Causal modeling of teacher-student relationships and peer rejection with school anxiety in elementary school students with the mediating role of emotional  atmosphere at school

Basharpoor, Sajjad; Sadeghzadeh Belil, Nima; Ashiani, Hossein

doi:10.30473/etl.2025.74618.4404

Causal modeling of teacher-student relationships and peer rejection with school anxiety in elementary school students with the mediating role of emotional atmosphere at school

Document Type : Research

Authors

¹ Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.

² PhD student in Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.

10.30473/etl.2025.74618.4404

Abstract

Studying school anxiety leads to improved psychological and physical performance in students. The present study aimed to model the causal relationship between teacher-student relationships and peer rejection with school anxiety in elementary school students, with the mediating role of school emotional atmosphere. The present study was based on the purpose and method of collecting descriptive-correlational data using structural equation modeling. The statistical population included 714 elementary school students in Nir city in 1403-1404. The statistical sample includes 250 people based on the Cochran formula, from fourth, fifth, and sixth-grade students, using cluster random sampling. The instruments used were Zakaria's Teacher-Student Relationship Questionnaire (2020), Dawael's Classroom Anxiety (2020), Scholes' School Climate (2020), and Tahmasian's Peer Exclusion (2005). The findings showed that the direct effect between peer rejection and school anxiety was positive and significant, and the direct path between school climate and school anxiety was negative and significant. Also, the indirect effects of teacher-student relationship and peer rejection through the mediation of school climate with school anxiety were significant. The goodness-of-fit indices of the model were confirmed through the coefficient of determination R2 and the predictive coefficient Q2. The results indicate that the emotional climate in school can play an effective role in creating a favorable relationship between teacher and student and reducing school anxiety. Also, controlling peer rejection can effectively reduce school anxiety in students. It is recommended that appropriate applications be designed in educational centers and that necessary measures be taken.

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