A REGIONAL CULTURE MODEL OF ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT: COMPARING APPALACHIAN AND NON-APPALACHIAN STUDENTS IN KENTUCKY

Two studies tested a model of academic achievement in which the embodiment of the cultural values of a given region is associated with higher academic performance. Both studies investigated this model using a sample from the Appalachian region of Kentucky, which is regarded as a collectivistic region, and non-Appalacahian regions of Kentucky, which are regarded as individualistic. In Study 1, 187 college students (81 Appalachian, 106 non-Appalachian) completed an online survey of their cultural and academic values, and provided their current grade point average. Results confirmed that cultural values are also promoted at school, and that the Appalachian students who embodied collectivistic cultural and academic values performed better than non-Appalachian students who embodied collectivistic values. In Study 2, 250 middle school and high school students (123 Appalachian, 127 non-Appalachian) completed a paper-and-pencil questionnaire of the same variables as in Study 1. Results confirmed that Appalachian students performed better than non-Appalachian students when they embodied collectivistic academic values, but cultural collectivism was only associated with academic collectivism among Appalachian students. Implications for educational and cultural psychology are discussed.