Who feels good in school? Exploring profiles of scholastic well-being in secondary-school students and the effect on achievement

Abstract

Scholastic well-being is a multidimensional construct whose expression is determined by the cognitive evaluation of experiences, and the phenomena of the affective, physical and social expressions which accompany it. Fostering the well-being of students can be regarded as central aim of education itself; however, it also fulfills important functions, for example for students’ achievement. Based on the assumption that the different dimensions of scholastic well-being have differential effects on the global construct, the study aims at (1) the identification of latent profiles in a sample of N = 1309 fifth-graders in German secondary schools by means of latent profile analysis, (2) the exploration of the composition of these profiles (e.g., girls and boys) and (3) the effects on academic achievement. Seven profiles were identified. Although the majority of the students had moderate to high values of scholastic well-being on all dimensions, the analyses revealed smaller sub-groups characterized by physical complaints (profile: affected), self-doubt (profile: doubtful) or social problems (profile: unaccepted). In the profile, that was characterized by high physical complaints and worries students were comparatively often found in medium educational track and co-educational schools. Boys and students with migration background were also more frequently represented in this profile. Results of the MANOVA showed significant lower mean-values in students’ achievement in profiles with lower scholastic well-being. Hence, the study provides support that students differ significantly in their scholastic well-being profiles and thus, differentiated intervention approaches should be applied in order to foster students’ well-being in an adaptive and effective way.

Keywords

• Scholastic well-being
• Individual differences
• Secondary education
• Academic achievement