Chapter No.

01
INTRODUCTION
The aim of present study is to investigate the relationship of study
habits with self-concept and academic performance among university
students. The definition of study habits are the behaviors used when
preparing for test or learning academic material. A self-concept is largely a
reflection of the reaction of others towards the individual. An idea of selfconstructed from the belief one holds about one self and the responses of
others. Academic performance is the outcome of education the extent to
which a student, teacher or institution has achieved their educational goal.
Study Habits
According to Aristotle, habit is what we repeatedly do. Habits
generate other habits. Inspiration is what gets us started, motivation is what
keeps us on track, and habit is what makes us automatic. Anything we
practice long enough becomes ingrained into our system and becomes a
habit. Students are basically having their own individual differences. It all
depends upon their ability and capacity. We do observe that some students
have the habit of studying daily lessons regularly Human life, which is the
best creation of god, has got two aspects: The biological and sociological or
cultural. While the former is maintained and transmitted by food and
Reproduction, the latter is preserved and transmitted by Education. It is
again through education that he promotes his Intelligence and adds his

knowledge with which he can Move the world for good and for evil according
to his Wishes. Education in fact, is one of the major lives Processes of the
human beings just as there are certain dispensable vital processes of life in
a biological sense. So Education may be considered a in a social Sense.
Education is indispensable to normal living, without Education the individual
would be unqualified for group life (Safe, et al. 1963).
Study habits play a very important role in the life of Students.
Success or failure of each student depends upon His own study habits. Of
course, study is an art and as such it requires practice. Some students study
more but they fail to achieve more. Others study less but achieve more.
Success of each student definitely depends upon ability Studying is a skill.
Being successful in school requires a high level of study Skills. Students must
first learn these skills, practice them and develop Effective study habits in
order to be successful. Very often the study habits and practices developed
and used in high school do not work for students in college. Good study
habits include many different skills: time management, self-discipline,
concentration, memorization, organization, and effort. Desire to succeed is
important, too organization, and effort. Desire to succeed is important, too
Basic Study Habits.
1. Attend class every day.
2. Read the textbook.
3. Do the assigned homework.

4. Pay attention in class.

5. Take the exams.

A good study habit is very important for good academic

performance, and such every parent and teacher would desire their children
to be avid and excited readers. Therefore, it is essential to create
captivating, inviting and comfortable place for the students in order to help
them cultivate good study habits. Study habits are mainly external factors
that facilitate the study process such as sound study routines that include
how often a student engage in studying sessions, review the material, selfevaluate, rehears explaining the material, and studying in a conducive
environment (Cred, 2008). Knowing how you learn best is the first step in
developing effective study habits.
Every student approaches the task of learning differently. Every
student has a unique and personal learning style or a preferred channel
through which learning comes more easily. Ask yourself the following: Am I
more inclined to remember something better when I see it, when I hear it, or
when I experience it or do something active with it? Depending on how you
learned the activity or game, you will have a fair idea of what learning
channel visual (by sight), auditory (by hearing), or hands on (by doing)
you prefer to use. We all use all three learning channels. In fact, we use all
our senses in learning about the world around us, but each of us has a

tendency to lean more heavily on one of the three learning channels visual,
auditory, or hands on. Techniques for Forming the Habit. If you don't have the
strength to resist temptation, or if your goals aren't clear enough for you to
draw strength from, you can use a reward System of studying.

If you smoke cigarettes, allow yourself one cigarette tomorrow for

every 15 minutes of studying you do today. If you can afford the time, make
Saturdays and Sundays "free" days, when you can smoke regardless of study
time. Make your interests and vices work for you:
2 hours = 1 phone call
3 hours = 1 hour of TV
4 hours = 1 Big Mac
6 hours = 1 weekend movie
Use your imagination. As long as you're strict with yourself by taking only
what you've earned, you'll be developing a study habit. Your family and
friends also need to know of and be willing to accept your goals and help
achieve them. If they control reward systems (car, TV, leisure funds, etc.
agreements should be made with them that reinforce your efforts to develop
the habit.
How to Study

Most of the things you'll learn in life won't come from

books or the classroom. You're getting older and learning to be more
responsible to yourself, and this responsibility gives you the chance to learn
about yourself, the world, and your place in the world in so many ways. This
is growing, and it's good. No one expects you to sleep with your books or to
blindly accept a teacher's views just because "he's a teacher and he must
know what he's talk in' about." If you'll take the time for some learning from
every available source that attracts you, you'll sit down to study being
confident, and feeling good. You'll be a better student for it. You'll be a fuller
person too.
Where to Study
The experts agree on some specific conditions that aid students in studying
more effectively
These are:
1) Study in the same place all the time; you'll learn to associate that place
with working: walk in, and you'll feel like it's time to get down to some
serious business.
2) The room temperature should be between 65 and 70 degrees.
3) There should be good air circulation.
4) Of course, good lighting is necessary.

5) Sit upright (don't lie down on a couch); if you're too relaxed, you mind will
be too slow.
6) Keep your desktop clear of materials that you aren't using at the moment.
They'll distract you.
7) People walking around and talking will get in the way of your
concentration.
8) Experts disagree about whether you may play music or not while
studying, so your
Schedules for Study
You get more out of a lecture, lab or discussion when you've done
the reading and other assignments before the class meets. Scheduling your
time, and following your schedule, ensures this. Use a strict schedule when
the work is piled-up; use a less rigid one when there's not so much to do, but
use a schedule whatever your situation is. Otherwise, you'll be cramming
and losing sleep around exam time. Don't kid yourself. Even in the unlikely
event that you schedule a 10-12 hour study day, the odds are you won't
follow through - and you shouldn't. The body isn't built that way. Study is
hard work. Your eyes and mind become tired and you become inefficient. If
you are in a bind and must cram for days at a time, it generally means that
you have put things off too. Studying is a skill. Being successful in school
requires a high level of study skills. Students must first learn these skills,

practice them and develop effective study habits in order to be successful.

Very often the study habits and practices developed and used in high school
do not work for students in college.
Good study habits include many different skills: time management,
self-discipline, concentration, memorization, organization, and effort. Desire
to succeed is important, too. In this module you will discover your areas of
strength and identify your weaknesses pertaining to studying. You will learn
about your preferred learning channel, tips to organize your studies, and
ways to help you remember what you study. The skills you will learn about in
this module can be applied in other areas of your life as well: your job, your
career,

or

any

activity

that

requires

thought,

planning,

information

processing, and self-discipline. Youll find that once you develop effective
study habits, the job of studying and learning will become easier. Instead of
working harder, you'll be working smarter
Self-Concept
Self-concept is a belief systems, it is the multi-faceted, multi-level
cognitive

and

evaluation

of

oneself and their

relationship with his

surroundings. Its a core part of personality.

W James considered that anything belong to oneself or related to oneself are
all contents of oneself. China's study on self-concept started in the 1980s.
There were quite a lot of descriptive and theoretical studies, however, the
survey researches were not enough, and the scope was still not on a wide

range.

This

study

used

cross-sectional

comparison

to

survey

the

development of university students self-concept.

A great deal of the history of studying the self in social psychology
has focused on self-concept content (i.e., what one believes to be true about
oneself) rather than on self-concept structure (i.e., how ones self-concept is
represented in memory). This initial work adopted a guiding metaphor that
ones self-concept is a vessel filled by the ongoing accumulation of ones life
experiences. For example, some of the earliest theorizing about the origin of
self-concept suggested that it was based upon ones interactions with others
(e.g., Cooley, 1902; Mead, 1934). Similarly, later work suggested that greater
self-esteem reflected, among other things, the unconditional love provided
by others (e.g., Rogers, 1951).
Much of the focus on self-concept content has explored why the
self is so positive (e.g., Taylor & Brown, 1988). For instance, most people
endorse far more positive traits than negative traits for the self, and this
tendency is more strongly revealed by those with greater self-esteem
(Brown, 1998). Given the almost ubiquitous nature of self-enhancement,
research has focused on its implications. Adopting a functional perspective,
Taylor and Brown (1988, 1994) have argued that possessing an enhanced
sense of self-worth is beneficial in helping people respond adaptively to
negative feedback and in persevering through difficult times in order to
succeed. Consistent with this thesis, Taylor, Lerner, Sherman, Sage, and

McDowell (2003) found that those revealing greater self-enhancement

experienced more favorable psychological and social outcomes (for similar
findings, see Taylor, Kemeny, Reed, Bower, & Grunewald, 2000). Yet, others
have argued that having overly positive self-evaluations reflects an
unhealthy, self-centered personality that impairs well-being (e.g., Colvin &
Block, 1994; John & Robins, 1994). For example, Colvin, Block, and Funder
(1995) observed that greater self enhancement predicted poorer social skills
and psychological maladjustment (for similar findings, see Robins & Beer,
2001). Mixed findings such as these suggest that important moderating
factors must be better understood to account for when possessing positive
self-concept content is beneficial or is detrimental (for suggestions, see
Robins & Beer, 2001; Taylor et al., 2003). In all likelihood, the mixed evidence
probably reflects, among other things, different perspectives on the nature of
self (e.g., social psychologists seeing it as a fluid response to changing social
situations versus personality psychologists viewing the self as more stable
and invariant), how these questions are investigated (e.g., lab-based
experiments versus longitudinal studies), and how constructs are assessed
(e.g., private versus public measures). At any rate, we contend that an
understanding of the relation between self-concept content positivity and
well-being is critical but far from complete Self-concept is the perception that
individuals have of their own worth. This includes a Composite of their
feelings, a generalized view of their social acceptance, and their personal
feelings about themselves (Belmore & Cillessen, 2006).

Self-concept develops as a result of ones experiences with the

environment and ones evaluations of these experiences. Additionally,
opinions of significant others, casual attributions, and concrete feedback play
a crucial role in the process of self-concept development (Shave son, Huber,
& Stanton, 1976). The formative middle-school years of a child's life are an
important time for the child to develop a positive self-concept. Self-concept is
important because it contributes too many different facets of a person's life,
from childhood to adulthood.
Self-concept is defined by Shavelson et al. (1976:411) as a
persons perception of himself formed through his experience with his
environment. Self-concept is described by Klobal and Musek (in Baadjies
2008:2) as an individuals perceptions of him/herself; it is a psychological
entity and includes ones feelings, evaluations and attitudes, as well as
descriptive categories. Thus, self-concept is a cognitive generalization about
the self, which mostly includes self-descriptions of neutral values. By way of
a formal definition, self-concept refers to the persons total appraisal of his
appearance, background and origin, abilities and resources, attitudes and
feelings, which culminate as a directing force in behavior (Labenne & Greene
in Baadjies 2008). In order to reach a common definition of self-concept, the
researcher will make use of the definition by Shavelson et al. (1976) of the
self-concept. They indicate that self-concept is the perception that each
person has of him or herself, formed from experiences and relationships with
the environment, as well as with significant others. Self-concept is defined by

Eccles et al. (2005) as people's general composite or collective view of

themselves across multidimensional sets of domain specific perceptions.
These perceptions are based on self-knowledge and evaluation
of value or worth of ones own capabilities formed through experiences with
and interpretations of the environment. People's self-concept will address a
more factual side of their life, such as knowing what they enjoy or how they
tend to think. The importance for researchers to clearly define self-concept
cannot be overemphasized. As seen with Elbaum and Vaughn (2001), the
convenience of conglomerating the many facets of the self is tempting.
Doing so makes explanations easier, but also invalidates some results. When
studying self-concept, it is important to acknowledge different facets of the
construct. By narrowing the focus to a more concise topic, such as academic
self-concept, a researcher has a better chance of measuring what is intended
to be measured. A positive self-concept can lead to a fulfilling adulthood.
Many different conditions can affect how students develop their self-concept.
Marsh (2005) found that a student's self-concept is partially dependent on
his or her surroundings. He describes this as the big-fish-little-pond effect
(BFLPE). If the average ability of classmates is high, equally able students
most likely will have a more negative academic self-concept. However, if the
average ability in a given student's class is low, then he or she is more likely
to have a positive academic self-concept. This academic self-concept is very
important during a child's middle school years because much of a child's
daily interaction is related to school. Once these academic self-concepts

have been established, it can be difficult to alter them. Chapman, Tunmer,

and Prochnow (2000) showed in a longitudinal study that when students
develop a negative academic self-concept, their academic skills suffer.
Specifically, they found that students with a negative academic self-concept
had poorer phonological sensitivity skills and read at lower reading levels
than children with typical academic self-concepts.
Long-term, these negative self-concepts inhibit students' learning
capacity by setting artificial academic ceilings. Negative experiences during
these influential years can potentially set a student back for the rest of his or
her life. This limitation on self-concept can have a direct influence on the
development of a child's self-esteem. An individual's general composite or
collective view of him or herself across multidimensional sets of domain
specific perceptions, based on self-knowledge and evaluation of value or
worth of one's own capabilities formed through experiences with and
interpretations of the environment (Eccles, O'Neill, & Wig field, 2005). Selfconcept is defined by Shavelson et al. (1976:411) as a persons
perception of himself formed through his experience with his environment.
Self-concept is described by Klobal and Musek (in Baadjies 2008:2) as an
individuals perceptions of him/herself; it is a psychological entity and
includes ones feelings, evaluations and attitudes, as well as descriptive
categories. Thus, self-concept is a cognitive generalization about the self,
which mostly includes self-descriptions of neutral values. By way of a formal
definition, self-concept refers to the persons total appraisal of his

appearance, background and origin, abilities and resources, attitudes and

feelings, which culminate as a directing force in behavior (Labenne & Greene
in Baadjies 2008). In order to reach a common definition of self-concept, the
researcher will make use of the definition by Shavelson et al. (1976) of the
self-concept. They indicate that self-concept is the perception that each
person has of him or herself, formed from experiences and relationships with
the environment, as well as with significant others. Not only do people have
tremendously positive self-concepts, they also have exceedingly strong
beliefs of personal control (Langer, 1975). Indeed, perceptions of control can
be quite beneficial features of the self, leading to better performance under
stress and even longer lives (e.g., Glass & Singer, 1972; Langer & Rodin,
1975).
However, the need for control can also be so strong that people
misperceive having it, leading to questionable actions (e.g., Langer, 1975)
and inappropriate self-blame following negative life events (e.g., Davis,
Lehman, Wortman, Silver, & Thompson, 1995; Sherman & McConnell, 1995).
Thus, even though people possess (and seek) self-concepts filled with
positivity and control, this penchant can have downsides that, ironically, can
subvert ones greater goals. Self-concept differences of male and female
students are mainly as the following aspects:
1) The males physical self was higher than females. First, may be males
developed better motor skills. Second, it explained the physiological

advantages that males had in this period. The social roles requested men to
be powerful and career-driven; also, the females had a high expectation for
male too.
2) When speak to Moral-ethic self, females was better than males. This
was because the Chinese society had higher moral standards and request
with women than men. Confucian moral ethic profoundly influenced on
modern peoples behavior. Society usually made more restrained demands
for women on ethics and behavior. Compared to men, women suffer more
restrict in ethics. Women didnt only have more self-discipline than men, they
also had a better skill in Introspection. Social and family lowered the
expectations on women, which also declined women's society frivolousness
and Psychological pressure. As a result, they could spend more time in
communication. so male had lower self-evaluation in ethics than female,
while at the same time, their ability to withstand setbacks was stronger, and
they dare to face up to some weaknesses of their own.
3) Male university students scored higher than females in self-criticism
factors, and the difference was easily noticeable. It showed that male college
students had lower appraisal on their own shortcomings and bad personality.
On the one hand, they had the courage to criticize themselves; on the other
hand, they had some problems of their own, and had a passive opinion of
themselves, while females seemed to have higher demands on themselves

4) Male had higher self-satisfaction than female, which explained that male
were more better at accept themselves, this may be due to their physical
superiority and the more conducive situation to male as the sociality
developed.
5) There were no significant gender difference in behavior, personal self,
social self, family self and identification. It shown that there were no gender
differences

in

college

students

self-acceptance

at the

present,

the

psychological-asses of themselves, the sense of the value and the

acceptance when contact with others
Academic Performance
Academic achievement is the amount of knowledge derived from
learning. The child gains knowledge by instructions he/ she receives at
school and are organized around a set of core Activities in which a teacher
assigns tasks to pupils and evaluates and compares the quality of their work.
The school provides a wide variety of achievement experiences than does
the family. According to Levy (1942), academic performance is based on the
number of factors, such as childrens attitudes, interest, personality
characteristics and social class in addition to learning. School, colleges and
universities have no worth without student. Students are most essential
asset for any educational institute. The social and economic development of
the country is directly linked with student academic performance. The
students performance (academic achievement) plays an important role in

producing the best quality graduates who will become great leader and
manpower for the country thus responsible for the countrys economic and
Social development (Ali et.al, 2009). Student academic performance
measurement has received considerable attention in previous research, it is
challenging aspects of academic literature, and science student performance
are affected due to social, psychological, economic, environmental and
personal

factors.

These

factors

strongly

influence

on

the

student

performance, but these Factors vary from person to person and country to
country the concept of achievement has several references. It usually
denotes activity and mastery, making an impact on the environment and
competing against some standard of excellence .Academic achievement
indicates the numerical score of a students knowledge. It measures the
degree of a students adaptation to schoolwork and to the educational
system (Klobal & Musek in Baadjies 2008:3). How croft (1991:111) describes
academic achievement in terms of the actual mark or score obtained in an
examination or a test. Academic achievement refers to the level of schooling
which has been successfully completed and ability to attain success in
studies. It is also defined as excellence in all academic discipline rather than
fatalistically

accepting

it

and

competing

against

some

standard

of

excellence. The world is becoming more and more competitive. Quality of

performance has become the key factor for personal progress.

Parents desire that their children climb the ladder of

performance to as high a level as possible. This desire for a high level of
achievement puts a lot of pressure on students, teachers, and schools and in
general the education system itself. In fact, it appears as if the whole system
of education revolves round the academic achievement of students, though
various other outcomes are also expected from the system. Thus a lot of
time and effort of the schools are used for helping students to achieve better
in their scholastic endeavors. The importance of scholastic and academic
achievement has raised important questions for educational researchers.
What factors promote achievement in students? How far do the different
factors contribute towards academic achievement? (Ramaswamy, 1990).
School achievement may be affected by various factors like intelligence,
study habits, and attitudes of pupil towards school, different aspects of their
personality, socio economic status, etc. The desire of success is derived from
individuals concept of himself and in terms of the meaning of various
incentives as they spell success and failure in the eye of others. Thus a child
who sees himself as top ranking, as scholars, may set as his goal the
attainment of the highest grade in the class.
Academic performance is affected by a number of factors
including admission points, social economic status and school background.
Geiser and Santelices (2007), Acato (2006), and Swart (1999) all argue that
admission points which are a reflection of the previous performance
influence future academic performance. The Universities Admission Center

(2006) reports that tertiary institutions in Austria have found that a selection
rank based on a students overall academic achievement is the best single
predictor of tertiary success for most tertiary courses. The researcher agrees
with the scholars that admission points affect academic performance at
university and that is why according to the Uganda Universities and Other
Tertiary Institutions Act (2001), the basis for entry to university is admission
points which are derived from A level points, Diploma points and Mature age
points.
According to Graetz (1995), ones educational success depends very strongly
on social economic status of the parents. Considine and Zappala (2002)
argue that families where the parents are advantaged socially, educationally
and economically foster a high level of achievement in their children. The
researcher agrees with Considine and Zappala (2002) because students from
high social economic backgrounds are well exposed to scholastic materials,
which aid their intelligence.
Sentamu (2003), Kwesiga (2002) and Portes and Macleod (1996) as cited in
Considine and Zappala (2002) all argue that the type of school a child
attends influences academic achievement. According to Minnesota measures
(2007), a report on higher education performance, which was produced by
the University of Minnesota, the most reliable predictor of student success in
college is the academic preparation of students in Academic performance
according to the Cambridge University Reporter (2003) is frequently defined

in terms of examination performance. In this study academic performance

was characterized by performance in tests, in course work and performance
in examinations of universities students. The social media engages students
and have to be examined as entrepreneurs of understanding. The medium of
internet is marketing with increase in its programs. The interactive character
of online conditions has extended with social networking. Hooking up
through social networking began as being a niche activity, though time it's a
phenomenon. The web sites are employed in many ways like developing
metropolitan areas, speaking, blogging etc. Additionally different institutions
even nowadays are developing groups on several Websites.
The improved usage of Websites has become a worldwide
phenomenon for quite some time. What began out as being a hobby for
several computer literate people has converted to a social norm and
existence-style for individuals from around the globe. Teens and teenagers
have especially recognized these internet sites to be able to contact their
peers, share information, reinvent their personas, and showcase their social
lives. While using the increase of technology helpful for getting together with
others along with the recognition on the internet, Internet sites are now
being an activity that's done mainly on the web, with Websites. According to
Facebook users often time experience poor performance academically.
Similarly, posit that social media is negatively associated with academic
performance of student and is a lot more momentous than its advantages.

Internet addiction consequently gave rise in internet usage within the last
couple of decades.
Recommended that addicted users prefer using internet
setting back their personal and professional responsibilities which ultimately
leads to poor academic performance. According to pointed out that Facebook
users devoted lesser time to their studies in comparison to nonusers did and
subsequently had lower GPAs.] Also mentioned that among various unique
distractions of every single generation, Facebook remains a major distraction
of current generation. According to impairment of educational performance
and

internet

dependency

are

correlated

by

utilizing

communication programs including internet sites and forums.

synchronous
There

are benefits and risks associated with using any social network. There have
been reports regarding its effect on students academic performance. Some
researchers investigated the end result of social networking usability among
College students and with their academic performance. They found a poor
effect and influence when the media is overuse in such a way that do not
academically improve learning or its process

Other researchers examined

this same problem but found either no significant relationship between using
social networking and student academic performance or really a factor in
students academic performance. From the last few years in Pakistan literacy
rate and education improved and most of the instituted in Pakistan improving
the educational level and produce well educated, competitive and skilled
person, those meet dynamic growing market requirement. Thats a reason

the researcher find out such factors that effecting student performance,
especially in rural areas where student face lot of problem. Previously mostly
study of student academic performance conducting on such issues like
gender

difference,

teachers

education

and

teaching

style,

class

environment, socio economic factor and family education background. The

finding of this study varies from region to region and their results differ in
cities and rural areas. This research is focuses on the private colleges in
Pakistan. Students of private colleges of Rawalpindi and Islamabad are taken
as population and focuses on the result of the student performance and their
achievements in the academic year. Previous studies focuses on different
factors

such class schedules, class size, English text books, homework,

environment of the class, technology used in the class and exams systems,
extracurricular activities, family and work activities, financial, and etc. The
study may helpful for both colleges policy makers and parents of the
students. It helps the college administration to design and implement the
policies to improve the students performance and the quality of education
by changing the attitude of students towards learning, facilitating students
and improving the teaching procedures. Parents can use the outcomes of the
study to solve the students problems especially financial problems and to
look after them. It may also create awareness among students about their
rights and responsibilities to achieve quality education. Some factors that
affect

students

academic

performance.

These

factors

are

students

communication skills, learning facilities, proper guidance and family stress.

Galiher (2006) and Darling (2005), used GPA to measure student

performance because they main focus in on the student performance for the
particular semester. Some other researchers used test results or previous
year result since they are studying performance for the specific subject or
year (Hijazi and Naqvi, 2006, and Hake, 1998. Many researchers has been
discussed

the

different

factors

that

affects

the

student

academic

performance in their research. There are two types of factors that affect the
students academic performance. These are internal and external classroom
factors and these factors strongly affect the students performance. Internal
classroom factors includes students competence in English, class schedules,
class size, English text books, class test results, learning facilities, homework,
environment of the class, complexity of the course material, teachers role in
the class, technology used in the class and exams systems. External
classroom factors include extracurricular activities, family problems, work
and financial, social and other problems. Research studies shows that
students performance depends on many factors such as learning facilities,
gender and age differences, etc. that can affect student performance
(Hansen, Joe B., 2000). Harb and El- Shaarawi (2006) found that the most
important factor with positive effect on students' performance is student's
competence in English. If the students have strong communication skills and
have strong grip on English, it increases the performance of the students.
The performance of the student is affected by communication skills; it is
possible to see communication as a variable which may be positively related

to performance of the student in open learning. A major distinction of this

study from previous studies is that it focuses on open learning (Abdullah ALMuta 2011).
Rationale of study
The purpose of the study is to know the relationship between self-concept,
study habits and academic performance among university students. Before
this there is no research found in which these relationship are present.

Objectives of study
To explore the relationship among study habits, self-concept and academic
performance among university students.
Hypothesis
There will be significant relationship of study habits, self-concept and
academic performance among university students.
Operational definition of variable
Study habits is operationally defined as the definition of study
habits are the behaviors used when preparing for tests or learning academic
material. A person who waits until the very last night before an exam and

then stays up all night trying to cram the information into his head is an
example of someone with bad study habits.
Self-concept is operationally defined as an idea of the self-constructed from
the beliefs one holds about oneself and the responses of others. a selfconcept is largely a reflection of the reactions of others towards the
individual Academic performance is operationally defined as the outcome of
education the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has
achieved their educational goals .

Chapter 2
Method:
1-Participants
The sample consisted of 80 individuals of non-clinical population.
Total sample consisted of both gender male (n=40) and females (n=4).
Participant s age range was 21_26 with the combination of graduate and
post graduate students. The demographic variable were also taken e.g. age
gender. Participants were elected through convenient sampling technique. All
the individuals were approached in different areas of Multan city.

2-Instruments
A booklet consisted of informed consent form, demographic sheet; study
habit inventory, academic performance rating scale; robson self-concept
questioner and norms were used in the study.
Study habits inventory
Study habits inventory was developed by Gilbert Wrenn.
Assisted in the original addition by R.B Mc Keown and in revision by Wilber J
Humber. It was constructed to measure the study habits. It consists of 32
items. On rarely or Never, Sometimes and often or always format. The rating
scale is: 1= Rarely or never true 2= Sometimes true 3= Often or always
true) This scale help to find out about Time Management, Concentration,
Note Taking, Reading Comprehension, Test Preparation ,
Writing Skills , Test Anxiety Management

and

Reading Speed,

Test-taking . The range of

possible scores is (0-30).High scores on this scale indicate the higher level of
study habits. Low scores indicate the lower level of study habits.
Academic performance Rating scale
Academic performance rating scale was developed by
George J. DePaul, Mark D. Rapport University of Hawaii, and Lucy M. Perriello
University of Massachusetts Medical Center and was constructed to measure
Academic performance. The APRS is a 19-item scale that was developed to
reflect teachers perceptions of childrens academic performance and

abilities in classroom settings thirty items were initially generated based on

suggestions provided by several classroom teachers, school psychologists,
and clinical child psychologists. Of the original 30 items, 19 were retained
based on feedback from a separate group of classroom teachers, principals,
and school and child psychologists, regarding item content validity, clarity,
and importance. Teachers answered each item using a 1 (never or poor) to 5
(very often or excellent) Like scale format. Seven APRS items (i.e., nos. 12,
13, 15- 19) were reverse keyed in scoring so that a higher total score
corresponded with a positive academic status.
Robson Self-concept Questioner
Robson self-concept questioner was developed by Robson in
(1989) and was constructed to measure self-concept. It consists of 30 items
on agree/disagree format. Item are scored as agree or disagree. The 14
normal items (Qu 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 10, 12, 15, 16, 18, 24, 26, 29, and 30) have a
full stop after the question number (e.g. 2.) scoring for these is taken
straight off the scale as printed. The 16 reversed items (Qu 4, 5, 7, 8, 11,
13, 14, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 27, 28) have a colon after the question
number (e.g. 4:) scoring is reversed for these (i.e. 0 = 7, 1 = 6 etc.). High
scores on this scale indicate the higher level of self-concept. Low scores
indicate the lower level of self-concept,
Procedure

Individual who showed their willingness to participate were selected. For this
study, non-probability sampling technique was used. A booklet consisted of
informed consent form, demographic information sheet, study habits
inventory,

academic

performance

rating

scale,

robson

self-concept

questioner was given on a sample of 80 students. First of all the respondents

were told about the purpose of the study and then general instructions were
given to the respondents. Assurance was given to respondents that all
information would be reserve, trustworthy and only used for study aim. In
the beginning they were said to fill demographic sheet then they were told to
read carefully instructions before starting the responding and instructed to
the respondents to complete the task carefully and do not hop or leave it
empty any statement.

Chapter 3
Results

Table 1
Hypothesis
There will be significant relationship of study habits, self-concept and
academic performance among university students. Correlation Matrix of
score among study habits inventory, academic performance rating scale, and
robosn self-concept Scales.
Scales

RSCQ

SHI

RSCQ

SHI

-.305**

APRS

.257*

-.022

APRS

Interpretation
The table 1 shows the relationship among self-concept,
study habits, and academic performance. The results indicate that there is
significant negative correlation between study habits and self-concept and
there is a significant positive correlation between academic performance and
self-concept. Results also showed that there is a significant correlation
between academic performance and study habits. Thus our hypothesis is
partially accepted.

Results showed that there is significant negative correlation

between study habit and self-concept exhibited negative contributions as
against the findings of Adebule (2007) ,Akubuiro and Joshua(2004), Kumar
(2002), Abe (1995),Hammachek (1995), Marsh (1990) but in line with the
study of Adeniran,(1986).no researches are available related to such
findings. This hypothesis is partially accepted
Limitations

While the overall findings of the present research were encouraging, it

is important to acknowledge its limitations as well. The following are
some of the limitations of present research.

The sample used in the present research is not large enough to

represent the whole population.

The findings cannot be generalized to the population of the whole

country.

Time limitation was there and he researcher had to complete this

research in a given time.

Suggestions
In the light of limitations and across the wide implications
of present research, following are the some suggestions for future
researchers regarding the betterment of research work.

It is suggested that more researches should be carried out with a larger

sample from different provinces of Pakistan with reference to studying
the joint effects of age, gender and religiosity on death anxiety:
evidence for mediating role played by personal attributes. A larger
sample belonging to different areas of Pakistan may give a better
insight.

The representative sample should be increased for getting more

reliable and valid results.

Data should be collected from different areas of Pakistan.

These variables should be studied from different other variables like

study habits self-concept and academic performance.

Chapter # 4
Discussion

Interest in self-concept is not a modern phenomenon. Man

had wondered about himself since time immemorial. Throughout centuries,
this interest had never really waned. Efforts dispensed ranged from pure
theoretical formulations to scientific experimentations. Hence, it can be said
that self-concept has long captivated the attention of philosophers,
sociologists and psychologists. Since the beginning of this century, there is a
proliferation of research dealing with self-concept and studies of the
relationship between self-concept and performance in educational settings
have been a major focus of research and theory for many years (Burns,
1979; Marsh and others, 1988; Hattie, 1992; Hamachek, 1995; House, 1996).
Research has supported the belief that there is a persistent and significant
relation between the self-concept and academic performance, and the
change in one seems to be associated with a change in other (Felson, 1984;
Marsh, 1993; Marsh and Craven, 1997).
Another important variable found to be determining the
academic performance of students is study habits. According to Charles Bird
(1993, study habits play an important role in influencing academic success of
students. Relationship between self-concept study habits and academic
performance was investigated by using Pearson product moment correlation
coefficient.

Results indicate that there is significant positive correlation

between academic performance and self-concept. Marsh and Craven (1997)

claimed

that

academic

self-concept

and

performance

are

mutually

reinforcing constructs, each leading to gains in the other. Enhancing self-

concept is a vital goal in and of itself and that self-concept is an important

mediating variable that causally impacts on a variety of desirable outcomes
including academic achievement (Marsh and Craven, 1997). From the
present study, it is evident that there is a significant and positive relationship
between

the

select

variables,

namely,

self-concept

and

academic

performance of university students.

HelenKevin (2007) and supports the findings of Anantha (2004).Finally,
the investigator found that there is no significant relationship between study
habits and academic performance. This supports the finding of Monika Saini
(2013) and contradicts the finding of Sarath A. Nonis& Gail. Hudson (2010),
Dinesh Kumar (2013), Kalia, K Ashok (2013) and Ehtesham Anwar (2013).