ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the role of self-concept variables in determining levels of educational performance. The lower the student's self-concept, the more anxious he is likely to be about the possibility of failure. For many social-psychological theorists, the self-concept is the concept in social psychology. The number and variety of approaches to the study of the self-concept and its role in determining human behaviour have been legion. The work of two people stands out as being of particular significance for the study of the role of self-concept variables in an educational context: William James and George Herbert Mead. A pupil's self-concept reflects rather than determines levels of academic attainment. The pupil who does well in school, for whatever reason, comes to form a strong positive self-concept. During different periods of the early life of an individual, development is concentrated upon certain aspects of the eventual total self-concept.
