Presenting a Structural Model of Factors Affecting Female Students' Adaptation to the School Environment and Comparing It with the Male Model

Abstract

The present study aimed, on one hand, to propose a model of factors influencing students' adaptation to the school environment and, on the other hand, to compare this model between male and female students. The research method was correlational, and the statistical population consisted of all second-year high school students in Darab city. The research sample was selected using the Morgan Sampling Table and the proportional stratified sampling method. To measure students' adaptation to the school environment, Baker and Siryk’s (1989) School Adaptation Questionnaire, Miller and Brown’s (1999) Self-Regulation Strategies Scale, and Midgley et al.’s (1998) Goal Orientation Questionnaire were used. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and independent samples t-test. The results show that the direct effect of goal orientation (β = 0.372) and self-regulation strategies (β = 0.323) on female students' adaptation to the school environment was significant at the level of p = 0.01, and the direct effect of goal orientation on self-regulation strategies (β = 0.547) was statistically significant. The results of the independent samples t-test showed a significant difference between students' gender and the overall score of the School Adaptation Questionnaire (T = 2.203). Additionally, the mean adaptation score of female students to the school environment (M = 107.23) was significantly higher than that of male students (M = 96.14). Goal orientation and self-regulation strategies had a positive and significant impact on students' adaptation to the school environment. In the social adaptation component, male students demonstrated better social and interpersonal skills compared to female students, whereas female students exhibited better academic adaptation than males. Furthermore, in self-regulation strategy components such as acceptance and implementation, male students performed better than females, but in the planning component, females outperformed males.