COVID-19-Related Stressors and Chinese Adolescents' Adjustment: The Moderating Role of Coping and Online Learning Satisfaction

Abstract

The present study aims to examine the main and interactive relations of COVID-19-related stressors, coping, and online learning satisfaction with Chinese adolescents' adjustment during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 850 adolescents from three Chinese secondary schools participated in the survey during the pandemic outbreak, and the data were analyzed by hierarchical linear regression. The results show that COVID-19-related stressors were a vulnerability factor in predicting adjustment. Adolescents' adjustment could be attributed to both individual-level (e.g., coping) and class-level (e.g., a class-level indicator of coping) characteristics. Specifically, problem-based coping and online learning satisfaction can promote adolescents' adjustment directly or serve as a buffer against the negative impact of stressors on adjustment, while emotion-based coping is a vulnerability factor in predicting adjustment directly or as a risk factor in strengthening the relation between stressors and adjustment. Compared with male adolescents and adolescents with high socio-economic status, female and impoverished adolescents reported poorer adjustment during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings enrich our understanding of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents' adjustment and are helpful in improving adolescents' adjustment during the pandemic.