Relations between perceived teacher support and academic achievement: positive emotions and learning engagement as mediators

This study examines the relationship between perceived teacher support and academic achievement and the mediating role played by positive emotions and learning engagement in a sample of 497 middle school students from three middle schools in eastern China. Participants' ages ranged from 12 to 15 years old, with a mean of 13.19 (SD = 0.688). The results show that: (1) positive emotions mediate the relationship between perceived teacher support and academic achievement; (2) learning engagement also mediates the relationship between perceived teacher support and academic achievement; and (3) positive emotions and learning engagement show a chain-mediating effect in the relationship between perceived teacher support and academic achievement. The findings not only reveal the mediating role of positive emotions and learning engagement between perceived teacher support and academic achievement but are also important for Chinese teachers to help students improve their academic achievement.