Abstract
School alienation is identified as a severe educational problem that hampers students’ academic journey. However, little is known about the concept’s interplay with other socio-emotional phenomena such as well-being. This longitudinal study explored the cross-lagged associations among alienation from learning, teachers, and classmates, and different dimensions of student well-being. To investigate the direction of the relationship between school alienation and student well-being, we used self-report instruments at two measurement points over a 1-year interval. Data were collected from a sample of 508 Swiss secondary school students from grade 7 to grade 8 participating in the “School Alienation in Switzerland and Luxembourg (SASAL)” research project. Controlling for gender differences, the results of latent variable modeling revealed considerable stability effects across time and a causal effect of school alienation on student well-being, whereas the reversed effect of student well-being on subsequent school alienation was nonsignificant. The three domains of school alienation were found to have different associations with six well-being dimensions. Alienation from learning had a negative impact on positive attitudes to school and enjoyment in school. Alienation from teachers negatively predicted positive attitudes to school and positively predicted worries and social problems in school. Alienation from classmates negatively influenced future positive attitudes to school and contributed to the prevalence of social problems in school. The findings provide empirical support for the importance of students’ feelings of alienation in determining students’ sense of well-being and imply that both academic and social aspects of schooling have a significant impact on young people’s stances toward school.
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Acknowledgements
First and foremost, we thank the students and teachers who continue to support our efforts to investigate school alienation within the “School Alienation in Switzerland and Luxembourg (SASAL)” research project. We would also like to thank the school principals for giving us access to their teachers and students. Second, we would like to thank the research assistants who supported us during the data collection and data entry processes.
Funding
The SASAL project was funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (100019L_159979) in Switzerland and the Luxembourg National Research Fund (INTER/SNF/14/9857103) in Luxembourg.
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Julia Morinaj. Department of Research in School and Instruction, Institute of Educational Research, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, 3012 Bern, Switzerland. http://www.edu.unibe.ch/iuliia.morinaj@edu.unibe.ch
Current themes of research:
Development, causes, and consequences of school alienation. Well-being in school. Student classroom participation.
Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:
Morinaj, J., Scharf, J., Grecu, A., Hadjar, A., Hascher, T., and Marcin, K. (2017). School alienation: a construct validation study. Frontline Learning Research, 5(2), 36–59, https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v5i2.298
Morinaj, L., and Hascher, T. (2017). Student well-being and school alienation. In J. Marcionetti, L. Castelli, and A. Crescentini (Eds.), Well-being in education systems (pp. 56–61). Florence, Italy: Hogrefe Editore.
Prof. Dr. Tina Hascher. Department of Research in School and Instruction, Institute of Educational Research, University of Bern. Fabrikstrasse 8, 3012 Bern, Switzerland. http://www.edu.unibe.ch/tina.hascher@edu.unibe.ch
Current themes of research:
Emotions and motivation in school. School learning. School alienation. Well-being and health promotion in school. Teacher education.
Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:
Hascher, T. (2008). Quantitative and qualitative research approaches to assess student well-being. International Journal of Educational Research, 47(2), 84–96.
Hascher, T. (2012). Well-being and learning in school. In N. M. Seel (Ed.), Encyclopedia of the sciences of learning. Heidelberg: Springer.
Hascher, T., and Hagenauer, G. (2010). Alienation from school. International Journal of Educational Research, 49(6), 220–232.
Hagenauer, G., and Hascher, T. (2014). Early adolescents’ enjoyment experienced in learning situations and its relation to student achievement. Journal of Education and Training Studies, 2(2), 20–30.
Brandenberger, C. C., Hagenauer, G., and Hascher, T. Promoting students’ self-determined motivation in maths: results of a 1-year classroom intervention. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 1–23.
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Morinaj, J., Hascher, T. School alienation and student well-being: a cross-lagged longitudinal analysis. Eur J Psychol Educ 34, 273–294 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-018-0381-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-018-0381-1