School Engagement in Times of Confinement: A Stress Process Approach

The first COVID-19 confinement induced dramatic changes in the lives of adolescents, but little is known about the processes that affected youth engagement with school during this period. This study addressed this issue by uncovering a stress process model of school engagement during confinement, based on confinement stressors and adolescent resources. Data were collected from 406 French adolescents and their parents (grades 6 through 9, 47% girls). The results showed that multiple stressors (parental anxiety, lack of Internet or computer, low relevant and unclear school activities) and resources (academic self-concept, parental support and teacher support) affected engagement, and that some effects intertwined (e.g., effects of low relevant and unclear school activities were moderated and mediated by academic self-concept). Implications are drawn on ways to tackle stress processes and help adolescents stay engaged with schoolwork during confinement.