Flipped but engaged? A systematic review of student engagement in higher education flipped classrooms incorporating the agentic dimension

The flipped classroom (FC) is widely used to promote active, student-centered learning, yet the mechanisms linking FC to multidimensional engagement remain unclear. This systematic review, guided by PRISMA, synthesized 25 empirical studies (2015–2024) in higher education to examine how engagement is conceptualized, measured, and influenced by FC designs combining pre-class content with in-class active learning. We analyzed four dimensions: behavioral (participation and effort), cognitive (deep processing and strategy use), emotional (interest and satisfaction), and agentic (proactive contributions). Behavioral (88%) and cognitive (76%) engagement were most frequently investigated, with strong positive associations with academic performance (d ≈ 0.73–0.95). Emotional engagement, though less consistently assessed, also showed substantial gains (d ≈ 0.88–0.97), whereas agentic engagement was rarely examined (24%) and displayed minimal improvement. Methodologically, an over-reliance on unvalidated self-report instruments constrained synthesis and generalizability. Overall, FC research robustly captures behavioral and cognitive dimensions but underexplores emotional and agentic engagement. Future work should integrate IT-supported and motivational approaches (e.g. adaptive platforms, gamification) to develop FC ecosystems that foster more holistic, self-regulated engagement.