The Academic Self-Efficacy, Study Habits, and Academic Performance of the BS Psychology Graduates of a

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Scholarum: Journal of Education

www.scholarum.dlsl.edu.ph Vol. 2, No. 1, August 2022

The Academic Self-Efficacy, Study Habits, and Academic Performance of the BS Psychology Graduates of a

Higher Education Institution in Calabarzon

Research Article

Romain Gutierrez-Magboo, Ph. D, RPsy, LPT De La Salle Lipa

romaine.magboo@dlsl.edu.ph ARTICLE INFO

Article History

Date Received: April 7, 2022 Date Accepted: July 8, 2022 Keywords

Non-Cognitive Skills, Cognitive Skills, Academic Self-Efficacy, Study Habits, and Registered Psychometrician (RPM)

ABSTRACT

The study focuses on the importance of academic self-efficacy and study habits as non-cognitive factors affecting students’ academic performance and long-term achievement. Specifically, the study aims to describe and examine how non-cognitive skills play a pivotal role in academic success through the RPM licensure examination results of psychology graduates. The research output will serve as a viable input for classroom management intervention. This quantitative study, anchored on the Self-Efficacy Theory of Bandura (1998), used the Descriptive –Correlational research design.

The results showed that the perceived academic self-efficacy of the respondents is low compared to their study habits, with an average to a very high level. The academic self-efficacy and the study habits of the respondents showed an inverse relationship with a low to moderate association level. Both skills could be independent since they have an efficacy-activated process. The perceived academic self-efficacy and study habits are related to the licensure performance that varies in a given performance per subject. Specifically, the not-so-high-performing scores are associated with perceived academic self-efficacy. In contrast, the high-performing scores are associated with study habits such as selecting main ideas, exam writing, and time management.

INTRODUCTION

Education is undeniably significant to all aspects of human life, especially to Filipino people who give so much credit to the value of education. It has been the objective of every college and university in the Philippines to produce graduates who are equipped with knowledge and competency in addressing is- sues in the field of work both in the local and global arena. Psychology-related professions in the country are increasingly moving to their limitless capacity to provide help in clinical, industrial, or educational settings. To realize this objective, former President Glo- ria Macapagal Arroyo signed into law the Republic Act 10029 (2010), which was called the “Philippine Psychological Act of 2009”. The act noted two impor-

tant professions in the field of Psychology, the Psy- chologist and the Psychometrician. Since its enact- ment, it requires the graduates to be mentally equipped and ready before taking the licensure examination.

Moreover, pursuant to the Republic Act 10029, our country recognizes the significant role of the Psy- chologist in the lives of Filipino people. It considers the varied and diverse field of Psychology for the diverse culture of the Filipinos. Also, it requires trained, excellent, and globally competitive practitioners who can protect their clients’ welfare based on the stand- ards of practice and service set by the commission.

Being committed to upholding competency and

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es four subject areas: Psychology, Theories of Person- ality, Abnormal Psychology, Industrial/Organization- al Psychology, and Psychological Assessment. The three subjects weigh 20% with 100 items. While the Psychological Assessment is a more difficult subject since the licensure is anchored more to this area with a weight of 40% and 150 items. The passing grade is at least 75% for all the subjects, with no grade than 60%

in any given subject.

On the other hand, graduates’ success can be traced to different attributable factors such as different pedagogical approaches in teaching, learning, and other contextual factors. Aside from content knowledge and academic skills, students must develop a set of behaviors, attitudes, skills, and strategies to deal with school challenges (Farrington et. at., 2012). Several studies concentrated on cognitive skills as predictors of academic success, and limited studies focused on noncognitive aspects of learning. The noncognitive factors are the skills such as motivation, study habits, attitudes, effort, self-regulated learning, self-efficacy, self-concept, social behavior, coping, and resilience that were found to be related to academic achievement and performance of children (Rosen, Glennie, Dalton, Lennon & Bozick 2010; Adriano 2021). It broadly represents the “patterns of thought, feelings, and behavior.”

(Borghans, Duckworth, Heckman & Weel 2008) of individuals that may progress through time. Gut- man and Schoon (2013) refer to noncognitive skills as

“a set of attitudes, behaviors, and strategies that un- derpin success in school and at work.” The important role of noncognitive skills in education and human proficiency among their graduates, most schools in

Batangas province offer a BS Psychology Program with three tracks, Clinical, Industrial and Education- al settings. While the academic curriculum follows strictly the CHED (Commission on Higher Educa- tion), CMO No. 34 of 2017 mandated a minimum set of learning outcomes parallel to the vision and mis- sion of the schools.

Student success has always been the goal of any educational institution. According to Kuh et al. (2006), student success is defined as “academic achievement, engagement in educationally purposeful activities, attainment of educational outcomes, and post-college performance.” Academic achievement signifies the students’ performance outcomes and how they accomplish specific goals related to their courses. It defines the possible working career of the graduates and brings positive socio-economic development to the country. Success in education does not end after graduation but serves as a preparatory step to the actual field of work, like successful performance in the Psychometrician board exam.

The licensure examination plays a pivotal role in establishing the school’s performance regarding the quality of education they exhibit. It reflects the Pro- gram Standard and Guidelines the Commission on Higher Education sets and the best features the school manifest.

Moreover, taking the board exam is not an easy and overnight preparation task since it demands a long-term investment in studying and learning. In particular, the RPM Licensure Examination compris-

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gories in the non-cognitive skills in education (Lipnevich, MacCann, & Roberts 2013). Study habits involved:Studying routines which include reading materials, taking down notes, doing assignments on time, recording everyday lessons, creating a goal, studying routines depends on how the students cope and can produce better outcomes (Crede & Kuncel 2008). It is also a pattern of behavior embodied by the students for the interest of their studies that operate as their means to learn (Mendezabal, 2013). An effective study habit also decreases the chance of experiencing anxiety among students and performing effectively in academics (Numan & Hasan, 2017).

On the contrary, other factors such as test anxiety, doubting one’s capability, worrying about poor grades, and inability to focus on academics (Barrows, Dunn, & Lloyd, 2013; Bandura, 1993) may directly impact the academic success of the students which are all outcome of learning behavior.

Thus, the positive contributions of the non-cognitive skills (e.g., academic self-efficacy and study habits) to the lives of learners but with a limited study on academic performance such as in the licensure examination gives the researcher the interest to investigate how these variables play a pivotal role to the students’

academic performance during their board examination.

Furthermore, it will shed light on the importance of non-cognitive skills like self-efficacy and study habits in teaching and learning engagement for teachers and learners.

human lives was overlooked (Garcia 2016).

Several studies delved into the positive contributions of self-efficacy to different academic and nonac- ademic endeavors. At the same time, insufficient literature examined the long-term results of self-efficacy on students’ academic success. In the study of Tepper and Yourstone (2018), self-efficacy is considered a non-cognitive skill that shows an impressive effect on the ACT scores and GPA of the students.

The study does not discount the importance of cognitive functions like learning, memory, and rea- soning to the academic performance and success of the students but discovers further the importance of noncognitive skills of the students, which were found to be an important part of their success.

Similarly, students who have positive study habits will likely achieve favorable academic success, such as the licensure examination performance (Mendez- abal, 2013; Crede & Kuncel, 2008) and academic achievement (Jafari, Aghaei , & Khatony 2019; Tus 2020; Ogunsanya & Buraimo 2020).

Study habits and processes were among the cate-

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5. Is there a significant relationship between the Academic Self-efficacy, Study habits and Licensure Examinations performance of the Psychology graduates?

Theoretical Framework

The study is anchored on the Self-Efficacy Theo- ry of Albert Bandura (1998) to illustrate the concept of non-cognitive skills such as self-efficacy and study habits. According to Bandura (YEAR?), self–efficacy is the people’s beliefs about their capabilities to create designated levels of performance that practice control over the event that influences their lives. It determines how a person feels, thinks, motivates himself/herself, and behaves. Such beliefs produce these diverse ef- fects through four major processes. They include cognitive, motivational, affective, and selection processes. A person with a strong sense of efficacy improves human accomplishment and personal well-being in many ways. People’s belief of efficacy can be devel- oped based on main sources of influence, mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, social persuasion, reduced stress reactions, and altered negative emotions.

Additionally, the efficacy-activated processes include four major psychological processes:

1. Foresight presented by a valued goal regulates cognitive processes, a person with a stronger self-efficacy.

2. In motivational Processes, a person can regulate and sustain his motivation and guide his Statement of the Problem

The Psychometrician examination results (prc.gov.

ph) from 2015 to 2019 are improved by 32% to 39%.

Similarly, the performance of the BS Psychology licensure takers of De La Salle Lipa is improving from 2015 to 2017 and 2019 except from 2018. This study aims to describe and examine how academic performance through the licensure examination results and non-cognitive skills are interrelated (academic self-efficacy and study habits). Specifically, the study aimed to answer the following research questions:

1. What is the performance of BS Psychology graduates in the Rpm Licensure Examination from S.Y. 2015-2019 in terms of the following area?

1.1 Theories of Personality 1.2 Abnormal Psychology 1.3 Industrial Psychology 1.4 Psychological Assessment

2. What is the Academic Self-efficacy and Study Habits of the DLSL Rpm Licensure Takers from S.Y. 2015-2019?

3. Is there a significant difference in the Aca- demic Self-Efficacy, Study Habits and Rpm Licensure Examinations performance of the Psychology graduates from S.Y. 2015-2019 when grouped according to profile?

4. Is there a significant relationship between the Academic Self-efficacy and Study Habits of the respondents?

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low explains how an efficacious individual achieves success towards his goal.

As the theory of Bandura explained the nature and process of self-efficacy, several studies also discussed how self-efficacy works on individuals. When an individual learns the pattern of events in his life, mis- takes, and failure, and with the help of encouragement from different people, he will gain the confidence to face new and difficult goal-oriented tasks. Even if the situation seems problematic, efficacious individuals devote all their resources until they achieve positive outcomes.

Students interpret failure as an opportunity to improve potential and draw hidden skills like changing strategies and approaches in studying lessons that create better results. Moreover, this framework also explains the higher the belief of efficacy, the more the person establishes a goal-oriented task such as different study habits or studying routines, notwithstanding its complexity.

Study habits captured relevant concepts such as self-efficacy, as explained in the theoretical framework. Both constructs have efficacy-activated processes.

Additionally, the concepts of non-cognitive skills or soft skills such as self-efficacy and study habits or their actions with forethought.

3. In affective Processes, a person’s perceived self-efficacy exercises greater control over stressful situations and negative emotions.

4. Selection Processes and efficacy enable the person to create a beneficial environment and special situations to help the person grow (Bandura, 1994; Cherry, 2020).

Based on the four processes of self-efficacy, it is ascertained that a productive person is logical, moti- vated, able to balance situational demands, and has good judgment over his environment.

While study habits captured relevant concepts such as self-efficacy and the efficacy-activated processes, it has cognitive, motivational, intrinsic, and extrinsic reinforcement and particular properties. The idea of non-cognitive skills such as self-efficacy and study habits are psychological and not purely cognitive like in the concept of learning.

Conceptual Framework

This study is designed to investigate the academic success of Psychology graduates of a higher education institution in Batangas through their licensure examination performance. Also, it aims to determine the students’ non-cognitive skills (self-efficacy and study habits) and how this influences the students’

long-term success in the licensure examination. Spe- cifically, this study is governed by using the classical theory of Self-Efficacy (Bandura 1998). Figure 1 be-

Figure 1: Conceptual Framework

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obtained by the respondents in the RPM licensure examination results and from the use of the two sets of questionnaires Academic Self-Efficacy Scale by Ab- dul Gafoor K. P. Muhammed Ashraf (2006) and the Study Habits Survey by sass.queensu.ca (2013). The academic performance self-reports and the two sets of questionnaires were all placed in google forms via google docs. Meanwhile, statistical treatments such as Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient, ANOVA, and Chi-Square test were used to analyze and interpret the data.

Using the total enumeration, Psychology students who graduated from S.Y. 2015-2019 and took the Psychometrician Licensure Examination were the respondents in the study. A four (4) year period of the licensure examination covered the said study. An online survey was used to administer the two sets of questionnaires.

Ethical consideration was observed during the initial process of data gathering. It ensures that the respondents have full knowledge of the research objective, risks, benefits, and purpose of the study thru informed consent. The researcher considered the respondents’ welfare on top of any discomfort arising from their involvement in the research process. The confidentiality of any information gathered from the respondents was also observed and practiced.

This chapter presents the outcome of the data gathering which presents the results and the discussion.

1. The performance of BS Psychology graduates

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www.scholarum.dlsl.edu.ph Vol. 2, No. 1, August 2022 may involve intellect, but more indirectly and less consciously than cognitive skills (Eskafe 2016) and more of personality and motivational habits and attitudes (Borghans, Duckworth, Heckman & Weel 2008). In contrast, cognitive skills involve a more conscious intellectual effort, such as thinking, reason- ing, and remembering.

Operational Framework

Figure 2 explains the profile of the respondents in terms of their gender, year RPm was taken, and whether they are first-time, retakers. While, the academic self-efficacy and study habits of the respondents were described and explained its relationship to their academic performance in the licensure examination.

The respondents were graduates of the BS Psy- chology Program of a higher education institution in Batangas who took the RPM Licensure Examination from School Year 2015-2019. They were 132 graduates who participated in the study. The study examined if academic self-efficacy and study habits were expected to have a significant relationship with the respondents’ performance in their licensure examination.

The study utilized a Descriptive–correlational research design using the quantitative method. The academic performance was measured based on the scores

Figure 2: Operational Framework

MATERIALS AND METHODS

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

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in the Psychological Assessment, most respondents performed satisfactorily with a frequency distribution of 66 (76-80%) in the board examination.

2. The Academic Self-efficacy and Study Habits of the DLSL Rpm Licensure Takers from S.Y.

2015-2019.

Table 2.a shows that most of the respondents experience low in their academic self-efficacy with a frequency distribution of 128 (96.97%) of the total population.

in the Rpm Licensure Examination from S.Y.

2015-2019 in terms of subject areas.

To pass the Psychometrician Licensure Examination, a candidate must obtain a general average of at least 75% with a rating no lower than 60% in a given subject (https://filcil.com/psychometrician-licensure-examination-qualifications-exam-coverage/, 2022). Table 1 shows the overall performance of the respondents from SY 2015-2019 in the RPm Licensure Examina- tion in the area of Theories of Personality, Abnormal Psychology, Industrial Psychology, and Psychological Assessment. In Theories of Personality, most respondents performed well and satisfactorily with a frequency distribution of 54 and 52 (81-85% and 76-80%). In Abnormal Psychology, most respondents performed well and satisfactorily with a frequency distribution of 64 and 47 (81-85% and 76-80%). In Industrial Psy- chology, most respondents performed satisfactorily with a frequency distribution of 67 (76-80%). Lastly,

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Table 1: Performance of the BS Psychology Graduates

Table 2.a: Academic Self-Efficacy of the Respondents

Table 2.b: Study Habits of the Respondents

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Table 2. b in terms of study habits, the respondents have an average level of healthy habits with a frequency distribution of 45 (34.09%). Regarding study habits, attitude, and use of resources, most respondents have a very high level with a frequency distribution of 75 and 66 (56.82% and 50.00%). The majority of the respondents were high in terms of time management, concentration, academics, goal setting, preparation and follow-up, comprehension, selecting the main idea, exam preparation, and exam writing, with a frequency distribution of 40-60% of the total population of 132.

3. Is there a significant difference in the Aca- demic Self-Efficacy, Study Habits and Rpm Licensure Examinations performance of the Psychology graduates from S.Y. 2015-2019 when grouped according to profile?

The results show no significant difference in the academic self-efficacy of the Psychology graduates when grouped according to gender, the year when the RPM licensure was taken, and the frequency of RPM licensure with a p-value > 0.05. Table 3.1 shows only exam preparation and exam writing with a significant difference when the respondents were first-time takers and re-takers with a p-value of < 0.05 (0.006 and 0.009) compared to other study habits. It is shown that re-takers use more exam preparation with a mean score of 4.083 and give importance to exam writing with a mean score of 4.168 compared to first-time takers.

Table 3.2 shows that the respondents’ performance in all subject areas from S.Y. 2015-2019 licensure examination shows significant differences in their performance with a p-value of < 0.05. Specifi- cally, respondents performed higher in the Theories of Personality and Abnormal Psychology in S.Y. 2017- 2018 with a mean rank of 83.89 and 81.61 compared to S.Y. 2015-2017 and 2018-2019. The respondents performed higher in Industrial Psychology in S.Y.

2016-2017 with a mean rank of 82.92. compared to 2015-2016 and 2017-2019. In the Psychological As- sessment, the respondents performed higher in S.Y.

2018-2019 with a mean rank of 82.97 compared to S.Y. 2015-2018.

It can be inferred that among the subject areas, the Psychological Assessment was a consistently difficult exam for the respondents from S.Y. 2015-2018 based

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Table 3.1: Difference in the Study Habits of the Respondents when Grouped According to the Frequency

Table 3.2 Difference of RPM Performance when Grouped According to Profile

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on mean scores, but a remarkable change by the S.Y.

2018-2019 occurred. Lastly, there was no significant difference in whether the respondents were first-time takers or retakers except for Abnormal Psychology subjects who were first-takers with a p-value being <

0.05.

4. The significant relationship between academic self-efficacy and the study habits of the respondents.

Table 4 shows a low to a moderately significant relationship between academic self-efficacy and all study habits with a p-value of < 0.05. Moreover, the R-value presents the inverse relationship between the two variables. The lower the study habits, the higher the use of self-efficacy of the respondents, with a low to moderate correlation.

5. The significant relationship between the Aca- demic Self-efficacy, Study habits and Licen- sure Examinations performance of the Psy- chology graduates?

Table 5.a shows that academic self-efficacy is significantly correlated to the licensure performance of the respondents in the Theories of Personality and Industrial Psychology subjects, specifically to the following level threshold of (passing scores) 60-65%, 66-70%, and 71- 75% with a p-value < 0.005. With Abnormal Psychology, the academic self-efficacy of the respondents was also significantly correlated to their performance, specifically to the following level threshold of (passing score) 66-79% and 71-75%

with a p-value < 0.005. Similarly, the Psychological Assessment subject with the following level threshold of (passing to satisfactory scores) 66-70%, 71-75%, and 76-80% with a p-value < 0.005.

The academic self-efficacy of the respondents is not independent of their performance threshold.

Their scores in the four subjects are related to their perceived academic self-efficacy, specifically for

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Table 4 The Relationship of Self-Efficacy and Study Habits of the Respondents

Table 5.a The Relationship of Academic Self-Efficacy and RPm Licensure Examination Performance

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al Psychology, the study habits were significant to the following level of threshold or performance of (good to satisfactory scores) 76-80% and 81-85% with a p-value < 0.005. Selecting main ideas is the only study habit that shows significance to the performance threshold. Lastly, study habits show a significant relationship to the performance of the respondents in the Psychological Assessment to the following level of threshold or performance (passing, satisfactory, and good scores) 71-75%, 76-80%, and 81-85% with a p-value < 0.005. Exclusively, time management is significant to the performance threshold mentioned.

The study habits are not independent of the respondents’ performance threshold. Their scores in the four subjects are related to their study habits, specifically those respondents who obtained high scores.

Specifically, study habits such as attitude, selecting main ideas, and exam writing are associated with the respondents’ performance in Theories of Personality.

Only attitude is associated with Abnormal Psycholo- gy, selecting main ideas to Industrial Psychology and time management to Psychological Assessment.

In the study, most of the respondents were female from a total population of 132. Most of the respondents who participated were takers of the RPm Licen- sure Examination.

Most respondents performed satisfactorily in In- dustrial Psychology, Psychological Assessment, The- ories of Personality, and Abnormal Psychology. Few respondents performed very well (86%-90%) and had a passing score (60%-65%) in the four subjects. It is interpreted that Theories of Personality and Abnormal those respondents who obtained not-so-high scores.

Table 5. b shows study habits are significantly correlated to the licensure performance of the respondents in Theories of Personality subject specifically to the following level of threshold (passing, satisfactory, and good scores) 71-75%, 76-80%, and 81-85%

with a p-value < 0.005. The study habits, particularly attitude, selecting main ideas, and exam writing, are significant to the performance threshold mentioned.

Compared to Abnormal Psychology performance, the study habits were significantly correlated only to the level of threshold, which is (good score) 81-85% with a p-value < 0.005. Only study habits and attitudes are significant to this performance threshold. In Industri-

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Table 5.b The Relationship of Study Habits and RPm Licensure Examination Performance

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www.scholarum.dlsl.edu.ph Vol. 2, No. 1, August 2022 Psychology have a similar weight of difficulty compared to Industrial Psychology. The three subject areas of the licensure exam have a weighted value of 20 %, and with 100 items each. The Psychological Assessment is a more difficult subject, with a weighted value of 40% and 150 items. Moreover, the allotted time for each of the four subject areas is two hours.

Most of the BS Psychology graduates performed moderately well in their RPm licensure examination on Theories of Personality and Abnormal Psychology, which is 5% higher in their performance compared to Industrial and Psychological Assessment. Since the examinees reported Industrial Psychology and the Psychological Assessment as the difficult subjects in the board examination, each subject area is designed with a different number of lesson outcomes with equivalent weight (Villar 2021).

As for academic self-efficacy, the respondents were reported to have low-level or poor use of academic self-efficacy. They do not trust their ability to fulfill their academic-related tasks. Graduates’ success can be traced to different attributable factors such as different pedagogical approaches in teaching and learning and other contextual factors. While several studies focused on the cognitive aspects of the students as predictors of academic success, little consideration is given to non-cognitive aspects of learning. The non-cognitive factors are grit, self-efficacy, discipline, resilience, etc. Non-cognitive skills were significant to the student’s cognitive skills (Dutta 2017), which few students would not know. Accord- ing to Bandura (1986, 1987), as cited in Fiest & Fiest (2020), self-efficacy is not only about the ability or

to perform certain behavior but also refers to the expectations of the outcomes or the consequences of the behavior. The respondents may be confident with high efficacy expectations but may have low outcome expectations because of environmental and personal factors. Individuals acquire self-efficacy in a given activity from actual performances, vicarious experiences, forms of persuasion, and physiological symp- toms (Schunk 2001). It is considered a combination of internal personal factors and external environmental factors (van der Bijl & Shortridge-Baggett 2016).

Moreover, self-efficacy varies from situation to situation depending on the competencies required for different activities.

It can also be interpreted that the respondents may be missing the important concept of self-efficacy (Bandura 1997; Cherry 2020), mastery experiences, social modeling, social persuasion, physical and emotional states, and imaginal experiences or visualiza- tion (Lopez-Garrido, 2020) as important factors for self-efficacy. Test anxiety, doubting one’s capability, worrying about poor grades, and inability to focus on academics contribute to failing a test. (Barrows, Dunn, & Lloyd, 2013).

Regarding study habits in terms of the following subscales, respondents were reported to have a very high level in using time management, attitude, and use of resources and a high level of concentration, academics, goal setting, preparation and follow-up, comprehension, selecting main ideas, exam preparation, and exam writing as their study habits, except for healthy habits with average scores.

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the passing percentage: from S.Y. 2015-2016 is 44.62% passed; S.Y. 2016-2017 is 47.37% passed, S.Y. 2017-2018 is 58.70% passed; and S.Y. 2018- 2019 is 46.99 % passed (www.prc.gov.ph).

Specifically, the respondents performed higher in the Theories of Personality and Abnormal Psychology in S.Y. 2017-2018 compared to S.Y. 2015-2017 and 2018-2019. The respondents performed higher in In- dustrial Psychology in S.Y. 2016-2017 compared to S.Y. 2015-2016 and S.Y. 2017-2019. In the Psycho- logical Assessment, the respondents performed higher in S.Y. 2018-2019 compared to S.Y. 2015-2018.

Among the subject areas, the Psychological Assess- ment had difficult item questions since S.Y. 2015- 2018 that affected the examinees’ performance, but there is impressive change by the S.Y. 2018-2019. It is unclear concerning the process of formulating and constructing a question for the assigned test maker.

Only the table of specifications of Psychometricians designed by Dr. Imelda V. G. Villar (Board Member, Psychology Professional Regulations Commission) serves as the examinees’ guide for the scope to review and what to expect during the licensure examination.

The results showed no significant difference in the Rpm Licensure examination performance from S.Y.

2015-2019 in terms of being first-timers and re-takers except for the course Abnormal Psychology. The examinees (re-takers) experienced the slightest difficulty performing well in Abnormal Psychology compared to the first-takers. A possible factor could be that the first-timers lacked preparations before taking the board examination, and the re-takers have already been exposed to the test.

Notwithstanding the low level of respondents’ academic self-efficacy, they were reported to have very high to high study habits. According to Credé (2008),

“study habits are external factors that facilitate the study process such as sound study routines that include how often a student engages in studying ses- sions, reviews the material, self-evaluates, rehearses explaining the material, and studies in a conducive environment.” It is the degree to which the student is involved in studying routines (Crede & Kuncel, 2008). Studying routines includes reading materials, taking down notes, doing assignments on time, recording everyday lessons, and creating a goal.

While according to Mendezabal (2013), study habit is a pattern of behavior embodied by the students that operate as their means to learn. The tendency to learn systematically and efficiently when given the opportunity (Rana & Kausar, 2011). On the contrary, In the study of Mendizabal, the board takers showed low performance in the licensure examination, which is attributed to unfavorable study habits and attitudes such as inefficient time management, lack of planning and concentration, poor skills in reading, ineffective test-taking techniques, failure to inform and ask for help from their teachers regarding school difficulties, and negative attitudes toward their teachers’ classroom behavior and teaching strategies.

The licensure examination performance of the respondents shows changes over time. Correspond- ingly, the RPm Technical Committees arranged and provided new sets of item questions per subject area every year. Based on the PRC records, from S.Y.

2015-2019, De La Salle’s performance on the RPm Licensure examination varies. The following showed

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www.scholarum.dlsl.edu.ph Vol. 2, No. 1, August 2022 A Regarding the respondents’ general academic self-efficacy and study habits, the profile showed no significant difference except for the study habits subscales. The exam preparation and writing significantly differed when the respondents were first-time takers and re-takers. Re-takers use more exam preparation compared to first-time takers. Also, the re-takers considered exam writing, such as filling up the scantron sheets and shading important, compared to the first- time takers since they wanted to take the chance again of passing. Exam preparation is crucial; that is why it is significantly correlated to the academic achievement of the students (Nuthana & Yenagi 2009) and could lessen the level of test anxiety (Yusefzadeh, Iranagh,

& Nabilou 2019). Several schools in the Philippines offer review courses as part of their curriculum, while others just let their students enroll in a review center.

CMO 49 series of 2006 recognized the role of review centers in augmenting educational services to upgrade students’ competencies in the licensure examination.

It is noteworthy to discover that the respondents’

academic self-efficacy and study habits have a low to moderate level of relationship. It presents the inverse relationship between the two variables; the lower the study habits, the higher the use of self-efficacy of the respondents. When the respondents lack study habits or techniques while performing difficult tasks, they turn to set their beliefs on how they are going to ex- ecute a plan of action and believe to succeed in the task or engage in the effortful tasks (Bandura, 1977;

Ein-Gar. & Steinhart, 2017). In the study of Svartdal, Sæle, Dahl, Nemtcan, and Gamst-Klaussen, (2020),

ineffective study skills and habits increase the chanc- es that the task will be perceived as difficult. During complicated tasks, good study skills and habits are insufficient to lessen the conflict; self-efficacy should be used to function well in academic task-related activities.

In general, the academic self-efficacy of the respondents has a significant relationship to the licensure examination performance in the four subject areas. The academic self-efficacy of the respondents showed a link in their performance, specifically var- ying in the performance threshold of passing to satisfactory scores but with a low significance relationship for the respondents who obtained low scores. The ex- aminee’s performance level during the examination is related to their perceived self-efficacy. Relevant to the existing related literature, high self-efficacy is related to academic performance or achievement. A student with high self-efficacy is reported to have higher academic aspirations and undertaking than those with low-level self-efficacy. They engage in optimal experience (Bassi, Steca, Delle Fave & Caprara, 2006). Given the different table of specifications and item construction per subject, the reported academic self-efficacy of the students is expected to have a link with their performances in the Theories of Personal- ity and Industrial Psychology compared to Abnormal Psychology and Psychological Assessment.

Academic self-efficacy is not independent of the respondents’ performance threshold. Their scores in the four subjects are related to their perceived academic self-efficacy, specifically for those respondents who obtained not-so-high scores since their overall

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formance; the brain absorbs more information and lessens stress than negative moods resulting in limited ideas and points of view (Lee, 2019).

Selecting main ideas was also found to be significant during the examination. The ability to identify the main ideas in a text is a key reading comprehension skill, according to Hare and Milligan ( as cited in Yusuf, Yusuf, Yusuf & Nadya 2017). The RPm licensure exam is a multiple-choice outcome-based assessment. It comprises knowledge of practical application type of questions, and some question items are com- posed of 2-3 sentences or more. The test takers need to concentrate and read with an understanding of each question and be able to identify the question’s main ideas in a limited time. Each board subject has an allotted time of 3 hours or 180 minutes for each subject, and it is equivalent to 1 minute and 48 seconds to answer each question. For the Psychological Assess- ment, the 150-time allotted is similar to the above- mentioned subject areas, but it is equivalent to 1 minute and 12 seconds to answer each item (Philippine Psychometricians Licensure Exam Reviewer 2014).

Fazal et al. (2012) emphasized that time-management, reading, and note-taking were important skills related to academic achievement. On the other hand, some students have difficulty identifying main ideas because of the following factors: lack of vocabulary knowledge, ignorance of paragraph components, poor reading strategy, lack of interest, grammatical confu- sion, and sentence length (AD, Sutarsyah & Supar- man 2014).

It is apparent that among the respondents’ non-cognitive skills, the study habits showed credible results academic self-efficacy is low.

The study habits of the respondents showed impressive results. Study habits are not independent of the respondents’ performance threshold. Their scores in the four subjects are related to their study habits, specifically those respondents who obtained high scores. Specifically, study habits such as attitude, selecting main ideas, and exam writing are associated with the respondents’ performance in Theories of Per- sonality. Only attitude is associated with Abnormal Psychology, selecting main ideas to Industrial Psy- chology and time management to Psychological As- sessment.

Study habits involve routines that depend on how the students cope and can produce better outcomes (Crede & Kuncel). It is a pattern of behavior the students use based on their purpose and operate as their means to learn (Mendezabal). It is evident in the results that the examinees applied study habits in their preparation for the examination. Still, what routines become essential to them during the said activity varied. Students’ anxiety decreases, and they perform effectively in academics when study habit is used effectively (Numan & Hasan, 2017).

Having the right attitude during the review, pre- board, and exam process will help the respondents overcome stress and anxiety (https://www.how-to- study.com/study-skillsarticles/test-anxiety.asp, 2021).

In Jade Ballado-Tan’s (2014) study, attitude towards examination was significant to student performance during the exam. Positive attitude and mood prove important when taking a big exam and affect test per-

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Scholarum: Journal of Education

www.scholarum.dlsl.edu.ph Vol. 2, No. 1, August 2022 in the academic performance of the respondents compared to academic self-efficacy. Apart from average to very high study habits, it showed that study habits are not independent of their performance in the board examination, especially when they get high scores in the subject.

In line with the result of the data analysis and discussion, the researcher draws the following conclu- sions:

Most of the BS Psychology graduates performed moderately well in the RPm licensure examination on Theories of Personality and Abnormal Psychology, which is 5% higher in their performance compared to Industrial and Psychological Assessment. The examinees reported Industrial Psychology and the Psy- chological Assessment as the difficult subjects in the board examination. The performance of the graduates in the licensure examination varies if they are re-takers only for the abnormal psychology subject. Study habits such as exam preparation and writing vary if the respondents were first-time takers and re-takers.

The perceived academic self-efficacy of most graduates was low compared to their reported study habits with average (healthy habits), high (concentration, academics, goal setting, preparation and follow-up, comprehension, selecting main ideas, exam preparation, and exam writing), and very high level ( time management, attitude, and use of the resources).

Academic self-efficacy and study habits have a low to moderate level of relationship. The lower the study habits, the higher the use of academic self-effi-

cacy of the examinees in their academic engagement.

Moreover, the perceived academic self-efficacy and study habits are related to the licensure performance that varies in a given performance per subject. Spe- cifically, the not-so-high-performance scores are associated with perceived academic self-efficacy since most graduates have reported low academic self-efficacy. The high-performance scores are associated with study habits, specifically attitude, selecting main ideas, exam writing, and time management, consid- ering that most of the graduates reported study habits were high to very high.

With the given results, it is good to mention that both academic self-efficacy and study habits were significant to academic performance and achievement.

Still, they could be independent since both have an efficacy-activated process.

On the other hand, a student may have poor study habits but could have high academic self-efficacy, believing and having the attitude that he is capable of achieving success in a given academic task. However, the importance of study habits cannot be ignored; it is evident that the high scores in the licensure performance of the examinees are related to their study habits according to the type and the nature of the given test.

Based on the results of the study the following are the recommendations.

1. Enhance Non-Cognitive Skills through classroom intervention. In all subject areas, the teachers should enhance and practice students CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

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Scholarum: Journal of Education

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2. To improve academic self-efficacy in the classroom and course-related activities, integrate into the classroom behavior and engagement how to be a task and goal-oriented, critical thinker, and resilient person. Capacitate the students to regulate and sustain their motivation. Practice the students to exercise greater control over stressful situations and negative thought patterns. And to enable the students to have the freedom to create an environment that will support their success (Artino 2012).

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