Student Engagement in Adolescence: A Scoping Review of Longitudinal Studies 2010–2020
Open accessAbstract
We systematically mapped and analyzed the longitudinal research on adolescent student engagement published during 2010–2020. A total of 104 studies of 104,304 adolescents met inclusion criteria. Studies were mainly conducted in North America (43%) or Europe (34%). Over half studied engagement across one or more years. Most studies (93%) focused on antecedents of engagement rather than outcomes of engagement (38%). Data were commonly collected using self‐report questionnaires (87%) and analyzed using path, growth, and cross‐lagged models. Studies mainly examined engagement in classroom activities, school, or schoolwork; and focused on behavioral engagement (70%), followed by emotional (61%), then cognitive engagement (35%). No studies used a specific theory of engagement development, but instead referred to self‐determination, ecological systems, and stage‐environment fit theories.
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Another problem may be that theory is used merely as window dressing, with vague or shallow connections between theory and research.
“Another problem may be that theory is used merely as a window dressing, with vague or shallow connections between theory and research (Salmela-Aro et al., 2021).”
From Unpacking student engagement in higher education learning analytics: a systematic review (2024) · cites this paper as Salmela-Aro et al., 2021
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Unpacking student engagement in higher education learning analytics: a systematic review
Bergdahl, N., Bond, M., Sjöberg, J., Dougherty, M., & Oxley, E. (2024) · International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education · doi:10.1186/s41239-024-00493-y · Cited by 138 · see citing works
- Authors
- Salmela‐Aro, K., Tang, X., Symonds, J., & Upadyaya, K.
- Affiliations
- University of Helsinki (FI)
- University College Dublin (IE)
- Corresponding author
- Salmela‐Aro, Katariina
- Venue
- Journal of Research on Adolescence
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2021-05-15
- Volume
- 31
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 256-272
- ISSN
- 1050-8392 (ISSN-L)
- 1532-7795
- OpenAlex
- W3160238026
- Cited by
- 112
- References
- 77
- Citations by year
- 2026: 27 · 2025: 31 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 1
- FWCI
- 2.53
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Research on Adolescence (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Työväentutkimus Vuosikirja (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Academy of Finland (308351, 336138)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Safety Research › Youth Development and Social Support
- Social Sciences › Education › Early Childhood Education and Development
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Education, Achievement, and Giftedness
- Keywords
- student engagement, adolescents, behavioral engagement, emotional engagement, cognitive engagement, antecedents of engagement, school engagement, classroom activities, self-determination theory, ecological systems theory, longitudinal development
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adolescent Behavior, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Surveys and Questionnaires, Schools, Students
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