Morningness-eveningness and tertiary academic achievement: an exploration of potential mediators, including sleep factors, mind wandering, and metacognitive beliefs

Correlates of academic achievement can vary by subject and by assessment type, although consistent associations have been found with some variables, including morningness-eveningness. In the present study, 153 second-year undergraduate Business School students at an English-medium university in China completed questionnaire measures of morningness-eveningness, mind wandering, sleep quality, conscientiousness, affect and metacognitive beliefs. Positive correlates of grades in three English for Academic Purposes assessments (coursework, speaking, and exam) included English level, morningness and self-discipline. Negative correlates of achievement included mind wandering, negative affect, rise time and poor sleep quality, and also maladaptive metacognitive beliefs, which were most strongly associated with exam performance. Significant predictors of achievement included English level and aspects of sleep quality. Exploratory mediation analysis investigated potential mediators between morningness-eveningness and achievement. Morningness-eveningness was found to have indirect effects on achievement through sleep-related factors, mind wandering, conscientiousness, negative affect, and metacognitive beliefs. These results contribute to the understanding of academic achievement in different subjects and assessment types, and identify possible indirect effects in the association between morningness-eveningness and academic achievement.