Evergreen B
Fluid Intelligence as a Predictor of Academic Performance in the Initial Courses of University Mathematics (306537)
Montero Rojas Eiliana, University of Costa Rica*Arguedas Méndez Silvia, University of Costa Rica
Keywords: Fluid intelligence,academic performance,initial courses of university mathematics
Fluid intelligence is indicated as a potential predictor of academic performance in mathematics, particularly in the teaching-learning processes of the initial mathematics courses faced by first-year university students. In this study, the magnitude of the causal relationship between fluid intelligence and academic performance is explained. Through an observational cross-sectional study with the survey method and structural equations models, inferences were generated about the causal relationship between cognitive variables (fluid intelligence, crystallized intelligence), non-cognitive variables (responsibility, anxiety, self-efficacy, impulsivity) and academic performance. The hypothesis of a positive relationship and of practical importance between fluid intelligence and performance in initial courses of university mathematics, mediated by crystallized intelligence, was confirmed. In conclusion, first-year university students with high fluid intelligence, but with poor mathematical knowledge, have the opportunity to successfully face the first university mathematics courses, as long as more precise action plans are generated for this type of population.