A Presentation of Causal Modal of Investigating Academic Engagement Mediatory Role in the Relation with Academic Self-Efficacy Beliefs and Academic Self-Esteem among High School Adolescents

Introduction For continuous years, academic and emotional functions were separate. This problem and cognitive - social changes occur in Adolescents (Spear, 2000) have been often associated with negative outcomes such as decreased academic value and interest, decreased mastery goals, increased stress, and lower academic achievement (Anderman & Anderman, 1999; Isakson & Jarvis, 1999; Roeser, Eccles, & Freedman-Doan, 1999; Rudolph, Lambert, Clark, & Kurlakowsky, 2001; Wigfield, Eccles, Schiefele, Roeser, & Davis-Kean, 2006). Thus, researchers interested in education have paid attention to the association of academic and emotional functions. According to Eccles and Roeser (2009) well-being is defined in relation to the school context and academic well-being includes four dimensions of School Value (is defined as the perceived meaningfulness of schooling in general), School burnout (is defined as consistency to school demands, cynical and detached attitude toward one's school, and feelings of inadequacy as a student (Salmela-Aro, Kiuru, Leskinen, &Nurmi, 2009), Satisfaction with educational choice (is defined as the student's satisfaction with his choice of education for attaining personal goals ), Schoolwork engagement (is defined as a positive, fulfilling, study-related state of mind that is characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption (Salmela-Aro & Upadyaya, 2012). For creating and increasing academic wellbeing, attention to students and their personal agency is necessary. According to Bandura (2001), the personal agency is self-efficacy beliefs that in academic dimension nominate academic self-efficacy beliefs. Different research evidence has reported a positive relation between academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem with academic well-being and success. According to Bandura (2001), Lazarus (1991) and Adler (1930), students with academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem are active in school and more engaged with academic affairs. Consequently, the aim of the present study was to determine the possible relationship between academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem with academic well-being and to test the mediating role of academic engagement in this regard.
Research questions The present study aimed at investigating the academic engagement mediatory role in the relation with academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem and academic wellbeing. Therefore, the present study attempted to answer the following questions:- Is it possible to predict student's academic well-being based on academic selfefficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem?
- Is it possible to predict student's academic engagement according to academic selfefficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem?
- Can academic engagement have the mediatory role for academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem as endogenous variables and academic well-being as an exogenous variable?
Method The study's design was a correlational. Academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic selfesteem as endogenous variables, academic engagement as a mediatory variable, and academic well-being as the final exogenous variable were considered for the enquiry. In this research, 384 students (186 females and 198 males) of a high school located in Poldokhtar county were chosen by multi-stage random cluster sampling method. In gathering data, The Persian versions of academic self-efficacy beliefs (ASEB, Zajacova, Lynch & Espenshade, 2005), academic self-esteem scale (ASES, Rosenberg, 1965), academic engagement scale (Salmela-Aro & Upadyaya, 2012) and academic well-being scale (AWBS, Heta, Katariina & Markku, 2012) have been used. All the research instruments enjoyed appropriate validity and reliability indices.
Results Path analysis showed that the academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem predict academic engagement and academic well-being. Variable of academic engagement can play a mediatory role among academic self-efficacy beliefs, academic self-esteem and academic well-being.
Discussion In general, the findings of the study revealed the direct and the indirect effects of academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem on the academic well-being. Not only has the academic engagement a direct effect on the academic well-being, it also acts as a mediatory variable between academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem and academic well-being. Effective academic self-efficacy beliefs and academic self-esteem leads to creation and increase of academic engagement and with this increase, academic wellbeing increases. About significance and influence of self-regulation beliefs, Bandura (2001) maintains that none of the individual’s cognitive beliefs are constructive as efficacy in managing individual's compatibility performance in dealing with difficulties and stressful conditions. Students with high self-esteem in their performance appear more energetic and confident. Such a belief in confronting environmental stressful stimuli is accompanied by compatible performances of well-being. Finally, these findings emphasize the role of student's abilities, beliefs and attitudes in successful deal with impediments and academic challenges.