The Effects of Culture and Sex on Students’ Approaches to Learning: Inspiring Insights from David Watkins’ Intellectual Inquiries

Abstract

Watkins (Watkins DA, Ismail M, Contemp Educ Psychol 19:483–488, 1994) argued for the possible link between cross-cultural differences in approaches to learning and in cultural value dimensions such as individualism–collectivism. Based on the data derived from Australia and Indonesia (representing individualist and collectivist societies, respectively), this study unpacked the effects of culture, and also of sex, on approaches to learning by examining the extent to which cross-cultural and sex differences in students’ approaches to learning are mediated by cross-cultural and sex differences in the students’ values. Relative to the Indonesian students, the Australian students were higher in Self-Enhancement, Openness to Change, Hedonism, and also surface learning approach. The Indonesian students were higher than the Australian students in Self-Transcendence and Conservation values and also achieving learning approach. The boys were higher than the girls on Self-Enhancement and Conservation values and also in achieving and deep learning approaches, whereas the girls were higher than the boys in Self-Transcendence values. Regression analysis indicated that students’ values fully mediated the effects of culture and sex on achieving approach and the effect of sex on surface approach. Specifically, while Self-Enhancement and Conservation were positive predictors, Self-Transcendence was a negative predictor of achieving and surface approaches to learning. Hedonism was also a negative predictor of achieving approach. In both instances, values explained significant additional amounts of the variance in approaches to learning. Taken together, the findings attested to the link between individualism and collectivism—measured at the individual level and represented by value orientations—and the adoption of approaches to learning.