Enhancing adolescent adjustment in schools: the role of emotion regulation training and parental attachment

Abstract

Context and relevance. Self-adjustment of students is a crucial aspect of the success of the educational process. Many problems persist, including low academic engagement, deviant behavior, and difficulties in social interaction. Objective. To examine the effectiveness of emotional regulation training in improving student self-adjustment in schools, this study considers parental attachment as a moderating variable. Hypothesis. Emotion regulation training is effective in improving the adjustment of middle school students at school. Methods and materials. The study employed an experimental pretest-posttest control group design with a three‑way factorial between‑subjects ANOVA. It involved 62 junior high school students, who were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Each group was further divided into two subgroups based on parental attachment: secure and insecure. Data were collected using the School Adjustment Scale, the Adult Parental Attachment Scale, and the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale. The Emotion Regulation Training Module was also used as an intervention instrument. Results. The results show that emotional regulation training significantly improves students’ self-regulation and school adjustment. Additionally, secure attachment to parents strengthens the positive impact of training on students’ self-regulation. Conclusions. Emotional regulation training has proven to be an effective emotion-based intervention that can be integrated into the school curriculum as local content. This study recommends strengthening the role of teachers as models of emotional regulation and improving the quality of emotional relationships between parents and children to support the success of student adjustment in school.