Academic goals and learning strategies in secondary education Spanish students with social anxiety

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyse the relationship between high social anxiety, academic goals and learning strategies in a sample of 2,022 (51.1% male) Spanish adolescents aged 12–16. The Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory (SPAI), Achievement Goal Tendencies Questionnaire (AGTQ) and Learning and Studies Skills Strategies Inventory — High School Version (LASSI-HS) were used to assess the variables. The results showed no statistically significant differences in goal orientations between students with and without high social anxiety. However, students with high social anxiety used learning strategies significantly less. In addition, the logistic regression results indicated that high social anxiety acts as a significant predictor for setting social reinforcement goals and learning and study strategies.

El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar la relación entre la alta ansiedad social, las metas académicas y las estrategias de aprendizaje en una muestra de 2,022 (51.1% varones) adolescentes españoles de 12 a 16 años. Las variables fueron evaluadas mediante los cuestionarios Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory (SPAI), Achievement Goal Tendencies Questionnaire (AGTQ) y Learning And Studies Skills Inventory — High school (LASSI-HS). Los resultados no mostraron ninguna diferencia estadísticamente significativa en las orientaciones de meta entre estudiantes con y sin alta ansiedad social. No obstante, los estudiantes con alta ansiedad social utilizaron significativamente menos estrategias de aprendizaje. Asimismo, los resultados obtenidos de la regresión logística señalaron que la alta ansiedad social actúa como predictor significativo de las metas de reconocimiento social y de las estrategias de aprendizaje y estudio.