From Resilience to Wellbeing at School among Romanian Students - Examining the Role of Social-Economic Status

Abstract

Well-being in school is a dimension for overall life satisfaction and quality of life and more important for adolescents who are in a critical period of development and exposed to a variety of risk factors. This paper uses a quantitative approach and aims to analyze the relationship between resilience and well-being at school, focused on the role of socioeconomic status. The results show that students highly motivated and with good learning outcomes come from favored families. These students tend to be more resilient, have a positive orientation towards the future, a better well-being expressed by positive indicators than those students belonging to medium or low-income families. But socio-economically favored students are less satisfied with school than underprivileged students. Achievement motivation is an important predictor of well-being at school, both in middle and high schools. In high school students’ sample, well-being (positive indicators) significantly explains satisfaction with school. In middle school students’ sample, satisfaction with school is explained directly by resilience and, indirectly, through well-being expressed by negative indicators. Age-differentiated interventions that generate a supportive environment must be implemented for all: for students with low socio-economic status because they are less resilient and with lower overall well-being, but also for socio-economically favored students, because they are less satisfied with school.