Date
2-28-2025
Department
School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Education (PhD)
Chair
Matthew Ozolnieks
Keywords
self-efficacy, academic performance, nontraditional students
Disciplines
Curriculum and Instruction | Education
Recommended Citation
Pace, William McKinley III, "Low Levels of Self-Efficacy and Its Perceived Impact on Nontraditional Community College Students' Academic Performance" (2025). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 6523.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/6523
Abstract
The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study explored low self-efficacy and its perceived impact on nontraditional community college student’s academic performance in the United States. The theory guiding this study was Albert Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy (1977), exploring the central research question: How does low self-efficacy’s perceived impact affect nontraditional community college student’s academic performance in the United States? The participants’ lived experiences was gathered through individual interviews, a focus group session, and follow-up personal interviews. The study utilized the interpretive framework of the constructivist worldview, where the researcher used bracketing, an initial data analysis, coding, and themes, finalized by textural and structural descriptions of the essence of the research. The findings of this study reaffirmed how external social factors and student perceptions are the main sources of disruptions regarding low self-efficacy’s impact on academic performance. Furthermore, the findings revealed that the participants turned perceived negatives into positives, steeling their resolve to attend and succeed in community colleges across the United States, assisted by supportive structures at home and in the learning environment. Future research should include mixed-methods studies by combining qualitative and quantitative data to get a more robust meaning of the phenomenon.
