The Effect of Life Skills on Students’ Deviant Behaviors with the Mediating Role of Psychological Capital
Keywords:
Life skills, Deviant behaviors, Psychological capital, Adolescents, Structural equation modelingAbstract
Objective: This study aimed to examine the effect of life skills on students’ deviant behaviors, with a particular focus on the mediating role of psychological capital.
Methods and Materials: This descriptive-survey and applied research was conducted on a statistical population comprising all male and female lower- and upper-secondary school students in Rudsar during the 2024–2025 academic year. Using the Krejcie and Morgan table, a sample of 384 students was selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using the Jessor and Jessor Deviant Behavior Questionnaire (1977), the World Health Organization Life Skills Questionnaire (1997), and the Luthans Psychological Capital Questionnaire (2007), all rated on a five-point Likert scale. The reliability of the instruments was confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha, and their content and construct validity were verified through expert review and confirmatory factor analysis. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics and inferential techniques, including the Kolmogorov–Smirnov Test for normality, and structural equation modeling and path analysis using SPSS and SmartPLS software.
Findings: The results showed that life skills had a significant positive effect on psychological capital (β = 0.471, t = 10.556, p < 0.05) and a significant negative direct effect on deviant behaviors (β = -0.195, t = 3.936, p < 0.05). Psychological capital had a significant negative effect on deviant behaviors (β = -0.427, t = 9.355, p < 0.05). Moreover, psychological capital played a significant partial mediating role in the relationship between life skills and deviant behaviors, with an indirect effect of β = -0.201 (t = 6.983, p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Life skills reduce deviant behaviors both directly and indirectly by enhancing psychological capital, indicating the necessity of interventions that simultaneously foster psychosocial competencies and positive psychological resources in adolescents.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Masoumeh Karimi Bibalan (Author); Mohammad Ali Nasimi (Corresponding Author)
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