Enhancing students’ academic performance through adjustments in their causal attributions, self-regulation, and achievement motivation: an interventional study

Abstract This study examined the impact of a targeted psychological intervention on students’ English academic performance using a quasi-experimental design with an embedded mixed-methods approach. Two secondary schools were purposively selected, and two sections from each school were randomly sampled and assigned to intervention ( n = 84) and comparison ( n = 79) groups. An English achievement test and a standardized questionnaire were administered to both groups at pre-test and post-test stages. Focusing on causal attributions, self-regulation, and achievement motivation, students in the intervention group have received 16 h of training over eight weeks. Quantitative analyses using descriptive and inferential statistics revealed substantial post-intervention improvements in the intervention group’s attributional styles, self-regulation, achievement motivation, and English academic performance. Independent-samples t -tests showed statistically significant mean differences between groups on key psychological variables. For English achievement specifically, the intervention group outperformed the comparison group at post-test, t (141.80) = 7.55, p < .001, d = 1.17. Differences in English post-test performance scores between the intervention and comparison groups were also confirmed using ANCOVA with pre-test scores as a covariate. A paired-samples t -test revealed significant within-group improvement in English performance from pre-test to post-test for the intervention group, t (83) = 8.54, p < .001, d = 0.93. Qualitative findings from post-intervention interviews supported the quantitative results. Overall, the findings highlight the importance of fostering adaptive psychological characteristics to enhance academic performance and equip students with competencies essential for long-term educational success.