Academic Competition in the School System: At What Cost?

Presented by: Perla Matusof-Zaltzman, B.A.

• Department of Psychology, Brock University
• Part of requirements for Master of Arts

Abstract

• Competition is prevalent in various cultural aspects, including education.
• It's believed to motivate academic achievement but has negative psychological and social impacts.
• Focus on academic competition has been limited compared to athletics or social settings.
• Introduction of new scales to assess academic competition among adolescents.
• Study involves 532 adolescents in southwestern Ontario.
• Differentiates between other-referenced and task-oriented competition.
• Findings show other-referenced competition correlates with bullying, while task-oriented inversely correlates.

Key Concepts

Competitive Culture

• Individualism and competition prevalent in North American culture.
• Egocentric traits (e.g., narcissism) increasing, while collectivist traits decrease.
• Academic competition embedded in schools as part of socialization.

Academic Competition

• Refers to a social situation where individuals compete for rewards.
• Includes educational events like spelling bees, science fairs, etc.
• Seen as motivating but potentially harmful to socio-emotional well-being.

Negative Effects of Competition

Emotional Problems

• Linked to stress, anxiety, depression, and maladaptive perfectionism.
• Competitive environments can lead to unhealthy attitudes and stress.

Bullying

• Competition fosters aggression and antisocial behavior.
• Schools with more competitive environments report more bullying incidents.

Social Inequalities

• Competition can exacerbate socio-economic inequalities.
• Favours students with social, academic, and economic advantages.

Types of Competition

• Other-referenced: Focus on surpassing peers, linked to aggression and bullying.
• Task-oriented: Focus on personal growth and skill development, linked to prosocial behavior.

Research Gap

• Lack of studies on the impact of academic competition in middle and high school.
• Need for research on the psychosocial effects during adolescence.

Methodology

Participants

• 532 adolescents aged 13-17 from southern Ontario.

Procedures

• Approval from ethics boards and schools.
• Data collection via electronic questionnaires.

Measures

• Demographics, emotional problems, academic competitiveness, and bullying assessed.

Results

Data Analysis

• Utilized IBM SPSS for statistical analysis.
• Other-referenced competition correlates with aggression, task-oriented does not.

Hierarchical Regressions

• Emotional Problems: No significant association found with competitiveness.
• Socio-Economic Status (SES): No significant correlation with competitiveness.
• Bullying: Strong positive correlation with other-referenced competition, negative with task-oriented.

Discussion and Implications

• Academic competition's impact on bullying and emotional well-being.
• Task-oriented competition promotes prosocial outcomes.
• Schools should reconsider competitive practices.

Limitations

• Potential limitations in measures of emotional problems and SES.
• Cross-sectional study limits causality determination.

Future Directions

• Need for broader measures of psychological well-being.
• Further studies on causal links and individual differences in competition impact.

References

• Extensive list of academic sources supporting the thesis.

Appendices

• Detailed scales and measures used in the study.