Abstract:

Confidence in knowledge in solving cognitive problems is considered a multifunctional mental structure which performs cognitive, metacognitive and regulatory functions, ensuring the educational activities of schoolchildren (Golovina, 2007, 2008; Stankov, 2014). The researchers have noted the impact of cultural, national and gender differences that affect confidence in reasoning and knowledge in addressing cognitive challenges. A paradoxical effect has been noted in answering questions on general knowledge: confidence in medium to high difficulty tasks and lack of confidence in easy tasks caused by cross-cultural factors (Lichtenstein et al., 1982; Golovina, Skotnikova and Elliott, 2009). In our previous research on our total sample of the Kangaroo Olympiad problem solving for schoolchildren, there was a lack of confidence in girls’ choice of correct answers in comparison with boys’. In addition, the girls were more hesitant about the wrong answers. The gender differences in confidence obtained can be explained by the differences in girls’ educational attitudes compared to boys’ (Churbanova and Martynovsky, 2019, 2020). A cross-cultural analysis of confidence in answering cognitive problems from the Mathematical Kangaroo competition for schoolgirls of the 4rd and 5th grades was applied. The Russian sample consisted of 13 girls (1) of 10 to11 years old in the city of Moscow. A description of the implementation of the cross-cultural research plan in the American sample of 10 girls (2) of 10 to11 years old in the city of New York to clarify the influence of national traditions on the manifestation of confidence in knowledge and attitudes towards oneself. In order to assess cognitive confidence, testing of girls was conducted on the basis of the solution of math Olympiad problems from the Kangaroo contest with five possible multiple-choice answers. To evaluate the subjects' confidence in the correctness of task, a two-category scale was used: “I'm sure” vs. “I doubt it”, introduced by Golovina, Skotnikova and Elliott (2009). Based on the data we can conclude that there is a statistical significance of the differences between the samples of girls (1) and girls (2) by variable: Difference between confidence level and proportion of correct answers to Kangaroo problems at U= 175; 2*1 sided exact p=0.000 (at <0.05 significance level). Analyzing the result, we can deduce that girls (2) have a higher level of Difference between confidence and proportion of correct answers than girls (1). The value of the level of significance is 0.05 significance level and the variable: Proportion of correct answers at U= 62; 2*1 sided exact p=0.000, as well as the variable: Proportion of correct confident answers at U=70; 2*1 sided exact p=0.001. Analyzing the results, it can be deduced that girls (1) have a higher level of Proportion of correct answers and of Proportion of correct confident answers than girls (2) in solving Kangaroo problems. In addition, we note at the level of significance there are differences between the samples by variable: Proportion of erroneous confident answers at U=182; 2*1 sided exact p=0.000 (at <0.05 significance level). Analyzing the result, it can be concluded that girls (2) have a higher level of Proportion of erroneous confident answers than girls (1). The significant cross-cultural differences in confidence obtained can be explained by the differences in girls' (2) educational and upbringing attitudes compared to girls (1).

Keywords:

Self-confidence, cross-cultural differences, 10-to-11-year-old schoolgirls’, cognitive tasks, creative thinking, International Mathematical Kangaroo Competition.