High achievers’ attitudes, flow experience, programming intentions and perceived teacher support in primary school: A moderated mediation analysis

To improve programming performance for a larger student population, this study shed light on the commonalities of high achievers in programming classes. To the best of our knowledge, few studies have investigated high achievers in primary school programming classes. This study adapted the hedonic-motivation system adoption model to identify high achievers' perceived attitudes, flow experience, programming intentions and perceived teacher support. With a response rate of 72%, 54 primary schools participated in the study. A survey was conducted and four hundred and thirty-two students were included in the moderated mediation analysis. The results showed that high achievers' attitudes towards programming positively related to their flow experience, which further positively associated with their programming intentions. In addition, teacher support moderated the relationship between high achievers’ attitudes and their flow experience; such that when teacher support increased, the flow experience was weaker for those with comparatively higher positive attitudes. The practical implications of the findings and future research directions are discussed. • We adapted the HMSAM framework to develop a moderated mediation model. • We used a sample of 432 high achievers in primary school programming classes. • Attitudes indirectly related to programming intentions through flow experience. • Teacher support moderated the relationship between attitudes and flow experience. • No effect of gender, SES, or previous experience was found on students' perceptions.