Academic Ability Conception: Definiton
and Conceptual Background
A person’s beliefs, self-evaluation, and
self-awareness regarding their academic-related skills and
abilities.
Research suggests that “a person's view of
how intelligence works determines how persistently the person will
invest in a challenging intellectual task” (Perkins et al.,
2000, p. 285). Contemporary goal setting theory
suggests that the development of adaptive or maladaptive learning
patterns, vis-à-vis the adoption of different academic goal
orientations, may be mediated by a student’s perception and
beliefs about their personal skills and abilities (Kaplan
&Midgley, 1997). Academic ability
conception is an individual’s beliefs and self-
evaluation regarding the nature of their academic-related skills
and abilities. This includes the student’s personal
view on how their skills and abilities operate or work (Dweck,
2002; Kaplan & Midgley, 1997; Perkins et al.,
2000).
Although related to academic self-efficacy,
academic ability conception is concerned with the student’s
personal beliefs about the nature and level of their academic
competence. Academic self-efficacy focuses on the
student’s conviction or belief that they can succeed at a
given academic task. Ability conception is hypothesized to
play an important role in the development of academic
motivation. Once students “have developed a clear and
coherent understanding of ability, the particular conception
of ability they adopt will determine a great deal about their
motivational patterns. It will influence such things as whether
they seek and enjoy challenges and how resilient they are in the
face of setbacks” (Dweck, 2002, p. 59).
Ability conception research is related to research
on "thinking dispositions" (Perkins et al., 2000), particularly the
distinction between individuals who hold "entity" versus
"incremental" theories of intelligence. Entity learners
believe intelligence (ability) is fixed and non- changing. Entity
learners are typically motivated by successful displays of ability
and attaining favorable judgments. They may quit when problems
prove difficult, assuming they are not smart enough. In
contrast, incremental learners view intelligence (ability) as
learnable. Incrementalists tend to be motivated to increase their
knowledge and abilities, approaching challenging situations with
persistence a desire to learn (Bandura and Dweck, 1985; Elliott and
Dweck. 1988, as cited in Dweck, 1986). An incremental mindset
has been shown to contribute to better cognitive and academic
performance.
