| Title: |
It's the Will, Not the Skill: How Malleability Narratives Affect Belgian Adolescents' Academic Development |
| Language: |
English |
| Authors: |
Sarah Devos (ORCID 0000-0002-5563-8752); Erica Scharrer; Steven Eggermont; Femke Konings; Laura Vandenbosch |
| Source: |
Journal of Children and Media. 2025 19(2):287-306. |
| Availability: |
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals |
| Peer Reviewed: |
Y |
| Page Count: |
20 |
| Publication Date: |
2025 |
| Document Type: |
Journal Articles; Reports - Research |
| Education Level: |
Secondary Education |
| Descriptors: |
Foreign Countries; Adolescents; Academic Achievement; Student Behavior; Self Concept; Student Motivation; Well Being; Change; Student Attitudes; Self Esteem; Academic Ability; Stress Variables; Socialization; Secondary School Students; Television Viewing; Mass Media Effects; Personal Autonomy; Gender Differences; Age Differences |
| Geographic Terms: |
Belgium |
| Assessment and Survey Identifiers: |
Learning and Study Strategies Inventory |
| DOI: |
10.1080/17482798.2024.2410897 |
| ISSN: |
1748-2798; 1748-2801 |
| Abstract: |
The current experimental study among 451 Belgian adolescents examined how televised narratives that suggest that academic performance can change with hard work and effort (i.e. malleability narrative) compared to narratives that focus on inability to change academic performances (i.e. fixed narrative) differently affect academic self-perceptions, motivation, and well-being. Additionally, this study explores how adolescents' reactions to malleability versus fixed narratives may differ based on their academic self-discrepancy levels (that is, the difference between their perceptions of current and ideal academic performance). According to the results, exposure to a malleability narrative, as opposed to a fixed narrative, increased adolescents' confidence in their academic abilities (i.e. academic "can-self"), which resulted in a stronger motivation for academic engagement. However, adolescents exposed to a malleability narrative also reported feeling more academic performance pressure than those exposed to a fixed narrative. No moderation effects were found for academic self-discrepancy levels. Televised malleability narratives can thus be beneficial to adolescents' academic self-perceptions and development, but can simultaneously be harmful to well-being as adolescents feel pressure to excel academically, as well. |
| Abstractor: |
As Provided |
| Notes: |
https://osf.io/wx4kf/?view_only=4b978a058a7d4f0fb79b51000cb29d82 |
| Entry Date: |
2025 |
| Accession Number: |
EJ1474373 |
| Database: |
ERIC |