A Cross-Lagged Panel Analysis of Quality of School Life and Achievement Responsibility

Abstract

A quasi-experimental design appropriate for use in field settings such as schools, cross-lagged panel correlation analysis, is illustrated. A sample of 51 fourth graders’ perceptions of the quality of their school life, including satisfaction with school, commitment to their classwork, and attitudes toward teachers, was assessed at the beginning and end of the school year, as were beliefs concerning responsibility for successful, unsuccessful, and overall academic achievements. Results of the Fisher combined test of the consistency of the effects of these exploratory analyses provide tentative support for the view that perceptions of these aspects of quality of school life temporally preceded perceptions of academic responsibility. It is suggested that the more favorably these classroom factors are perceived, the more likely students are to accept responsibility for their school successes and failures.