Comparing the Effectiveness of Self-Esteem and Self-Control Skill Training on Academic Well-Being and Academic Motivation of Sixth Grade Male Students of Elementary Schools of Falavarjan

Abstract

Introduction and Aim: Students may face challenges and difficulties in academic areas, including well-being and motivation. Therefore, the present research was conducted with the aim of comparing the effectiveness of self-esteem and self-control skill training on the academic well-being and academic motivation of sixth grade male students of elementary schools of Falavarjan.

Methodology: This study was a quasi-experimental with a pre-test, post-test, and two-month follow-up design with a control group. The current research population consisted of sixth grade male students of elementary schools of Falavarjan city in the 2024-5 academic years, which from them 90 students were selected by purposive sampling method and randomly assigned to three equal groups. The first experimental group received 8 sessions of 90 minute of self-esteem training, and the second experimental group received 10 sessions of 90 minute of self-control skill training, and the control group remained on the waiting list for training. The research instruments included the Academic Well-Being Questionnaire (Tuominen-Soini et al., 2012) and Academic Motivation Scale (Vallerand et al., 1992). The data of this study were analyzed using analysis of variance with repeated measures and Bonferroni post hoc test in SPSS-26 software.

Findings: The results of the present research showed that both methods of self-esteem and self-control skill training increased the academic well-being and academic motivation of sixth grade male students of elementary school, and the results remained at the follow-up stage (P<0.001). In addition, the effectiveness of self-control skill training was greater than the self-esteem training in increasing their academic well-being and academic motivation (P<0.05).

Conclusion: According to the results of the present research, school counselors and psychologists can use the self-control skill training method to increase students' academic well-being and academic motivation.