The Influence of Teacher Support and Parent Support on Learning Engagement of Chinese Middle School Students through Self-Regulation and Self-Efficacy

Engagement in learning is critical for the academic success of adolescents, but the importance of teacher support and parent support in explaining learning engagement in two separate pathways (self-regulation and self-efficacy) is well under-studied in Chinese middle school students. Our study examined the relationships between teacher support, parent support, self-regulation and self-efficacy for learning engagement according to Social Cognitive Theory. Data were based on a cross-sectional survey study. Online questionnaires were originated from 626 middle school students (11–16-year-olds) in Shanxi Province, China, and the hypothetical relationships were examined with structural equation modeling. We found teacher support and parent support significantly influenced self-regulation, self-efficacy and learning engagement. Compared to parent support and learning engagement, there was a greater direct correlation between teacher support and learning engagement. The mediation analysis also showed significant mediation effects of self-regulation and self-efficacy on the relationship between teacher and parent support and students’ learning engagement. In particular, both forms of support were found to have a direct and indirect effect on engagement through students' personal regulatory beliefs and their self-efficacy. These findings provide evidence on the explanatory power of Social Cognitive Theory to explain the effects of environmental and personal factors on learning engagement. The research adds to the literature by disentangling the impacts of teacher and parent support on Chinese middle school students, and by suggesting how support from the school and family can be strengthened to boost student learning engagement. Received: 02 February 2026 / Accepted: 18 April 2026 / Published: May 2026