Cohen,
1992).
DISCUSSION
Academic self-concept and achievement: testing and extending
the big-fish-little-pond effect model
Results of the current study demonstrate that the comprehensive
model with high school achievement predicting high school aca-
demic self-concept, which in turn affects academic adjustment
and success in the first year of higher education, fit the data well.
With regard to our first goal, which focused on achievement pre-
dictors of academic self-concept in high school, we found that,
when both group-average achievement variables were examined
simultaneously, only class-average achievement was negatively
associated with academic self-concept (controlling for individual
achievement). School-average achievement a more general com-
parison standard compared with class-average achievement was
not significantly associated with academic self-concept. These
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Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 2011 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations.
Academic self-concept in high school 591
findings support the local dominance effect (Zell & Alicke, 2010)
in that students most local frames of reference may indeed be
more important than their more distant frames when forming their
academic self-concept. As such, they add evidence to the hypothe-
sis that students have several reference groups at their disposal
when judging their own academic abilities and that these reference
groups may differ in importance. Furthermore, these results con-
firm the need for more research on the relative impact of different
reference groups (as are present in a real school context) and the
local dominance effect. For instance, it would be interesting to
examine the relative importance of even more local frames such
as students friends.
Secondly, findings of the current study show that significant
effects of group-average achievement on academic self-concept
can be found when using grades instead of standardized achieve-
ment tests, in accordance with previous studies using grades as a
measure of academic achievement (e.g., Preckel et al., 2008).
However, the specific circumstances under which grades can be
used as an operationalization of achievement need to be further
delineated. In the current study, for instance, findings may be
influenced by our relatively homogenous sample, only consisting
of students from general secondary education, for which it may be
hypothesized that few differences exist in grading practices across
schools and classes, leading to larger differences in average per-
formance than would be expected based on the grading on a
curve effect. Indeed, schools and classes in the present study did
differ considerably in academic achievement, as measured by stu-
dents school grades (ICCachievement was 0.140.20 for schools
and classes respectively, see Note 5). Furthermore, in the Flemish
educational system, high schools do not have inherent standard-
ized testing procedures, which makes it hard for the students to
estimate their school- or classmates standardized achievement
levels. Therefore, it may be an interesting avenue for future
research to examine the differences between both operationaliza-
tions in one sample. This would enable researchers to compare
the quality and unique features of each operationalization as an
indicator of academic achievement within the BFLPE model.
In general, our findings regarding the BFLPE in a Flemish edu-
cational setting add evidence to the idea that it does matter how
students are grouped into classes. Obviously, we cannot avoid
grouping practices dividing students into different groups with
different performance levels which are often deeply ingrained in
the educational system. A more fruitful solution may be to try to
eliminate or at least attenuate the emphasis on comparisons with
significant others by, for example, providing students with indi-
vidual feedback and praise, focusing on mastery goals instead of
performance goals, or creating a good group atmosphere (Marsh
et al., 2008; Martin, Marsh, Debus & Malmberg, 2008; Seaton,
Marsh & Craven, 2009).
Unique effects of high school academic self-concept on
academic adjustment and success after the transition to higher
education
Regarding our second goal, that is, to investigate the effect of
academic self-concept in high school on academic adjustment
and success in the first year of higher education (controlling for
high school achievement and sex), results of the current study
592 S. Wouters et al.
demonstrate that students with a more positive academic self-con-
cept in high school tend to be more successful in coping with the
new academic demands of higher education and have higher
chances of succeeding in the first year of higher education
(regardless of any effects of achievement and sex), as was
expected based on findings from recent social-cognitively
inspired research (e.g., Dickhauser et al., 2005; Durik et al.,
2006; Lent et al., 2000; Lindley, 2005). In general, these results
point to the necessity of further examining the role of social-cog-
nitive risk factors, such as low academic self-concept, in the pre-
vention of poor adjustment and/or failure in higher education. It
would be interesting, for example, to investigate whether inter-
ventions directed at enhancing students academic self-concept in
high school have positive effects on students future academic
adjustment and success. Additionally, the unique predictive value
of academic self-concept in comparison with other related social-
cognitive risk factors should be examined (cf. Ross & Broh,
2000).
Unique effects of high school achievement variables on
academic adjustment and success after the transition to higher
education
The integrated model also provides new insights regarding any
direct or indirect effects of individual and group-average achieve-
ment in high school on academic adjustment and success in higher
education, which has not been investigated in previous BFLPE
studies. Although the global model fit the data well, the current
study does not provide clear support for long-lasting direct or
indirect consequences of group-average achievement in high
school for academic adjustment and success after students transi-
tion to higher education. These findings are in contradiction with
previous BFLPE research. Marsh (1991) reported small, but sig-
nificant longitudinal direct effects of group-average achievement
on post-secondary outcomes which were generally mediated by
academic self-concept. In contrast, we did not find any direct or
indirect (i.e., through academic self-concept) effects of group-
average achievement on outcomes in higher education. Of course,
this may relate to the relatively low statistical power of our study
compared with other large-scale longitudinal BFLPE studies. On
the other hand, our study is the first to examine academic adjust-
ment and success in higher education as outcomes. Possibly, these
educational outcomes are more multi-determined than outcomes
previously studied in BFLPE research (e.g., college attendance).
Therefore, more research on this matter is needed before making
any firm conclusions.
Additionally, the integrated model shows that there was no
unique direct effect of academic achievement in high school on
academic adjustment in higher education, only a significant indi-
rect effect through academic self-concept. Thus, although previ-
ous studies not controlling for academic self-concept have
shown that higher achievement results in higher adjustment (e.g.,
Bernier et al., 2004; Napoli & Wortman, 1998), our study
suggests that this association may possibly be accounted for by
differences in academic self-concept. Furthermore, our findings
demonstrate that the effect of high school achievement on
success in higher education was both direct (e.g., Jansen &
2011 The Authors.
Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 2011 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations.
Scand J Psychol 52 (2011)
Bruinsma, 2005) and indirect (through high school academic
self-concept).
Limitations
Some limitations of the study need to be addressed. First, we
examined the effect of academic self-concept and achievement in
high school on educational outcomes in higher education, but we
only had correlational data to test the BFLPE hypothesis. There-
fore, we cannot make firm statements about the antecedent role of
group-average achievement for academic self-concept. Addition-
ally, because of their temporal precedence, low high school
achievement and academic self-concept can be considered as risk
factors for maladjustment and failure in higher education in this
study (Kazdin, 1999). However, no causal conclusions can be
drawn because the current study is not cross-lagged longitudinal,
including measures of all variables at all time points. Secondly,
participants in the present study came from 24 schools, which is a
rather small number to examine the BFLPE hypothesis (Marsh
et al., 2008). Our sample also suffered from drop-out and con-
sisted exclusively of students in general secondary education.
Future research should examine whether our results can be repli-
cated in larger, more heterogeneous samples, including other edu-
cational forms (e.g., technical or vocational education). Thirdly, in
high school, students were asked to take home the questionnaire
on academic self-concept, to limit the amount of interference of
the study participation with daily teaching. Although question-
naire items involved all focused on the school context, which is
assumed to activate participants identity as a student, filling out
the questionnaire at home may have lowered the impact of refer-
ence groups in the school context on students academic self-con-
cept at the time. Hence, effects may have been stronger if students
had actually completed all questionnaires in school. Finally, in the
current study, we did not measure students domain-specific aca-
demic self-concepts (e.g., math self-concept). Although this can
be considered a limitation, general academic self-concept has the
advantage that it is more appropriate to predict general educa-
tional outcomes such as academic adjustment and success. In
addition, some authors warn against using too narrow measures of
self-concept which may lead to trivial findings and highly frag-
mented interventions (Baumeister, Campbell, Krueger & Vohs,
2003).
Conclusion
Despite these limitations, our findings regarding the effect of ref-
erence groups achievement levels on academic self-concept in
high school, together with the effect of academic self-concept on
both success and academic adjustment in higher education demon-
strate the importance of academic self-concept in educational
research, practice, and policy. Furthermore, our study provides an
important contribution to ongoing BFLPE research by suggesting
(1) that it is important to consider multiple possible reference
groups to adequately capture the effects of students educational
context on their academic self-concept, and (2) that at least in
some educational circumstances grades may be used to test the
BFLPE.
Scand J Psychol 52 (2011)
NOTES
1 Leysen, V., et al. (2002). Hoe maken Vlaamse jongeren de overgang
General secondary education (ASO) in Flanders is mainly concerned
with giving students a broad general education and contains about 40% of
the total amount of high school students. The main goal of this educational
type is to present students with a firm base for entering into higher educa-
tion. This explains why 97% of the students in ASO go on to higher edu-
cation (e.g., Coppieters, Creten, Glorieux et al., 2002).
2 temporary Educational Psychology, 32, 132150.
First, from all Flemish high schools that provide general education in
the last two years of high school and that were large enough, 75 schools
were randomly selected with a distribution across region and educational
network equal to the distribution of all high schools in Flanders. From
these 75 schools, 42 schools agreed to participate. From these 42 schools,
we again selected 25 schools according to the distribution of all high
schools in Flanders across region and educational network. In the current
subsample, one school was deleted because the school had incomplete
data. In each school we then randomly selected two to three classes in
Grade 12 to participate in the study and all students from a selected class
participated.
3
In higher education, 292 students participated in the first year and 493
students in the second year.
4 market outcomes. Sociology of Education, 77, 3259.
In the Flemish educational system, students generally do not move
from class to class depending on the subject. There are different
educational forms or tracks, and also different general courses of study
(i.e., curricula) within each form or track. Students who follow the same
course of study are physically grouped in (stable) classes. Accordingly,
class-average achievement in our study is operationalized as the average
performance level of students being physically together and following the
same curriculum or course of study (for all subjects).
5 ongelijkheid in het Vlaamse onderwijs. Een verkennend onderzoek op
ICCacademic self-concept = 0.05 (for school and class level), ICCsuccess =
0.040.09 (school and class level respectively), ICCadjustment = 0.000.01
(school and class level respectively), ICCachievement = 0.140.20 (school
and class level respectively).
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