Direct and interactive effects of perceived teacher-student relationship and grit on student wellbeing among stay-behind early adolescents in urban China

Abstract This cross-sectional study aimed to compare student wellbeing operationalized as learning engagement, satisfaction with peer relations, and school satisfaction between urban stay-behind early adolescents and their non-stay-behind counterparts in Mainland China. Furthermore, we tested whether the expected relationship between perceived teacher-student relationship quality and student wellbeing was moderated by grit. Participants were 143 stay-behind (43.4% girls) and 297 non-stay-behind (52.9% girls) Chinese early adolescents aged 10–13 years, who completed a questionnaire survey. Results indicated that the two groups did not differ in learning engagement and school satisfaction, but stay-behind children scored lower on satisfaction with peer relations than their non-stay-behind counterparts. Moreover, in the context of a negative teacher-student relationship, students with high levels of grit reported more learning engagement and school satisfaction than students with low levels of grit, irrespective of stay-behind status. Implications for theory and educational practice are discussed.