The Development of Beliefs About Learning from Mid‐ to Late‐adolescence[1]

This article investigates developmental changes in adolescents’ understandings of self‐regulatory control. Such understandings are presumed to mediate the ways in which adolescents typically approach and regulate their learning. Related research is discussed for evidence of a progressive construction and crystallisation of beliefs about learning. Such beliefs are argued to influence increasingly the more situationally specific learning behaviours of adolescents. In this study, responses of mid‐ and late‐adolescents to Cantwell and Moore's (1996) Strategic Flexibility Questionnaire were analysed. Results for the university students confirmed the presence of the three expected control beliefs:‐ adaptiveness, inflexibility and irresoluteness in self‐regulatory control. These related to academic performance in predictable ways. Results for the secondary students indicated a transitionary stage, where the maladaptive inflexibility and irresolute control beliefs were only partially differentiated. Using the adaptive and composite maladaptive scales, analysis of achievement data for the secondary students revealed no effects for adaptive beliefs, but quite strong effects for the maladaptive beliefs. Analysis also revealed significant effects for contextual factors (school attended and gender).