Declines in Verbal and Math Self-Concepts at the Transition to Upper Secondary School: Associations With Perceived Teaching Behavior and Student Personality Traits in German Adolescents

Students’ academic self-concepts are important for various educational outcomes; however, they significantly decline from childhood to adolescence. This study examines how perceived teaching behavior and student personality predict the development of academic self-concepts as students transition from grade 10 to 11. Using conditional latent growth models with 1,131 German 10th graders ( M age = 14.98 years, 50% female, 45% with immigrant background), we predicted levels and changes in student-reported academic self-concepts (verbal and math) by perceived teaching behaviors (classroom management, cognitive activation, and teacher support), student Big Five personality traits (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism), and their respective interactions. The four key insights are: First, verbal and math self-concepts declined across 10th grade. Second, higher perceived teacher support, classroom management, conscientiousness, and agreeableness, and lower neuroticism, related to higher initial self-concept levels. Third, apart from a more pronounced decrease in the verbal self-concept associated with higher perceived teacher support and agreeableness, there were no robust associations with the development of academic self-concepts. Finally, we found significant interactions as the effects of perceived teaching behavior varied across students’ openness, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Our results highlight the relevance of perceived teaching behavior and student personality for academic self-concepts and show their mutual dependencies.