There has been a lot of research showing the link between self-perception and how competent one believes oneself to be, and academic achievement in subjects such as mathematics. However, this differs across cultures. The 2017 research paper ‘Self-Concept, Self-Efficacy, and Mathematics Achievement: Students in 65 Regions Including the US and Asia’, published in the book ‘What Matters? Research Trends in International Comparative Studies in Mathematics Education (pp.267-288)’ explores this further.
The study examines several education systems across Asia and compared them to the US and 57 other regions. It found that across regions, mathematics interest, self-concept and self-efficacy were related to achievement, but in different ways.
Economics and cultural values have a large part to play. For example, many of the schools in the Asian regions show results consistent with studies that show the overall benefit of equal school systems. This contrasts with unequally funded education systems in the US, where school inequalities create lower mathematics achievement overall.
