Student characteristics across cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains show a medium-level overall relationship with K-12 academic achievement (r = 0.26)¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · quant-synthesis r3 · q3 · i2 medium
Currency · newest study 2026 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i2 Across 71 effect sizes from 29 first-order meta-analyses, student characteristics correlate moderately with academic achievement (mean r = 0.26). → Erdem Cahit 2026

Evidence¶

Erdem Cahit 2026¶

Erdem Cahit, Kaya Metin, Polat Mustafa, Eğmir Eray. (2026). Thinking and feeling matter: a second-order meta-analysis of student characteristics across developmental domains and their effect on academic outcomes. BMC Psychology, 14, 919. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-05035-x

q3 · i2 · quant-synthesis · r3

Second-order meta-analysis synthesizing 29 first-order meta-analyses meeting R-AMSTAR quality criteria, yielding 71 effect sizes transformed to r and analyzed with a random-effects model in CMA 2.0. The mean effect size was "r = 0.26 (LL = 0.238 UL = 0.288)", interpreted as a medium-level relationship.

"The data set included 71 effect sizes. The effect sizes ranged between r = 0.46 and r = 0.01. The mean effect size was r = 0.26 (LL = 0.238 UL = 0.288)."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Cognitive abilities show the strongest correlation with academic achievement among the student-characteristic domains examined — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• The psychomotor-abilities association with academic achievement (r = 0.37) is preliminary, resting on a single first-order meta-analysis — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• The relationship between student characteristics and academic achievement is strongest at kindergarten level and declines through elementary and secondary school — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• The relationship between student characteristics and achievement does not differ significantly by academic area, cultural context, publication bias status, research quality, report type, or publication year — a narrower finding that bears on this claim