The Effect of Grit on Life Satisfaction for Second-Year High School Students in South Korea: Examining Parent-Child, Teacher-Student, and Friendship Dynamics as Mediators

The purpose of this study is to examine factors that improve life satisfaction for Korean adolescents. As the future generations of the country emerge, South Korea must increase its life satisfaction, a comparably low value compared to other countries, as they are ranked 23rd out of 38 OECD countries (Cho, 2021). Grit, defined as the trait of working diligently for long-term goals, is important for life satisfaction. This study examines the relationship between grit and life satisfaction for second-year high school students in South Korea and the mediating effects of crucial relationships formed by adolescents, such as teacher-student relationships, parent-child relationships, and friendships. The data was collected through the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey (KCYPS), and there were 2,252 second-year high school students who participated in this study. By completing regression analyses on the relationship between grit and life satisfaction, grit and the mediating variables, and the effect of grit and the mediating variables on life satisfaction, as demonstrated by the Baron and Kenny process (Baron and Kenny, 1986), it was found that these variables were all correlated with each other. On the third step of the regression analysis, where the mediators were controlled for, it was found that the mediators had a significant effect on the relationship between grit and life satisfaction, and a partial mediation took place. Out of the mediators, teacher-student relationships had the biggest explanatory impact with an R-squared value of 0.177. From these results, it is evident that there needs to be interventions, potentially with grit involved, to increase relationships between teachers and students, parents and children, and friends.