How Do Grade 12 Students’ Perceptions of Research Relate to Their Subject Performance? An Analysis Using the Revised-Attitudes Toward Research Scale (R-ATR)

This study investigated students’ perceptions of research and their performance in Practical Research 2 among Grade 12 students in one of the private schools in Iloilo for the School Year 2024–2025. Using a descriptive-correlational design, the research employed the Revised-Attitudes Toward Research Scale (R-ATR) to assess three core dimensions: perceived usefulness, anxiety related to research, and positive predispositions. A total of 108 students participated through convenience sampling. The findings revealed that students who viewed research as valuable and approached it more positively tended to receive higher grades, showing a statistically significant relationship between students’ subject grades and research usefulness and positive predispositions. Positive predispositions and the usefulness of research also showed a strong correlation, indicating that people who valued research were more likely to have positive attitudes toward it. Also, sex did not produce significant differences across the three attitude dimensions. In the meantime, a moderately negative correlation between anxiety and positive predispositions was found, indicating that students who kept a positive attitude were less anxious. While subject performance was not directly impacted by anxiety alone, students who were more enthusiastic and valued research generally performed better. Based on these findings, it is clear that to improve student engagement and academic performance, learning environments must foster positive attitudes toward research, lower anxiety, and emphasize the usefulness of research.