Emotion Regulation in the Classroom: A Network Approach to Model Relations among Emotion Regulation Difficulties, Engagement to Learn, and Relationships with Peers and Teachers

Abstract

Emotion regulation is theorized to shape students’ engagement in learning activities, but the specific pathways via which this occurs remain unclear. This study examined how emotion regulation mechanisms are related to behavioral and emotional engagement as well as relations with peers and teachers. The sample included 136 secondary school students (59,7% girls; Mage = 14.93, SDage = 1.02, range: 13–18 years). Psychometric network models revealed that difficulties in emotional awareness, emotional clarity, and access to emotion regulation strategies were differentially related to behavioral and emotional engagement, establishing an indirect link with teacher and/or peer relations. Nonacceptance of emotional responses, emotional awareness, and impulse control difficulties were uniquely related to teacher and/or peer relations, establishing an indirect link with student engagement. Causal discovery analysis suggested that student emotional engagement is an empirically-plausible direct cause of increased access to emotion regulation strategies. These findings uncover potential pathways through which emotion regulation hampers or facilitates learning at school, providing information useful for the design of school curricula and teacher training programs.