Abstract:
The purposes of this research were: 1) to study the level of resilience, academic pressure, academic motivation and academic achievement of secondary school students and compare students resilience, academic pressure, academic motivation, and academic achievement between the students whose backgrounds in gender, education, region, and size of school are different; 2) to develop and examine the goodness of fit of resilience and academic pressure on academic achievement with academic motivation as the mediator models effect; 3) to analyze the role of academic motivation as the mediator of effect of resilience and academic pressure on academic achievement; and 4) to test the invariance of resilience and academic pressure on academic achievement with academic motivation as the mediator model's effect across those two education groups. The research sample consisted of 832 secondary school students selected by multi-stage random sampling method. Data were collected through a survey questionnaire. Descriptive analysis and SEM (Structural Equation Model) by LISREL were used for the data analysis. The results revealed: 1. Students had a moderate level of resilience, academic pressure and academic motivation (mean = 3.41, 2.90, and 3.46, respectively) and had a high level of academic achievement (mean = 3.50) and the results of the analysis of differences in resilience, academic pressure, academic motivation, and academic achievement by gender, education, region, and the size of the school found that (1.1) female students had higher resilience and academic achievement than male students within a .05 level of significance. For the academic pressure analysis, there was no difference found between the male and female students. (1.2) Lower and upper secondary students had no difference in the resilience score but were different in academic pressure, academic motivation, and academic achievement at a .05 level of significance. Upper secondary students had more academic pressure than lower secondary students. However, lower secondary students had more academic motivation and academic achievement than upper secondary students. (1.3) Students in each region showed a difference in the level of resilience, academic pressure, and academic achievement at a .05 level of significance. Students in the northeast and the south had more resilience than students in the center of the country. Furthermore, students in the northeast had more academic pressure than students in the north and the south. Students in the center had higher academic achievement than students in the northeast and the south. However, students in every region showed no difference in academic motivation. (1.4) Students in big schools had higher resilience than in small schools at a .05 level of significance. There was no difference found in academic pressure and academic motivation. 2. The models effects of resilience and academic pressure on academic achievement with academic motivation as a mediator fit the empirical data (Chi-square = 28.519, df = 23, p = 0.197, GFI = 0.995, AGFI = 0.980, RMR = 0.014, RMSEA = 0.017). The variables in the model explained 18.9% and 53.7% of the variance of academic achievement and academic motivation, respectively. Resilience and academic pressure directly influenced academic achievement (DE = .116, -.218, respectively) and academic achievement had a significantly indirect effect via academic motivation (IE = .163, -.046, respectively). All effects were significant at p<.05. 3. The role of academic motivation as a mediator in this model was a partial mediator from resilience and academic pressure to academic achievement. 4. The models effects of resilience and academic pressure on academic achievement with academic motivation as a mediator indicated the model form across those two groups with different education but there was a variation of the parameter regression coefficient causal influence of the external latent variables to internal latent variables