A longitudinal study on the impact of student-teacher and student-peer relationships on academic performance: the mediating effects of study effort and engagement

Despite the recognised importance of student-teacher and student-peer relationships as well as study effort and engagement in predicting academic performance, the interplay between these predictors has received limited attention in higher education research. Building on Study Demands-Resources theories, this longitudinal study explores the favourable impact of student-teacher and student-peer relationships on academic performance (GPA), mediated by study effort and engagement. In total, 613 undergraduate students (68% female; mean age 20 years) from all 13 Dutch public universities completed two online surveys with a 3.5-month interval. Student-teacher and student-peer relationships, study effort, and study engagement were measured at two time points (t1 and t2), while GPA was only measured at t2. Correlation and path analyses revealed that better relationships with both teachers and peers were longitudinally associated with a higher GPA, mediated by more study effort and engagement. This study contributes to the literature by employing longitudinal data, offering stronger causal evidence for processes underlying academic performance. It underscores the importance of fostering positive relationships with both teachers and peers to improve student performance. The findings suggest that educational institutions should implement strategies to strengthen these relationships, thereby enhancing study effort and engagement, ultimately leading to improved academic performance.尽管师生关系、同伴关系以及学习努力程度与投入度在学业表现预测中的重要性已得到学界广泛认可，但上述各类预测因子间的交互作用在高等教育研究领域仍未受到足够关注。本研究基于学习要求-资源理论（Study Demands-Resources Theory），通过一项纵向研究探讨师生关系与同伴关系对学业表现（平均学分绩点，Grade Point Average，简称GPA）的积极影响，该影响以学习努力程度与学习投入度作为中介变量。本研究共招募来自荷兰全部13所公立大学的613名本科生（其中女性占比68%，平均年龄20岁），完成了间隔3.5个月的两次线上问卷调查。师生关系、同伴关系、学习努力程度与学习投入度在两个时间点（t1与t2）均完成测量，而平均学分绩点仅在t2时点采集。相关分析与路径分析结果显示，良好的师生关系与同伴关系可通过提升学习努力程度与投入度，对更高的平均学分绩点产生纵向预测效应。本研究通过采用纵向数据展开分析，为学业表现背后的作用机制提供了更为严谨的因果证据，充实了相关学术研究文献。本研究强调了培育积极的师生关系与同伴关系对提升学生学业表现的重要性，研究结果表明，教育机构应制定相关策略以强化上述两类关系，进而提升学生的学习努力程度与投入度，最终实现学业表现的改善。