Family Communication and Subjective Academic Well-being Among Secondary School Students: The Mediating Roles of School Belonging and Meaningful Experiences

Abstract

Family communication has significantly impacted children's well-being and potentially affects their academic outcomes. This study examined the mediating role of school belonging and meaningful school experiences in the relationships between family communication and subjective well-being in students. The study utilised an online survey with a cross-sectional research design involving 427 (Mage = 12.00; SD = 0.85) full-time secondary school students (55.3% girls) in Turkey. Findings revealed that family communication had a direct positive effect on school belonging and meaningful school experiences. School belonging and meaningful school experiences had direct positive effects on students' subjective well-being. Furthermore, the results showed that school belonging and meaningful school experiences mediated the relationship between family communication and students' subjective well-being. This suggests the need for interventions that promote school belonging and meaningful school experiences to support students' well-being and academic success throughout their educational lives.