Family Harmony and Perceived Success in Pesantren: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Perceived Adaptive Capacity and School Engagement

Purpose – This study examined associations among perceived family harmony, adaptive capacity, school engagement, and perceived student success in one Indonesian pesantren institution. Design/methods/approach – A cross-sectional survey included 472 lower and upper secondary madrasah students, comprising 273 residential and 199 nonresidential students. Thirty-two locally developed five-category items were analysed using latent structural equation modelling with a weighted least squares mean- and variance-adjusted estimator. Findings – The four-factor measurement model yielded CFI = .965, TLI = .962, RMSEA = .059, and SRMR = .046. Within the specified recursive model, family harmony was associated with adaptive capacity (β = .741), adaptive capacity with engagement (β = .851), and engagement with perceived success (β = .764). The serial indirect association was .482 in standardized units (unstandardized B = 1.839, 95% CI [1.330, 2.347]); the conditional direct association was not statistically distinguishable from zero (β = .026, p = .441). However, heterotrait–monotrait ratios of .935–.974 among the student measures and a similarly fitting higher-order model indicated substantial measurement overlap. Research Implications – The findings describe connected family and student self-evaluations. Measurement overlap and the cross-sectional design preclude claims about distinct sequential mechanisms or causal pathways. Their educational relevance lies in identifying relational support and measurement priorities for longitudinal and multisource research in pesantren.