School refusal and its relationship with anxiety, depression and stress
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21814/rpe.32839Keywords:
School refusal, Anxiety, Depression, Stress.Abstract
Attending school favours the student´s formative, social and personal development. However, not all students show a positive attitude towards the obligation to attend school regularly. The aim of the present study was twofold: (1) to examine the mean differences in Depression, Anxiety and Stress scores based on school refusal and (2) to analyse the predictive capability of presenting high scores in Depression, Anxiety and Stress depending on school refusal factors. The sample consisted of 1455 Spanish students (M= 14.85; SD= 1.56). The School Refusal Assessment Scale-Revised was used (I. Avoidance of negative affectivity, II. Escape from aversive social/evaluative situations, III. Pursuit from attention and IV. Pursuit of external tangible reinforcements) and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale. Results indicated that those students with high levels of Depression, Anxiety and Stress, obtained higher scores in school refusal behaviour. Furthermore, school refusal behaviour was a positive and statistically significant predictor of Depression, Anxiety and Stress in most cases. The role of Depression, Anxiety and Stress is discussed as a risk factor for school refusal behaviour.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Miriam Martín Galán, Carolina Gonzálvez Maciá, Ricardo Sanmartín López, María Vicent Juan
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