Relationship among School Atmosphere, Self-esteem and Loneliness of Left-behind Children

Abstract

The school atmosphere questionnaire, self-esteem questionnaire and loneliness questionnaire were used to investigate 547 left-behind children to explore the relation among school atmosphere, self-esteem and loneliness of left-behind children. The results showed that the perceived teacher support and perceived classmate support is significantly negatively correlated with loneliness of left-behind children (r1 = -0.25; r2 = -0.24, ps < 0.001). Moreover, self-esteem plays a part in mediating the relation between the perceived teacher support and perceived classmate support and loneliness of left-behind children. In other words, the two variables not only have a direct effect on the loneliness of left-behind children, but also can reduce their loneliness by improving their self-esteem.