Dual-Pathway Mediation of Self-Regulation: How Socio-Contextual Ecosystems Foster Student Well-Being in Mathematics

This study investigates the relationships among students’ socio-contextual ecosystems including interactions with parents, teachers, and society (i.e., participation in cocurricular activities), their dual-pathway self-regulatory strategies—emotional self-regulation (SR) and motivated learning strategies (MLS)—and their mathematics achievement emotions. Drawing on data from a sample of 1269 Chinese secondary school students, the findings indicate that all dimensions of parent–teacher–society interactions significantly predict students’ mathematics achievement emotions (i.e., enjoyment and anger) through the mediation of both emotional self-regulation strategies (i.e., positive reappraisal and rumination) and motivated learning strategies. Results in this study revealed a clear differential mediation pattern: teacher–student interactions exerted significant direct effects on students’ emotions alongside indirect effects through their self-regulation (partial mediation). In contrast, the impact of social cocurricular activities was fully mediated by students’ self-regulatory processes. Notably, parent–child interactions directly influenced enjoyment but only affected anger indirectly through self-regulation. These results unpack the “black box” of how socio-contextual ecosystems shape student well-being, highlighting the critical and distinct roles of dual self-regulation pathways. The study provides a novel theoretical framework for understanding achievement emotions and offers actionable insights for building supportive, sustainable learning environments that foster both emotional and academic resilience.