Abstract
• School Resilience is a new theory-driven construct and psychometric instrument. • It is grounded on multisystemic and socio-ecological resilience theories. • School Resilience evaluates collective resilience within the school community. • It includes five protective or promotive factors that enhance wellbeing and resilience. • It is a tool for school prevention, evaluation, research and policy development. Resilience is the ability of an individual or community to adapt to life challenges or adversities while maintaining mental health and well-being. In the multi-systemic resilience paradigm, human development and resilience is embedded in adaptive systems and in their interactions. Although the relationship between school systems and adolescents' mental wellbeing is established, there is no agreement on how to recognize and evaluate the most relevant aspects of the school community, acting at collective level, to boost positive socio-emotional and educational outcomes in children and adolescents. This study presents the development and preliminary validation of a new and theory-driven construct and instrument, the School Resilience Scale for Adults (SRS). School Resilience comprises five interrelated constructs (i.e. Positive relationships, Belonging, Inclusion, Participation, and Mental health awareness) connected theoretically to wellbeing and resilience in children and adolescents. The scale development was theory-driven, and the instrument was tested in four European counties in the frame of the UPRIGHT project (Universal Preventive Resilience Intervention Globally implemented in schools to improve and promote mental Health for Teenagers). Overall, 340 adults participated, 129 teachers and school staff, and 211 relatives of teenagers. The sample was randomly split for two studies: (1) an Exploratory Factor analysis (ESEM), and (2) Confirmatory Factor (CFA) analysis. In the exploratory analysis, Chi-Square difference test and model fit indices point towards the five-factor solution over a three-factor solution. The confirmatory study indicated that a five-factor model (RMSEA = 0.038, CFI = 0.96, TLI = 0.95, SRMR = 0.045) was slightly better than a second-order model (RMSEA = 0.046, CFI = 0.94, TLI = 0.93, SRMR = 0.05). Convergent and discriminant validities were partially demonstrated. Alpha and omega reliability coefficients verified the measurement model of the scale. The results confirmed that a multidimensional construct of School Resilience, defined as a collective resilience factor, embedded in the school staff, family members, and adolescents’ interrelated systems can be characterized and measured. Further studies must determine its role in the promotion of adolescents' resilience, mental wellbeing, educational outcomes, and in their positive adaptation in challenging contexts.
Highlights
In this research we present the development and initial validation of the School Resilience Scale (SRS) for Adults
In this study we describe the theory-driven development of the School Resilience Scale for Adults (SRS), and its pilot testing with fa mily members, school staff, and teachers, in the frame of the UPRIGHT programme
We introduce the development and preliminary va lidation of the School Resilience Scale for Adults - designed for teachers, school professionals and family members in a European context
Summary
In this research we present the development and initial validation of the School Resilience Scale (SRS) for Adults. In the frame of develop mental and educational psychology, a robust body of research has de monstrated that characteristics of the school environment relate to socio-emotional and educational outcomes. The bad quality of relationships, lack of connectedness and parents’ involve ment, perceived insecurity, are risk conditions that precede adolescents’ mental health symptoms or poor school adjustment (Aldridge & McChesney, 2018; Cohen, 2013; O’Malley, Voight, Renshaw, & Eklund, 2015; Suldo, McMahan, Chappel, & Loker, 2012). The char acteristics of the school community that act together as protective or promotive resilience factors of adolescents’ wellbeing and resilience has not been established. The instrument aims at evaluating five in terrelated characteristics of the school environment that may foster youths’ mental wellbeing in the school context
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
