The Mediating Role of Self-Concept in the Relationship between Executive Functions and Working Memory Capacity and Academic Performance of First-Year High School Girl Students: A Descriptive Study

Academic performance and factors affecting it as one of the central and fundamental variables in education have always been the focus of researchers and psychologists. The aim of the current research was to determine the mediating role of self-concept in the relationship between executive functions and working memory capacity and the academic performance of the first-year students of Semiram High School.

The present study is descriptive. The investigated sample was 272 first-year female students of Semiram high school in 2020-2021, who were selected using the multi-stage cluster random sampling method. Research participants completed the Barkly Adolescent Executive Function Deficit Scale, the Wechsler Working Memory Test, the Pham and Taylor Academic Performance Questionnaire, and the Yesen Chen Academic Self-Concept Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient test, multivariate regression, and path analysis.

The average scores of executive functions, academic performance, self-concept, and working memory were 63.31, 181.29, 47.2, and 9.45, respectively, with a standard deviation of 6.71, 4.61, 3.89, and 34.4. The results showed that self-concept has a mediating role in the relationship between executive functions and working memory capacity and the academic performance of the first- year students of Semiram High School. Also, the results showed that self-concept, executive functions, and working memory can predict academic performance (p<0.001).

Considering the mediating role of self-concept in relation to executive functions and working memory capacity, it is suggested to be used to improve students' academic performance.