Academic engagement: The potential role of social–emotional competencies: A study conducted among Norwegian lower secondary school students
Doctoral thesis

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2024-11-27Metadata
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- PhD Theses (HF-LMS) [13]
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Academic engagement: The potential role of social–emotional competencies: A study conducted among Norwegian lower secondary school students by Eli Vibeke Eriksen, Stavanger : University of Stavanger, 2024 (PhD thesis UiS, no. 817)Abstract
Background: Academic engagement is widely considered to be a key determinant of student success and overall healthy development. As such, it is particularly alarming that recent studies have raised concerns about declining academic engagement levels, especially among adolescents. One potential avenue that might be considered relevant is the role of social–emotional competencies. Despite its importance, however, research examining academic engagement as a primary outcome in the context of social–emotional competence remains scarce. Further investigation is required to enhance our understanding of how social–emotional competencies might support adolescent students and identify which specific social–emotional competencies are most salient. Furthermore, an exploration of students’ perspectives and experiences on learning social–emotional competencies are warranted.
The focus of this thesis, therefore, is to investigate the potential role of social–emotional competencies in lower secondary school students’ academic engagement. A theoretical framework is proposed, grounded in self-determination theory and control-value theory, to examine how these social–emotional competencies might support students’ academic engagement. Drawing on these theoretical perspectives and prior research, it was deemed relevant to include three intermediate variables to investigate this potential relationship: emotional well-being, emotional support from teachers, and collaborative peer relations.
Aims: This thesis’ overall purpose was twofold: (a) to investigate how social–emotional competencies relate to academic engagement using quantitative research methods and (b) to explore how students perceive learning about social–emotional competencies in relation to their academic engagement using a qualitative research method. This multimethod research project comprised three distinct yet interrelated studies, each with a specific sub-question feeding back into the main research question: “To what extent are social–emotional competencies related to academic engagement among lower secondary school students, and how do students perceive learning about these competencies in relation to their academic engagement?”.
(1) The first study aimed to investigate how three specific social– emotional competencies (i.e., emotional regulation, relationship skills, and problem-solving) were related to academic engagement and to what extent emotional well-being functioned as an intermediate variable. (2) The second study examined how individual changes in two specific social–emotional competencies (i.e., relationship skills and social awareness) were related to individual changes in academic engagement during the first year of lower secondary school and the extent to which individual changes in emotional support from teachers and collaborative peer relationships functioned as intermediate variables. (3) The third study explored how students perceived learning about social–emotional competencies (i.e., emotional regulation, relationship skills, problemsolving, growth mindset, and mindfulness) in relation to their academic engagement. Academic engagement encompassed emotional and behavioral dimensions across all three studies.
Methods: The quantitative phase (Studies 1 and 2) involved data collected during the piloting of the social–emotional learning intervention ROBUST. These data were collected by other members of the research team during the 2018–19 school year in Bærum municipality, Norway. Study 1 used data from the second time point and implemented a cross-sectional design (N = 1085), whereas Study 2 utilized data from both time points and applied a latent change score modeling approach (N = 1205). Subsequently, the qualitative phase (Study 3) involved six focus group interviews with another sample of students (N = 56). The data were collected during the 2021-22 school year within three geographic areas in Rogaland, Norway. These focus group interviews were explored using thematic analysis.
Results: The findings from Study 1 indicate that problem-solving appeared to be directly related to both dimensions of academic engagement (i.e., emotional and behavioral). Indirect links between all three social–emotional competencies and emotional well-being with academic engagement were observed, reflecting that these social–emotional competencies could be instrumental in supporting students’ academic engagement via emotional well-being, particularly the social–emotional competency of emotional regulation. Study 2’s findings indicate that individual changes in social awareness relate directly to individual changes in the behavioral dimension of academic engagement during the first year of lower secondary school. Indirect links between individual changes in the two social–emotional competencies were observed with individual changes in emotional support from teachers, suggesting that these competencies could be instrumental in supporting individual changes in students’ academic engagement via emotional support from teachers. No indirect links were identified between individual changes in the social–emotional competencies and academic engagement via collaborative peer relations. Furthermore, the findings indicate that, on average, all variables included in Study 2 decline during the first year of lower secondary school, with emotional engagement exhibiting the sharpest decline. The variance in terms of individual changes was significant. The findings from Study 3 suggest that students perceived learning about problem-solving and growth mindset as particularly supportive of their academic engagement. The social–emotional competency of relationship skills was perceived as supportive of positive peer collaboration and a sense of belonging, whereas emotional regulation and mindfulness was considered beneficial in managing negative emotions and promoting more positive emotions in the learning setting. In addition, some students experienced difficulties in practicing and learning some of the social–emotional competencies. These included growth mindset, relationship skills, and mindfulness.
Conclusion: The findings from this thesis highlight the potential contribution of promoting social–emotional competencies in supporting students’ academic engagement at the lower secondary school level. Of the social–emotional competencies that were included in this research, problem-solving (Studies 1 and 3), social awareness (Study 2), and growth mindset (Study 3) appeared to be particularly valuable. Specifically, the first study highlighted the role of problem-solving, particularly when it comes to planning schoolwork, in supporting students’ emotional and behavioral engagement. The importance of emotional regulation, relationship skills, and problem-solving in supporting academic engagement via emotional well-being was also highlighted. This finding emphasizes the relevance of considering emotional well-being into social–emotional competence initiatives designed to support adolescent students’ academic engagement.
The second study emphasized the relevance of social awareness, showing that individual changes in this social–emotional competency appeared to support individual changes in the behavioral dimension of academic engagement. Individual changes in social awareness and relationship skills also appeared to help mitigate the decline in perceived emotional support from teachers, contributing to positive changes in students’ academic engagement during their first year of lower secondary school. This finding highlights the role of emotional support from teachers, suggesting it may be considered an integral component of social–emotional competence initiatives aimed at supporting students’ academic engagement in lower secondary school.
The third study reinforced the potential role of promoting problemsolving (Study 1) and highlighted the significance of a growth mindset in supporting students’ academic engagement. Although the findings regarding the social–emotional competencies of relationship skills, emotional regulation, and mindfulness were somewhat less pronounced compared to those related to problem-solving and growth mindset, the study suggests that these competencies may still support factors that could be considered important for academic engagement; as reflected in Studies 1 and 2 and supported by the theoretical perspectives applied in this thesis, promoting positive emotions and establishing positive classroom relationships may be beneficial for students’ academic engagement. Furthermore, Study 3 also recognized some difficulties in learning certain social–emotional competencies, particularly growth mindset, relationship skills, and mindfulness. This finding underscore factors that could shape the effectiveness of such initiatives when implemented with this specific age group. Consequently, this finding may offer valuable insights for educators and researchers aiming to support students’ academic engagement in lower secondary school.
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Eriksen, E. V., & Bru, E. (2022). Investigating the links of Social–Emotional Competencies: Emotional Wellbeing and Academic Engagement among Adolescents. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 67(3), 391-405. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2021.2021441Eriksen, E. V., Vestad, L., Bru, E., & Caravita, S. C. (2023). Social competencies, classroom relationships, and academic engagement: A latent change score modeling approach among lower secondary school students. Social Psychology of Education, 27, 425-459. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-023-09841-8
Eriksen, E. V., Tharaldsen, K. B., & Bru, E. (2024). Social–emotional learning and academic engagement: A qualitative study among lower secondary school students. Submitted to International Journal of School & Educational Psychology. Not available in UiS Brage.