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Yekta M R. (2024). Investigating the Mediating role of Computer Anxiety in the Relationship between Self-Efficacy and Academic Performance of 7-12 Year Old Students. Journal of Childhood Health and Education. 5(3), : 5 doi:10.32592/jeche.5.3.53
URL: http://jeche.ir/article-1-168-en.html
Investigating the Mediating role of Computer Anxiety in the Relationship between Self-Efficacy and Academic Performance of 7-12 Year Old Students
Mohammad Reza Yekta *
PhD Student in counseling, Isfahan Branch (Khourasgan), Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran
Keywords: Virtual education, lived experience, psychological therapy, design, children with neurodevelopmental disorder, school.
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Extended Abstract
Background and Aim:
Education in the 21st century is immersed in rapid educational changes, partly due to swift technological advancements (Younesa, 2019). Such changes are the result of using the internet and other digital technologies to enhance human learning (Shoghifar et al., 2019). The current challenge is how to engage inactive students in active learning. In this context, where digital literacy is essential for success (Ken & Bardaki, 2022; Nunez et al., 2022), addressing this issue involves studying the impact of digital self-efficacy, digital anxiety (Afolah et al., 2019), and student performance as factors ensuring academic success (Scalibosch, 2018).
In a study aimed at assessing  the direct impact of online learning self-efficacy on students' performance skills and the mediating effect of information-seeking self-efficacy, Tang et al. (2022) concluded that among the three variables, online learning self-efficacy had the strongest correlation with performance skills, while the lowest correlation was observed between online learning self-efficacy and information-seeking. Overall, it can be stated that self-efficacy (Yu & Ho, 2022; Chiang et al., 2022; Shakerami et al., 2013) exerts a significant impact on academic performance (Cardoso Espinosa et al., 2021; Ejoboik & Pouska, 2019), teaching methods (Winn, 2022), and digital learning resources (Khan et al., 2019). In light of the aforementioned issues, the present study aimed to assess the mediating role of computer anxiety in the relationship between self-efficacy and the academic performance of students aged 7-12 years. In this regard, the research aims to answer the following question: 'How has the academic performance of students aged 7-12 been affected by self-efficacy and computer anxiety during virtual learning?
Methods:
This research is applied in terms of its objective, descriptive-correlational in terms of method, and quantitative in terms of data collection tools (questionnaires with validated reliability and validity for the Iranian context). Since there was no suitable tool for measuring the research variables for children aged 7-12, a tool developed and validated for adults was adapted for parents of 7-12-year-old students. Therefore, the statistical population included parents of students aged 7-12 (grades 1-6) in non-profit schools in Isfahan over the 2022-2023 academic year. From this population, 250 participants were randomly selected as the sample (in line with correlational study designs). To collect data, the Virtual Academic Performance Questionnaire (2023), the Computer Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (1989), and the Computer Anxiety Questionnaire (1987) were used. The collected data were entered into SPSS (version 27) and AMOS (version 25) software packages for analysis. Descriptive indices were calculated in the form of central tendency and dispersion indices. After confirming the normal distribution of data, Pearson's correlation coefficient, multiple regression, and path analysis were employed.
Results:
After collecting the questionnaires, 31 questionnaires that were incompletely filled out were excluded, and analyses were conducted on the remaining 219 questionnaires. The main variables of the study for boys and girls, respectively, were as follows: the mean score of the virtual academic performance variable (5.52±19.00 and 7.33±24.20), computer self-efficacy (33.83±80.40 and 39.29±109.60), and computer anxiety (15.88 ± 36.80 and 6.82 ± 29.00). The minimum and maximum scores for girls and boys for the mentioned variables were 12 and 27 versus 13 and 32; 47 and 124 versus 57 and 147; and 21 and 59 versus 19 and 37, respectively. There was a favorable correlation between the examined variables, and computer self-efficacy was a stronger predictor of academic performance for both groups of students compared to computer anxiety. In addition, the direction of the relationship between computer anxiety and the other two variables (computer self-efficacy and academic performance) was inverse in both groups.
Since a statistically significant relationship was detected between all three variables, a path analysis model was constructed to answer the question: If computer anxiety is assumed to be a mediating variable, to what extent can this variable influence the relationship between computer self-efficacy and academic performance?
The Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) was within the acceptable range (<0.10), and the goodness-of-fit indices were also satisfactory (>0.90). Therefore, the proposed model was confirmed. The indirect effect of computer self-efficacy on academic performance, mediated by computer anxiety, was (0.31). To examine the significance of the indirect effects, the Sobel test was used, and its value for the path was 1.99, which is significant (P< 1.96).
Discussion and conclusion:
The present study aimed to assess the mediating role of computer anxiety in the relationship between self-efficacy and academic performance of students aged 7-12 during virtual education. The findings revealed a favorable correlation between the variables under study (P< 0.01), and the ability to predict academic performance was more remarkable for both groups of students in terms of computer self-efficacy compared to computer anxiety (P< 0.05). If computer anxiety is considered a mediating variable, it can mediate the relationship between computer self-efficacy and academic performance by 31%. These findings are consistent with the results of the studies by Tang et al. (2022) and Kondo (2020).
The analysis of digital limitations not only highlights the issue of access to information and communication technologies (ICT) but also points to cognitive limitations and negative behaviors toward the use of ICT. Therefore, interest in digital self-efficacy and its impact on student performance (Cardoso Espinoza et al., 2021) and teaching performance (Winn, 2022) is increasing, which is reflected in the efficient use of digital educational resources (Khan et al., 2019). Nevertheless, certain factors cause fear of ICT and harm digital self-efficacy, such as the level of knowledge regarding the use of ICT in teaching and the lack of digital resources. Another factor is academic performance, which depends on digital self-efficacy for achieving good grades (Yu & Ho, 2022). Therefore, in future academic counseling provided in schools, attention should be paid to this issue, especially if classes are conducted virtually.

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Type of Study: Research | Subject: Special
Received: 2023/10/5 | Accepted: 2024/05/14 | Published: 2024/05/24
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