Guo Chuanyong, Li Mingying, Hou Limin
Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin, Guangxi, China.
Nanshan Zhonggong Street Junior High School, Jinan, Shandong, China.
Front Psychol. 2025 Jun 18;16:1599706. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1599706. eCollection 2025.
Adolescence is a crucial period for identity formation and the development of achievement motivation. In the context of rural-urban integration, adolescents encounter diverse social, cultural, and economic dynamics, which complicate their developmental processes through intergroup relations and perceptions. Meta-stereotypes represent a key factor that influences adolescent motivation and behavior. This study aims to examine the mediating role of intergroup anxiety in the relationship between meta-stereotypes and achievement motivation among adolescents in rural-urban integration areas.
This cross-sectional study included 396 adolescents (aged 12-15 years; mean age = 13.89, SD = 0.98; 48.74% female) from a middle school in the rural-urban integration area. Participants completed self-report measures assessing intergroup anxiety, achievement motivation, and meta-stereotype activation. A mediation analysis with a bias-corrected bootstrapping procedure (5,000 draws) was conducted to assess whether intergroup anxiety mediates the relationship between meta-stereotypes and achievement motivation.
Achievement motivation was negatively correlated with meta-stereotypes ( = -0.12, = 0.009), age ( = -0.13, = 0.004), years of education ( = -0.14, = 0.002), and intergroup anxiety ( = -0.30, < 0.001). Intergroup anxiety was positively correlated with meta-stereotypes ( = 0.22, < 0.001) and sex ( = 0.08, = 0.047). Across all participants, meta-stereotype activation significantly increased intergroup anxiety ( < 0.001) and significantly decreased achievement motivation ( = 0.019). Rural adolescents exhibited the same pattern, while urban adolescents did not show significant changes. The 95% bootstrap confidence interval for the indirect effect of intergroup anxiety was [-0.201, -0.065], indicating a significant mediation effect. Subgroup analysis revealed no mediating effect among urban adolescents, while rural adolescents demonstrated significant partial mediation by intergroup anxiety on both the motivation to approach success and the motivation to avoid failure.
This study explored the interplay among meta-stereotypes, intergroup anxiety, and achievement motivation in adolescents from rural-urban integration areas in China. The findings offer important insights for educational strategies and psychological interventions aimed at enhancing interpersonal relationships and academic confidence among rural adolescents in these areas.
青春期是身份认同形成和成就动机发展的关键时期。在城乡一体化背景下，青少年面临着多样的社会、文化和经济动态，这些通过群体间关系和认知使他们的发展过程变得复杂。元刻板印象是影响青少年动机和行为的一个关键因素。本研究旨在探讨群体间焦虑在城乡一体化地区青少年元刻板印象与成就动机关系中的中介作用。
这项横断面研究纳入了来自城乡一体化地区一所中学的396名青少年（年龄12 - 15岁；平均年龄 = 13.89，标准差 = 0.98；48.74%为女性）。参与者完成了评估群体间焦虑、成就动机和元刻板印象激活的自我报告测量。采用偏差校正的自助法（5000次抽样）进行中介分析，以评估群体间焦虑是否中介元刻板印象与成就动机之间的关系。
成就动机与元刻板印象（ = -0.12， = 0.009）、年龄（ = -0.13， = 0.004）、受教育年限（ = -0.14， = 0.002）和群体间焦虑（ = -0.30， < 0.001）呈负相关。群体间焦虑与元刻板印象（ = 0.22， < 0.001）和性别（ = 0.08， = 0.047）呈正相关。在所有参与者中，元刻板印象激活显著增加了群体间焦虑（ < 0.001），并显著降低了成就动机（ = 0.019）。农村青少年呈现出相同模式，而城市青少年未显示出显著变化。群体间焦虑间接效应的95%自助置信区间为[-0.201, -0.065]，表明存在显著的中介效应。亚组分析显示城市青少年中不存在中介效应，而农村青少年中群体间焦虑对追求成功动机和避免失败动机均表现出显著的部分中介作用。
本研究探讨了中国城乡一体化地区青少年元刻板印象、群体间焦虑和成就动机之间的相互作用。研究结果为旨在增强这些地区农村青少年人际关系和学业信心的教育策略和心理干预提供了重要见解。
