Structural Equation Modeling of the Relationship Between Self-Regulated Learning and Academic Boredom in Mathematics: The Mediating Role of Academic Emotions Among Female High School Students in Tehran

Elham  Nikookar; Noorali  Farrokhi; Fariborz  Dortaj; Fatemeh  Ghaemi

Authors

Elham Nikookar Ph.D. student, Department of Educational Psychology, SR.C., Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran Author https://orcid.org/0009-0009-1202-8119
Noorali Farrokhi Associate Professor, Department of Measurement and Assessment, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1650-8090
Fariborz Dortaj Professor, Department of Educational Psychology, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7099-9249
Fatemeh Ghaemi Associate Professor of Endocrinology, Vice Chancellery for Treatment, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3157-9698

Keywords:

Academic boredom, Academic emotions, Female upper, secondary school students, Mathematics, Self, regulated learning, Structural equation modeling

Abstract

Purpose: The present study aimed to investigate the structural equation model of the relationship between self-regulated learning and academic boredom in mathematics, with academic emotions as a mediating variable, among female upper-secondary school students in Tehran.

Methods and Materials: This applied study was conducted using a descriptive-correlational design based on structural equation modeling. The statistical population consisted of all female upper-secondary school students in Tehran during the 2023–2024 academic year. Based on the recommended criteria for structural equation modeling, 375 students were selected through convenience sampling. Data were collected using the Academic Boredom Scale developed by Pekrun et al. (2002), the Self-Regulated Learning Questionnaire developed by Bouffard et al. (1995), and the Achievement Emotions Questionnaire developed by Pekrun et al. (2002). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation coefficient, and structural equation modeling in SPSS version 24 and LISREL version 8.5.

Findings: The results indicated that the proposed model had a good fit. In addition, self-regulated learning had a direct, negative, and significant effect on academic boredom in mathematics (β=-0.61, p<0.001). Furthermore, self-regulated learning was positively and significantly related to academic emotions (β=0.11, p<0.01), and academic emotions had a negative and significant effect on academic boredom (β=-0.21, p<0.001). The results of the Sobel test also confirmed the significance of the indirect effect of self-regulated learning on academic boredom through academic emotions (Z=3.42, p<0.001). Overall, the findings showed that self-regulated learning contributes to reducing academic boredom in mathematics both directly and indirectly through enhancing positive academic emotions.

Conclusion: Therefore, simultaneous attention to the cognitive and emotional dimensions of learning—particularly through teaching self-regulation strategies and improving the emotional quality of the classroom environment—may help reduce academic boredom and improve students’ experience of learning mathematics.

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