The Impact Of The Matching Of Student-important Thinking Styles On Student Academic Achievement

The contribution of Person-Environment fit to students’academic achievement has been a significant topic in Educational Psychology.However,previous studies mostly focus on the fit between individual and physical environment,and few considered individual and the social environment.The present research aims to investigate how the student-significant others（i.e.,parents’,teachers’,and peers’）fit in thinking styles contribute to the students’academic achievement of subjects of Chinese language,Math,and English language.It was hypothesized that student-significant others congruence in thinking styles has positive influence on student’s academic achievement.Data were collected from 699 students(M_age=11.39,SD=.53;46.80%males)of junior secondary schools in Shanghai,mainland China,together with their parents and subject teachers of Chinese language,Mathematics,and English language.Measurements included Thinking Style Inventory,Preferred Thinking Style in Teaching Inventory,Thinking Style in Teaching.The social cognitive map approach was used to identify children’s natural peer groups.Generalized linear models including polynomial equations and subsequent response surface analyses partly supported the hypothesis.Specially,for student-peer fit,multilevel polynomial regressions were conducted because students are nested in peer groups.Results from student-parent congruence showed that:（1）student-parent congruence in executive,hierarchical,and external styles,and in low level local and anarchic styles were found to positively predict Chinese scores;（2）student-parent congruence in low level anarchic style was found to positively predict Math scores;（3）student-parent congruence in high level executive and external styles were found to positively predict English scores.Results from student-teacher congruence showed that:（1）student-teacher congruence in high level legislative,judicial,and local styles,and in low level liberal and conservative styles were found to positively predict Chinese scores;（2）student-teacher congruence in high level legislative,judicial,global,and conservative styles,and in low level executive and local styles were found to positively predict Math scores;（3）student-teacher congruence in high level judicial and local styles,and in low level legislative and liberal styles were found to positively predict English scores.Results from student-peer congruence showed that:（1）student-peer congruence in high level executive style was found to positively predict the scores;（2）student-peer congruence in high level executive and external styles,and in low level global,oligarchic,and anarchic styles were found to positively predicted Math scores;（3）student-peer congruence in high level executive style,and in low level global,conservative,and anarchic styles were found to positively predicted English scores.Beyond the previous studies about the contributions of thinking styles to academic achievement from an individual perspective,the research pioneered the influences of the congruence in thinking styles between students and their significant others on students’academic achievement.Theoretically,the research may improve the understanding how the fit between adolescents and their socio-microsystem members affect adolescents’learning process and outcomes.The research also highlighted the functions of parents,teachers,and peer（groups）in adolescents’school development.Practically,the findings in my research may implicate to promote students’individualized learning by developing some training/teaching program for improving academic achievement on the basis of the evidence that predictions of intellectual styles congruence among students and their significant others to academic achievement.