The effect of perceived teacher support on mathematics anxiety among rural boarding primary school students: Chain mediation of self‐efficacy and academic procrastination

BACKGROUND: Within China's rural educational landscape, students in residential primary boarding institutions face distinctive psychosocial difficulties, with mathematics-related anxiety demonstrating heightened prevalence in these settings. As primary sources of social interaction within school settings, teachers exert significant influence on students' academic outcomes and psychological well-being through shaping their perceptions of educator support. METHODS: In this study, we recruited 400 fifth-grade students from rural boarding primary schools in Northwestern China and employed validated scales to measure perceived teacher support, self-efficacy, academic procrastination, and mathematics anxiety. A structural equation modelling (SEM) framework was utilized to explore the pathways through which perceived teacher support impacts mathematics anxiety, with particular attention to the independent and chain mediating roles of self-efficacy and academic procrastination. RESULTS: Key findings indicated that: (i) Perceived teacher support exhibited significant negative correlations with academic procrastination and mathematics anxiety, while showing a significant positive correlation with self-efficacy; (ii) Both self-efficacy and academic procrastination independently mediated the relationship between perceived teacher support and mathematics anxiety; (iii) A sequential chain mediation pathway was identified, whereby perceived teacher support enhanced self-efficacy, which subsequently reduced academic procrastination, ultimately alleviating mathematics anxiety. CONCLUSION: These findings emphasize the critical role of perceived teacher support in mitigating mathematics anxiety among rural boarding students through cognitive and behavioural mechanisms, providing empirical foundations for targeted educational interventions.