Writing attitudes, defined as self-assessments of liking or disliking writing (Ekholm et al., 2017), are important motivational factors that can impact writing development. A review of the literature on writing attitudes found that attitudes positively predicted writing achievement and that writing interventions can increase writing attitudes (Ekholm et al., 2017). Existing empirical literature has primarily focused on examining writing attitudes before and after implementing writing interventions, which vary in empirical support (Boscolo et al., 2012; ; Knudson, 1991b, 1992; Seban, 2012). However, no studies have dynamically assessed writing attitudes throughout the course of an evidence-based writing intervention with emerging writers. The present study examined the writing attitudes and writing proficiency of fourth-grade students (n = 45) over a six-week performance feedback writing intervention. Results indicated that students’ writing attitudes were moderate and remained stable throughout the intervention, and gains in writing proficiency were not significantly associated with writing attitudes. These findings suggest that students’ attitudes towards writing may not be as malleable as previously thought and have implications for future research and practice in improving the writing attitudes of emerging writers.
