Using expectancy theory to assess gender differences in Russian accounting student motivation.

Campbell, Steven V.

INTRODUCTION

Recent empirical evidence suggests accounting students from different nations have different motivations and weight differently the expectancy of success when deciding to exert academic effort (e.g. Geiger & Cooper, 1996; Geiger et al., 1998). These studies employ Vroom's (1964) expectancy theory and the within-persons decision modeling approach developed by Stahl and Harrell (1981; 1983) to examine individual student motivation. The countries examined to date represent a variety of cultures including Western, Chinese, Hindu, and Moslem. However, no previous accounting education study has employed expectancy theory to examine student motivation in Russian Orthodox culture.

This paper presents the results of an empirical study investigating expectancy theory's ability to predict a Russian accounting student's perception of the attractiveness of academic success. Specifically, the valence model of expectancy theory is used to examine the effect of the following three potential motivating influences: an improved overall grade-point average (GPA), a strong feeling of personal satisfaction, and increased esteem in the eyes of classmates. Also examined in this study is expectancy theory's ability to predict a Russian accounting student's motivation to strive for academic success. The force model of expectancy theory implies the motivational force to achieve academic success is explained by the attractiveness (valence) of academic success and the expectancy that a particular level of effort will result in academic success.

The problem of motivating students to put forth their best effort is a universal problem spanning all cultures and all academic disciplines. However, since the participants in this study were accounting students from the Russian Federation, the research findings should be of particular interest to accounting educators and Russian academics. Two features of accounting education in Russia are distinctive. First, for many years the Russian accountant's primary responsibility was to generate financial information for control purposes but not for decision making purposes. Consequently, the prestige of an accounting career was extremely low. At the end of the Soviet Union era, secondary school graduates rated accounting as 91st of 92 professions available to them (Enthoven, 1999). This has changed over the last decade. The accountant's role has expanded into decision making and accounting is now considered a more prestigious occupation. Second, in the Soviet era accounting was perceived as a woman's occupation because of its clerical aspects. While the status and roles of women have changed in Western societies over the past decades, the same social elevation has not occurred in Russia (Sherry & Vinning, 1995). Consequently, accounting is still perceived as a female occupation in Russia and this perception is an impediment to getting males to enroll in university accounting programs.

This paper presents evidence of gender similarities and differences in student motivation and academic effort level decisions. The results indicate improving overall GPA is the dominant motivating influence among both male and female Russian accounting students and no evidence is found of gender differences in motivator preferences. However, contrary to the results of previous studies involving accounting students in other cultures, the evidence indicates Russian accounting students, and particularly female Russian accounting students, focus on the expectancy of academic success in making their effort level decisions.

The next section of the paper provides a summary of accounting practice and accounting education in Russia. This is followed by sections covering Vroom's expectancy theory, the research hypotheses, and the within-persons decision modeling method. The results are presented next, followed by some concluding remarks.

ACCOUNTING PRACTICE AND ACCOUNTING EDUCATION IN RUSSIA

In the Soviet Union, accounting was used as a tool to safeguard state property and fulfill the state's central plans. These objectives were realized by strict control and monitoring of assets by higher management bodies and the central government agencies. The break-up of the Soviet Union caused the disintegration of the unified Soviet accounting system designed to monitor a command economy. In its place an essentially new Russian accounting system has emerged characterized by significant changes in the National Chart of Accounts and accounting regulations. Russia, like other European nations, uses a uniform chart of accounts for both tax purposes and financial reporting purposes. At present, the financial reporting system is based largely on the needs of the tax authorities and auditing is primarily used to uphold and enforce the tax laws (Enthoven, 1999).

The main goal of Russia's accounting reform program is to bring Russian accounting and auditing regulations into conformity with international accounting standards. Although progress is being made, traditional thinking still prevails in many areas, including the Russian Far East, the setting of the present study. At present, the preparation of Russian Accounting Standards financial statements remains very form driven and does not follow all of the accrual-based accounting techniques common in Western countries. Also, the Russian accounting system has no standards to mitigate the effects of high levels of inflation on historical cost based numbers (Robertson, 2000).

The central government of the Russian Federation promulgates accounting rules and regulations concerning reporting, auditing, taxation, and ethics and in this context Russia is moving toward acceptance of international accounting standards, procedures, and principles. Russian accountants must now be licensed and must pass a test similar to the CPA examination in the United States. The professional accounting community in Russia is growing and one of the most thriving business sectors in Russia is accounting and auditing services (Kliegman, 1996).

The changes in accounting and auditing practice have prompted changes in Russia's accounting education system. As stated above, in the Soviet era the accountant's primary responsibility was to generate financial information for control purposes, not decision making. As a result, the prestige of accounting was extremely low and accounting education consisted of an odd mixture of different sciences and training in technical accounting procedures. With the expansion of the accountant's role into decision making, the prestige of accounting has grown and accounting education has had to go beyond the traditional undergraduate curriculum to include expanded bodies of knowledge in a variety of related fields (Enthoven, 1999).

Accounting is a popular course of study in Russian universities and relative to most other disciplines accounting graduates have good employment prospects. Accounting, however, is still perceived as a female occupation and most practicing accountants, accounting professors, and accounting students in Russia are women. For example, in this study, women comprised the entire accounting department faculty at the Khabarovsk State Academy of Economics and Law and 81 percent of the student participants were female.

Extrinsic incentives such as grades are prominent in Russian higher education. In most accounting courses the final course grade is determined by a two-part final exam consisting of a written test of accounting practice and an oral test of accounting theory. A student's grades often determines the amount of financial support the student receives while in school and whether the student receives a red or a blue diploma upon graduation. The red diploma is more prestigious, fewer than 10 percent of all graduates receive red diplomas.

VROOM'S EXPECTANCY THEORY

Vroom's (1964) original formulation of expectancy theory consisted of two models, the valence model and the force model. In the context of this study the valence model is expected to accurately explain a student's perception of the attractiveness of academic success in terms of improving a course grade, while the force model implies a student's motivational force to improve the course grade is explained by the valence of academic success and the expected probability that increased effort will lead to academic success.

Specifically, the valence model captures the perceived attractiveness, or valence, of achieving a primary outcome by aggregating the valences of associated second-level outcomes. In this study the valence of academic success, a first-level outcome, is determined by summing the valences of three related second-level outcomes- an improved overall GPA, a strong feeling of personal satisfaction, and increased esteem in the eyes of classmates. Thus:

[V.sub.j] = [[summation].sup.n].sub.k=1]] ([V.sub.k][I.sub.jk])

Where:

[V.sub.j] = the valence of the first-level outcome,

[V.sub.k] = the valence of the second-level outcome,

[I.sub.j k] = the perceived instrumentality, or belief, that [V.sub.j] will lead to [V.sub.k], and

n = the number of potential second-level outcomes.

The force model maintains the motivational force influencing a student to act is determined by the valence of the first-level outcome (academic success) and the expectancy that action will result in that outcome. Thus:

[F.sub.i] = ([E.sub.ij] [V.sub.j])

Where:

[F.sub.i] = the motivational force to perform act i,

[E.sub.i j] = the expectancy that act i will result in outcome j, and

[V.sub.j] = the valence of outcome j.

In Russian universities grades range from one to five with five being the highest mark. The force model thus implies the motivational force required to earn a grade of "5" is determined by the attractiveness (valence) of earning a "5" and the expectancy that a particular level of effort will result in this outcome.

RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

Geiger et al. (1998) found different national cultures emphasize different potential motivators in their valence assessments. For example, accounting students in the United States emphasized improving their overall GPA; accounting students in Mexico and Singapore emphasized their personal satisfaction; and accounting students in Hong Kong and Malaysia emphasize superior job performance after graduation (Harrell et al., 1985; Geiger & Cooper, 1996; Geiger et al., 1998). The first hypothesis proposes the valence model will explain the motivator preferences of Russian accounting students.

H1: The valence model will explain a Russian accounting student's perceptions of the attractiveness of attaining a high course grade.

Gender differences in motivation have been linked to stereotypes of masculinity and femininity. Women have been found to display higher levels of social orientation, such as affiliative needs, lack of self-centeredness, concern with others, spontaneity, playfulness, and emotional expressiveness; while men have been found to display higher levels of instrumental orientation, such as being independent, masterful, assertive, and instrumentally competent (Pratch & Jozobowitz, 1996). Many previous studies also report gender differences in decision making, including ethical decision making (Cohen et al., 1998; Gilligan, 1982), information processing preferences (Powell & Johnson, 1995), and career choice decisions (Gati et al., 1995). Powell and Johnson (1995) provide an extensive literature review suggesting gender differences are associated with abilities, motivation, risk attitude, confidence, and decisions style.

Other studies have found gender differences in achievement goals and classroom performance (Spence & Helmreich, 1983; Meece & Holt, 1993; Harackiewicz et al., 1997). In a study of 311 undergraduate psychology students, Harackiewicz et al. (1997) found male students were more competitive than female students, female students reported more test anxiety than male students, and female students were more likely to adopt mastery goals and performance goals than male students. These findings suggest female accounting students will be more highly influenced by improving their GPA (a performance goal) and personal satisfaction (a mastery goal), while male students will be more highly influenced by the esteem of their classmates (the perception of instrumental competence). The second hypothesis predicts such gender differences will be reflected in the weights attached to the second-level outcomes in the valence model.

H2: The weights attached to the second-level outcomes in the valence model will differ by gender.

The third and fourth hypotheses concern the influences of expectancy and valence described by the force model. Prior studies in the expectancy theory literature generally have found a dominance of valence over expectancy among U.S. college students (Matsui et al., 1981), and among U.S. accounting students in particular (Harrell & Stahl, 1986; Geiger & Cooper, 1996). Geiger et al. (1998) extended Geiger and Cooper (1996) into an international cross-cultural comparison and found the force model accurately describes accounting students' effort-level decisions across national cultures. Additionally, they found statistically significant (p<.01) valence dominance for accounting students in seven out of the ten countries they examined. In two countries neither valence nor expectancy was significantly dominant and in only one country, Singapore, did accounting students place significantly (p<.01) more emphasis on expectancy. The third hypothesis predicts Russian accounting students will fit this general pattern and be more valence oriented in their effort level decisions.

H3: The perceived valence of increasing a course grade will be more influential in motivating Russian accounting students than the expectancy of increasing a course grade.

No previous study in the expectancy theory literature has reported gender differences in the relative influences of valence and expectancy. Studies in the psychology literature, however, identify gender differences in risk taking and uncertainty avoidance (Byrnes et al., 1999). The majority of studies report greater risk taking by males, and while gender differences in risk taking have been found context dependent, particularly large gender differences have been reported in intellectual risk taking, that is in tasks that require mathematical or spatial reasoning skills (Byrnes et al., 1999). If female accounting students have a lower tolerance for uncertainty (higher uncertainty avoidance), they would be expected to react more positively to increases in the expectancy of success, and place more weight on the expectancy component of the force model. This could be particularly true in Russia at the present time given the high level of economic uncertainty and student concerns about finding employment after graduation. Thus, the fourth hypothesis predicts female Russian accounting students will place more weight on the expectancy component of the force model relative to their male counterparts.

H4: The weights placed on expectancy and valence in the force model will differ by gender in that females will be more expectancy oriented than males.

RESEARCH METHOD

The within-persons decision modeling method developed by Stahl and Harrell (1981; 1983) uses multiple decision-making cases to determine the influence of second-level outcomes in the valence model. The three second-level outcomes in the valence model are manipulated at two levels, low (10 percent) and high (90 percent), while in the force model the expectancy of success is manipulated at three levels- low (10 percent), moderate (50 percent), and high (90 percent). This results in 24 decision cases with each case presenting a unique mix of probabilities. A sample case from the decision exercise is presented in Exhibit 1.

This study replicates the original research design of Harrell et al. (1985) by examining the following three motivators: 1) an improved overall GPA, 2) increased esteem in the eyes of classmates, and 3) a strong feeling of personal satisfaction. Both written and oral instructions were given to the student participants at the time the decision exercise was distributed. All students completed the decision exercise during normal class time and were approximately two-thirds of the way through the semester at the time it was administered. They were instructed to assume they were half-way through an accounting course and were currently earning a grade of "4". The first decision in Exhibit 1 asks the student to indicate the overall valence (attractiveness) of increasing the grade of "4" to a grade of "5". The second decision in Exhibit 1 asks the student to indicate the level of effort he or she would be willing to exert in attempting to increase the course grade, given the valence of the first decision and a given probability of success. The 24 decision cases were randomly ordered to reduce possible response bias.

The student participants (n = 154) were attending the Khabarovsk State Academy of Economics and Law, in Khabarovsk, Russia. Included in the sample were 43 third-year accounting students, 37 fourth-year accounting students, and 74 fifth-year accounting students. Descriptive statistics for the sample are presented in Table 1. The most striking statistic is 81 percent of the student participants are female. This is not unusual for a Russian university accounting program since, as discussed above, accounting is considered a female occupation. Table 1 also reports the grade-point distribution of the 154 student participants.

RESULTS

In this section is reported the evidence of what motivates Russian accounting students to strive for academic success and exert academic effort. To implement the within-persons design, individual regression models were calculated for each student using her or his first-level valence decision as the response variable and the probabilities associated with the three second-level outcomes as explanatory variables.

Hypothesis 1

The first hypothesis proposed the valence model would explain a Russian student's perceptions of the attractiveness of attaining a grade of "5" in an accounting course. Table 1 indicates the valence model was successful in predicting the attractiveness (valence) perceptions of Russian accounting students. Eighty-six percent or 133 of the 154 student participants had statistically significant individual valance models. Of the 133 students with significant valence models, 108 were female and 25 were male.

The aggregate individual valence regression results are presented in Table 2 for the 133 students with significant regression models. The average adjusted R2 of the 133 significant regressions is .70. This generally high level of explanatory power is evidence the valence model has a high degree of relevance and stability for Russian accounting students. The standardized beta weights associated with the second-level outcomes provide measures of the valence each student associated with each potential motivator in arriving at Decision A. An average standardized beta weight of .61 was associated with an improved grade-point average, an average standardized beta weight of .27 was associated with personal satisfaction and an average standardized beta weight of -.08 was associated with increased esteem in the eyes of classmates. These results, which are summarized in Table 2, indicate the manipulation of second-level outcomes was successful and that an improved overall GPA was the dominant motivating influence for most Russian accounting students in their assessments of the attractiveness of increasing their course grade.

The aggregate regression results reported in Table 2 also indicate a good deal of variation exists between individual students regarding the valence of potential motivators. As measured by their standardized beta weights, 78 students (59 percent) had improving overall GPA as most influential in their valence decisions; 39 students (29 percent) had a strong feeling of personal satisfaction as most influential; and 16 students (12 percent) had increased esteem in the eyes of classmates as most influential. Thus, while improving GPA was found to be the dominant potential motivator, this finding should not be interpreted as reflective of all Russian accounting students.

The correlation statistics reported in Table 2 indicate the student participants considered the three second-level outcomes negatively correlated independent constructs (p<.01). It appears the students selected their preferred second-level outcome to the relative exclusion of the other two. The individual beta weight patterns also suggest students seldom focused on more than one motivator in making their valence decisions. Specifically, not one student participant maintained equal weights across all three second-level outcomes and only a few students maintained equal weights across two second-level outcomes. These results support the first hypothesis and demonstrate the appropriateness of the within-persons design.

Hypothesis 2

The second hypothesis proposed the weights attached to the second-level outcomes in the valence model would differ by gender. As reported in Table 2, the mean standardized beta weights associated with the three second-level outcomes differed only slightly by gender: The average standardized beta weight for an improved grade-point average was .62 for females and .57 for males; the average standardized beta weight for personal satisfaction was .28 for females and .24 for males; and the average standardized beta weight for being held in high esteem by classmates was -.10 for females and .01 for males. Thus, although the observed differences in mean standardized beta weights between males and females were in the directions predicted, they were small.

To test whether the differences in standardized beta weights were statistically significant, an unbalanced ANOVA was run in which the standardized beta weight for the second-level outcome was the dependent variables and gender the independent class variable. This analysis indicated no statistically significant differences between males and females in the influence of improving overall GPA (p=.63), personal satisfaction (p=.76), or being held in high esteem by classmates (p=.30). Furthermore, the percentages of males and females having GPA, personal satisfaction, or classmate esteem as their most influential motivator were very similar: 64 percent of the males and 57 percent of the females indicated GPA was most their influential motivator; 24 percent of the males and 31 percent of the females indicated personal satisfaction was most influential; and 12 percent of both males and females indicated being held in high esteem by classmates was most influential. These results do not support the second hypothesis and, to the contrary, suggest male and female Russian accounting students place similar emphasis on potential motivators in reaching their valence decisions.

Hypothesis 3

The third hypothesis predicts the valence (attractiveness) of academic success will be more influential than the expectancy of achieving academic success in motivating Russian accounting students to exert academic effort. Harrell et al (1985) and Geiger and Cooper (1996) found valence dominated expectancy in determining the effort-level decisions of accounting students in the United States and Geiger et al. (1998) found valence dominance in most of the national cultures they examined. A priori, Russian accounting students were expected to follow the same general pattern observed in these earlier studies.

Table 1 indicates all 133 students with significant individual valance models also had significant individual force models and Table 3 reports the force model results for these students. As reflected in Table 3, the average adjusted R2 of the 133 significant force models is .91. This high level of explanatory power is evidence the force model, like the valence model, has a high degree of relevance and stability for Russian accounting students. The standardized beta weights associated with valence and expectancy in the force model provide measures of the influence each student associated with these factors in arriving at their effort level decisions (Decision B). Perhaps the most surprising result reported in Table 3 is the dominating influence of expectancy over valence among Russian accounting students. For the 133 student participants, the mean standardized beta weights were .47 for valence and .56 for expectancy. Additionally, of the 133 students with significant valence and force models, 53 placed more weight on valance, while 80 placed more weight on expectancy. These results clearly contradict the third hypothesis as the evidence suggests the expectancy of achieving academic success is more influential than the perceived valence of academic success in motivating Russian accounting students to exert academic effort.

Hypothesis 4

The fourth hypothesis predicts the weights placed on valence and expectancy in the force model would differ by gender. Table 3 shows the mean R2 (adj) statistics for the force model were consistently high (.91) for both males and females. However, the mean standardized beta weights associated with valence and expectancy are strikingly different between the sexes. Males had an average standardized beta weight of .51 for both valence and expectancy, indicating approximately equal influences for these two factors. In contrast, females had an average standardized beta weight of .46 for valence and .57 for expectancy. Also, 65 percent of the female participants were influenced more by expectancy than valence, while only 44 percent of the male participants were influenced more by expectancy than valence.

To test whether males and females placed differential weights on expectancy and valence, a paired comparison t-test was run to determine if the standardized beta weight for expectancy minus the standardized beta weight for valence was greater than zero. The results for all students, as well as the results by gender, are given in Table 3. Females were found to exhibit expectancy dominance (p=.039), but no similar effect was observed for males (p=.97). Expectancy dominance appeared only in the female student population and because females predominate in Russian university accounting programs, expectancy had the greater overall influence. These results support the fourth hypothesis and suggest Russian female accounting students have a higher aversion to uncertainty than their male counterparts.

CONCLUSIONS

This study examined four research hypotheses. The first hypothesis (H1) proposed the valence model of expectancy theory would provide accurate predictions of Russian accounting students perceptions of the attractiveness of attaining a high course grade. The empirical data provided strong support for this hypothesis. An average adjusted R2 = .70 was obtained for a sample of 133 Russian accounting students with significant valence models. This generally high level of explanatory power is consistent with the results of recent studies of accounting student motivation in other national cultures (Geiger & Cooper, 1996; Geiger et al., 1998). The second hypothesis (H2) proposed the weights attached to the second-level outcomes in the valence model would differ by gender. The data provided no empirical support for this hypothesis. Both male and female Russian accounting students identified improving their overall GPA as their dominant motivating influence. Personal satisfaction and increased esteem in the eyes of classmates were viewed by both sexes as having lesser influence on individual valence decisions.

The third and fourth hypotheses addressed the force model of expectancy theory. The third hypothesis (H3) proposed Russian accounting students would be motivated to exert academic effort more by the perceived valence, or attractiveness, of increasing a course grade than by the probability the course grade would actually improve. Previous empirical support for this hypothesis has been presented by Geiger and Cooper (1996) and Geiger et al. (1998) for accounting students from other national cultures. Also, earlier studies have found valence dominance in non-student settings and non-effort decision contexts (Matsui et al., 1981; Harrell and Stahl 1986).The data in this study contradicted these earlier studies and did not support the third hypothesis. Russian accounting students were found to consider the probability of an increased grade more influential than their individual attributions of valence when arriving at their academic effort level decisions.

The fourth hypothesis (H4) proposed the weights placed on expectancy and valence in the force model would differ by gender; specifically, female students would place more weight on expectancy and less weight on valence relative to their male counterparts. The data provided strong support for this hypothesis. Male students were found to weight valence and expectancy almost equally in their academic effort level decisions, while female students indicated a definite preference for expectancy. This result is consistent with studies in the psychology literature that find females have higher uncertainty avoidance (Byrnes et al., 1999).

Certain limitations should be recognized when interpreting these results. First, the sample of subjects (n=154) consisted of naturally occurring groups of accounting students from a single university and males constituted only 19 percent of the sample. In contrast, the three previous expectancy theory studies of accounting student motivation have had much larger male representation: Harrell et al. (1985) had 70 percent males, Geiger and Cooper (1996) had 52 percent males, and Geiger et al. (1998) had 49 percent males. Thus, generalizing the results of this study to other populations of students may not be appropriate; however, the low proportion of males found in this study is indicative of enrollments in accounting programs in Russian universities.

A second limitation concerns the individual focus of expectancy theory. The results of this study provide educators and researchers with some useful general insights into accounting student motivation in Russia; however, the results also reflect considerable individual differences in both valence and effort level decisions. Thus, while most Russian accounting students consider increasing their GPA their primary motivator, not all Russian accounting students share this view. Some Russian accounting students prioritize their personal satisfaction and others prioritize being held in high esteem by their classmates. Also, while the expectancy of academic success is a more influential than the valence of academic success for most female Russian accounting students, this is not true for all Russian female accounting students. Thus, expectancy theory provides educators with a useful model to understand certain cross-cultural aspects of student motivation, but each individual student employs his or her own decision criteria and general conclusions should be made with caution.

Finally, general conclusions about student motivation can change over time and Russia is currently in a period of dramatic institutional change including: change in the economic system, change in the higher education system, change in the accounting system, and change in the accounting profession. Unfortunately, we do not have an expectancy theory study of accounting student motivation from the former Soviet era, but the present study is set in a transition period that reflects many of the norms of Soviet society, and therefore, it provides a useful benchmark for future research.

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Steven V. Campbell, University of Idaho

Exhibit 1: Sample Case from the Set of 24 Decision Cases

Model Elements If you receive a "5" in this course,
(not on the likelihood this will result in:
instrument): ... increased esteem in the eyes of
 your classmates is LOW (10%) (a)
 ... a strong feeling of personal
 satisfaction is HIGH (90%)
 ... an improved grade point
 average is LOW(10%) (b)

Second-Level DECISION A. With the factors and likelihoods shown
Outcomes above in mind, indicate the attractiveness to you of
([.sub.k]) receiving a "5" in this course.

Valence of -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5
First-Level Very Very
Outcomes Unattractive Attractive
([V.sub.j])

Expectancy of FURTHER INFORMATION. If you exert a great study effort
Success during the remainder of this semester, the likelihood
([E.sub.ij]) you will earn a "5" in this course is HIGH (90%).

 DECISION B. With the attractiveness and likelihood
 information above in mind, indicate the study effort
 you will exert for this course during the remainder of
 the semester.

Motivational 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Force Low Average Great
([F.sub.i]) Effort Effort Effort

 (a) Earning a "5" in this particular course
 is not likely to enhance your
 reputation in the eyes of your classmates.
 (b) It seems likely so much effort is required to
 earn a "5" in this course that doing so means
 your grades in other courses will suffer,
 resulting in no improvement in your grade point
 average.

Table 1: Composition of Sample and Descriptive Statistics

Number of Percent Students with Grade-Points:
Students Females

 5.0-4.5 4.5-4.0 4.0-3.5 3.5-3.0

154 81 63 57 32 2

Number of Students with Significant:
Students
 Valence Force
 Models Models

154 133 (86) (a) 133 (100) (b)

(a) percent of students with significant valence models

(b) percent of students with significant valence models
having significant force models.

Table 2: Summary of Significant Valence
Model Results

 All Students (n=133)

[R.sup.2] (adj.) .70 (.22-.99)
GPA .61 (-1.01-1.92)
SAT .27 (-1.35-1.83)
EST -.08 (-1.74-.98)

 Correlations GPA SAT

GPA -.68 (a)
EST -.41 (a) -.27 (a)

 Females (n=108)

[R.sup.2] (adj.) .69 (.22-.99)
GPA .62 (-1.01-1.92)
SAT .28 (-1.35-1.83)
EST -.10 (-1.66-.98)

 Correlations GPA SAT

GPA -.44 (a) -.69 (a)
EST -.22 (b)

 Males (n=25)

[R.sup.2] (adj.) .73 (.38-.99)
GPA .57 (-.37-1.45)
SAT .24 (-.54-1.45)
EST .01 (-1.74-.67)

 Correlations GPA SAT

GPA -.66 (a)
EST -.23 -.50 (b)

GPA = Mean standardized beta weight for
grade-point average

SAT = Mean standardized beta weight for
personal satisfaction

EST = Mean standardized beta weight for
esteem in the eyes of classmates.

() Range

(a) Correlation is significant at p<.01.

(b) Correlation is significant at p<.05.

Table 3: Summary of Significant
Force Model Results

 All Students
 (n=133)

[R.sup.2] (adj.) .91 (.63-.99)
VAL .47 (-.02-1.05)
EXP .56 (-.09-1.00)
Correlation -.98 (a)
Test for Expectancy .054
Dominance(p-value)

 Females (n=108)

[R.sup.2] (adj.) .91 (.63-.99)
VAL .46 (-.02-1.05)
EXP .57 (-.09-1.00)
Correlation -.98 (a)
Test for Expectancy .039
Dominance(p-value)

 Males (n=25)

[R.sup.2] (adj.) .91 (.76-.99)
VAL .51 (.12-.97)
EXP .51 (.03-1.00)
Correlation -.99 (a)
Test for Expectancy .97
Dominance(p-value)

VAL = Mean standardized beta weight for valence

.EXP = Mean standardized beta weight for expectancy.

() Range

(a) Correlation is significant at p<.01.