Abstract

Engagement with school is a variable that has generated a growing interest from researchers, practitioners and decision-makers in education in recent decades. A consistent body of studies conducted in different segments of the middle and high school age population in Australia, Canada, East Asia, Europe, USA and other countries supports the protective role that engagement with school plays against the depreciation of school achievements and the risk of early school dropout. Engagement with school also mediates the effects that the educational and social climate in the school has on the students’ performance as well as on their adaptive behaviours. Therefore, investigating the factors that account for individual differences in school engagement among adolescents is an important task of research in the field of educational sciences. This study aimed to investigate the psychosocial determinants of engagement with school among Romanian adolescents. Data were collected from 534 participants attending different high schools. Adolescents completed a set of standardized tools that included seven questionnaires, scales and inventories. In order to obtain the predictive models, linear multiple regression analysis was used. Twelve independent variables were introduced in the regression models where the criteria were the facets of engagement with school. The most consistent predictors of the facets of engagement with school were motivation/self-regulation, general attitude toward school, intrinsic academic motivation, and social support from peers. These data can be added to the empirical evidence on the variables that contribute to the facilitation of a positive attitude toward school as well as to efforts oriented toward solid work among adolescents.

Keywords: Attitudes toward school; engagement with school; intrinsic academic motivation; predictors; Romanian adolescents; social support