The impact of peer relationships and employment pressure on the learning wellbeing of university students in the post-2000s generation

TL;DR

This study explores how peer relationships and job pressure affect university students' learning wellbeing in China.

Contribution

It reveals complex, multidimensional relationships between interpersonal distress, employment pressure, and learning wellbeing dimensions.

Findings

Interpersonal distress negatively affects all dimensions of learning wellbeing.

Moderate employment pressure is positively linked to cognitive and emotional wellbeing.

Interpersonal distress moderates the impact of employment pressure on learning wellbeing patterns.

Abstract

Learning wellbeing has become an important indicator of university students’ academic experience and psychological adjustment. Guided by a correlational and non-causal analytical framework, this study examined how interpersonal distress (as an indicator of low peer relationship quality) and employment pressure are related to the learning wellbeing of post-2000s university students in China. A total of 600 undergraduates from four universities participated in the survey. Standardized questionnaires and quantitative analysis methods were used to assess interpersonal distress, employment pressure, and four dimensions of learning wellbeing (cognitive, emotional, quality-of-life, and growth wellbeing). Quantitative analysis methods, including, descriptive statistics, Pearson correlations, and multiple regression analyses were applied to examine the relationships and interaction effects between these variables. The results showed that interpersonal distress was significantly and negatively associated with all dimensions of learning wellbeing. Employment pressure demonstrated differentiated associations: moderate pressure was positively related to cognitive and emotional wellbeing, while no significant direct association was found with quality-of-life or growth wellbeing. Interpersonal distress also played a modest moderating role: higher interpersonal distress was associated with less favorable patterns of learning wellbeing under employment pressure, whereas lower interpersonal distress was associated with relatively more favorable patterns. However, the interaction effects explained only a small proportion of variance, and the findings should therefore be interpreted with caution. Overall, the study suggests that interpersonal distress and employment pressure are connected with university students’ learning wellbeing in complex and multidimensional ways. The findings align with and extend existing literature by highlighting the relational context in which students experience academic and employment-related demands. Implications for campus mental health services and career counseling, as well as directions for future longitudinal research, are discussed.

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