Exploring Emotion Regulation: The Role of Schools in Shaping Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Skills Among Diverse Youth Populations

Background and Purpose: Social, emotional, and behavioral (SEB) skills, specifically in the domain of emotion regulation, are foundational for positive youth development, yet these attributes receive less attention in educational research compared to academic outcomes. Drawing from Astor’s heuristic ecological model depicting school safety and opportunity structures, the current study examines the association between school contexts and the development of emotion regulation SEB skills among 10- and 15-year-old public school students in one, large U.S. city. Additionally, this research investigates the unique experiences of minoritized student groups – including those from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds and students from immigrant families – within their school contexts. Using the U.S.-based subsample from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) international Survey on Social and Emotional Skills (SSES), this study examined the following research questions: 1) To what extent do student perceptions of school climate and safety predict their emotion regulation SEB skills?, 2) Do demographic differences exist in student perceptions of school climate and safety?, and 3) Does the effect of school climate and safety on SEB skills differ by key student demographics such as age, gender, or immigrant status?

Methods: Using direct effects structural equation modeling (SEM) and multiple group SEM, this study analyzed data from the U.S.-based subsample of the SSES (student N=6,434; school N=119). These data included self-reported SEB skills and various contextual factors from students. The analysis focused on whether school contexts (school climate and safety) predicted three emotion regulation subscales – emotional control, optimism, and stress resistance/resilience withing and across student subgroups.

Results: Results revealed that school contexts (i.e., school climate) significantly predicted student emotion regulation skills across all three domains, accounting for 23% of the variance in emotional control, 40% of the variance in optimism, and 39% of the variance in stress resistance. Individual student demographic factors, such as age, gender, and immigrant background contributed to differences in emotion regulation SEB skills. Across all student groups, school belongingness and positive relationships with teachers were consistent predictors of better emotion regulation skills.

Conclusions and Implications: The findings from this study highlight the critical role of school contexts, particularly school climate, in shaping emotion regulation SEB skills among youth. Interventions to enhance SEB skills should focus on fostering all students’ sense of belonging in school. Tailored strategies at the institutional or school-level are necessary to address deficient opportunity structures, particularly those experienced by minoritized student groups and those with low levels of school belonging. This research underscores the importance of inclusive and supportive educational environments in promoting beneficial SEB outcomes in youth.