USING FRAME OF REFERENCE THEORY TO UNDERSTAND THE SELF-CONCEPT OF ACADEMICALLY ABLE STUDENTS

According to the frame of reference theory (Marsh, 1986), students mak e both internal ability comparisons across academic areas and external ability comparisons relative to peers when determining academic self- concept. Understanding the processes utilized by high-ability students to formulate their academic self-concept is an important consideratio n in meeting the educational needs of this population. To determine th e applicability of the frame of reference theory, verbal and mathemati cs self-concept and achievement measures were administered to 103 acad emically able high school students. Consistent with theoretical findin gs with students in the general population, path analysis verified the dual influence of both internal and external processes on student sel f-concepts.