Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1
Assistant professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Iran
2
Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili , Ardabil, Iran
3
Department of Educational Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Iran
4
M.A. in Psychology, Tehran Municipality, Tehran, Iran
5
M.A. in Psychology, Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rasht, Iran
10.22098/jld.2025.18661.2293
Abstract
Objective: Students with Specific Learning Disabilities experience high levels of academic anxiety due to their academic challenges, which often leads to decreased academic engagement. The present study aimed to examine a moderated mediation model in which academic self-efficacy and parental support were tested in the relationship between academic anxiety and academic engagement.
Methods: This study employed a descriptive-correlational cross-sectional design. The statistical population comprised all primary school students in Ardabil city with a formal SLD diagnosis during the second semester of the 2025-2026 academic year. Using purposive convenience sampling, 150 students (grades 4-6) were selected. Data were collected using the Academic Engagement Scale (AES), the Academic Anxiety Scale (AAS), the Academic Self-Efficacy Scale (ASES), and the Perceived Social Support-Family Scale (PSS-Fa).
Results: The analysis revealed a significant and direct negative relationship between academic anxiety and academic engagement (p<.001). Furthermore, the indirect pathway through academic self-efficacy was significant (p<.005). More importantly, the Index of Moderated Mediation was significant, showing that the indirect pathway was moderated by parental support. Specifically, the negative indirect effect of academic anxiety on academic engagement (via self-efficacy) was strong and significant at low levels of parental support, but this effect was buffered and became non-significant at high levels of parental support.
Conclusion: Parental support acts as a powerful protective factor, capable of buffering the detrimental effects of anxiety on self-belief and, consequently, on academic participation by creating a supportive shield.
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