Educational Support, Self-Efficacy, and Psychological Resilience in Private Higher Education: A Mediation Model
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Abstract
This study examines the relationships among educational support, self-efficacy, and psychological resilience among students in private higher education institutions. Specifically, it investigates the direct associations between academic, non-academic, and emotional support and psychological resilience and examines the mediating role of self-efficacy in these relationships. A cross-sectional quantitative research design was adopted. Data were collected on December 15, 2025, using a structured questionnaire administered to 500 full-time students enrolled in ten private higher education institutions in Fujian Province, China, including five private undergraduate colleges and five private higher vocational colleges. A stratified quota sampling strategy combined with convenience sampling was employed. Structural equation modeling and bootstrapping were conducted in SPSS and AMOS to examine the proposed direct and indirect relationships. The structural model showed a satisfactory fit to the data (χ²/df = 1.927, RMSEA = .043, GFI = .912, AGFI = .900, NFI = .928, TLI = .958, and CFI = .963). Academic support, non-academic support, and emotional support were all positively associated with psychological resilience, with standardized path coefficients of .214, .148, and .196, respectively. The three forms of support were also positively associated with self-efficacy, with corresponding coefficients of .326, .243, and .301. Self-efficacy showed the strongest direct association with psychological resilience, with a standardized coefficient of .421. Bootstrap analysis further confirmed significant indirect associations through self-efficacy, with effect values of .137 for academic support, .102 for non-academic support, and .127 for emotional support; all 95% confidence intervals excluded zero. Among the three forms of educational support, academic support showed the strongest total association with psychological resilience, followed by emotional support and non-academic support. Educational support is associated with students’ psychological resilience both directly and indirectly through self-efficacy. The findings indicate that self-efficacy partially mediates the relationships between the three forms of educational support and psychological resilience. Private higher education institutions should therefore develop integrated support systems that combine academic assistance, responsive student services, and emotional care while strengthening students’ confidence in managing academic, practical, and psychological challenges.
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