This article presents the construction, exploratory dimensionality analysis (Study 1), and validation (Study 2) of the self-report and 36-item Individuation Test for Emerging Adults (ITEA). It is the first instrument to measure different aspects of individuation (in relation to mother and father) specifically in emerging adulthood. The construct validity of the final 5-factor structure (Support Seeking, Connectedness, Intrusiveness, Self-Reliance, and Fear of Disappointing the Parent) was satisfactory. The results of multigroup analyses demonstrated that the factor structure is stable across male and female emerging adults for ITEA assessments in relation to both mother and father. The ITEA scales also show good internal consistency and concurrent validity against Emotional, Conflictual, and Functional Dependence scales of the Psychological Separation Inventory.
COBISS.SI-ID: 53323106
The study investigated the predictive value of robust and specific personality traits in adolescents (M age = 14.7 years), in explaining their academic achievement at the end of basic compulsory schooling. Personality data were obtained through self, maternal, and peer reports using the Inventory of Child/Adolescent Individual Differences. Adolescent gender and maternal education predicted 36, 26, 19, and 26 % of the variance in the final grades in Slovene, English, and mathematics and the overall GPA, respectively. Personality ratings by each of the three groups of informants substantially improved the prediction of students ʼ academic achievements, over and beyond gender and maternal education. The robust trait scores contributed to significant increments in the variance explained, across the academic achievement indicators, ranging from 8 to 17 % (self-report), 15 to 24 % (maternal report), and 20 to 32 % (peer report). Conscientiousness was consistently the most powerful predictor of students ʼ academic success and extraversion was negatively associated with all achievement indicators. The study provided support for a relatively stronger predictive utility of specific, rather than robust personality traits. Likewise, peer ratings of the students ʼ personality provided relatively larger increments in variance explained in academic achieve- ments than maternal and self-ratings; in general, the personality trait ratings added more to the prediction of mathematics grades and the GPA relative to the prediction of success in languages. Among specific traits, subjectively perceived student intelligence was the most powerful and consistent predictor of final grades and GPA.
COBISS.SI-ID: 9451081
The study examined individual factors and social factors that influence adolescent studentsʼ achievement in mathematics. The predictive model suggested direct positive effects of student intelligence, self-rated openness and parental education on achievement in mathematics, whereas direct effects of extraversion on measures of achievement were negative. Indirect positive effects of intelligence, self-rated conscientiousness, student-perceived mathematics teacherʼs press for understanding and mastery goal, and a negative effect of student-rated parental academic pressure on course achievement were mediated through the studentsʼ self-efficacy in mathematics. The findings highlight the important role that individual differences in ability and personality, as well as student perceptions of parent and teacher academically related variables, play in the studentsʼ performance in mathematics.
COBISS.SI-ID: 49405794
The purpose of the present study was to explore the ways people achieve their happiness employing two approaches, i.e. a dimension-centred, focusing on the three orientations to happiness (orientation to pleasure, meaning, and engagement), and a per- son-centred, focusing on patterns of these three orientations within individuals. The pre- dictive validity of individual orientations to happiness and their characteristic patterns for three aspects of subjective well-being was explored. Adult participants (N = 1,142; 33 % male) filled-in the Orientations to Happiness Questionnaire and the Mental Health Con- tinuum-Long Form. Applying the dimension-centred approach, results suggested that all of the orientations represent possible and appropriate ways to achieve happiness. Person- centred analysis yielded four groups of individuals with similar profiles of ways towards happiness and membership of these groups was associated with individualʼs well-being. Leading an empty life was associated with the poorest outcomes and full life with the highest well-being, with moderate well-being characterizing individuals pursuing plea- surable and meaningful life. More precisely, pleasurable life and meaningful life had relatively similar predictive value for psychological well-being but demonstrated dis- criminant validity for emotional and social well-being. This suggests that the profiles are meaningfully different and highlights the importance of the multiplicative influences of the three specific orientations to happiness.
COBISS.SI-ID: 53014114
A large body of research shows that vocabulary does not develop independently of grammar, representing a better predictor of the grammatical complexity of toddlersʼ utterances than age. This study examines for the first time the characteristics of vocabulary and grammar development in Slovenian-speaking infants and toddlers using the Slovenian adaptation of the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (CDI). The sample included 512 Slovenian-speaking infants and toddlers aged 0;8 to 2;6. The findings suggest that between age 0;8 and 2;6 the development of vocabulary is best described using a quadratic function. The results also show that nouns predominate in the vocabularies of infants and toddlers of various ages; as they age and with the increasing size of their vocabularies, the share of interjections decreases and the share of verbs and adjectives increases. The size of vocabulary was also found to be related to the grammatical structure of toddlersʼ utterances.
COBISS.SI-ID: 49586786