# Uncovering Latent Structures of School Belonging, Emotional Problems, Psychological Symptoms, Meaningful School, and Ostracism: A Latent Profile Analysis

## TL;DR

This study identifies four distinct groups of adolescents based on their school belonging, emotional problems, and social experiences, showing how these factors interact to affect well-being.

## Contribution

The study introduces a person-centered approach to uncover latent profiles of emotional and psychological factors in adolescents.

## Key findings

- Four distinct adolescent profiles were identified based on school belonging and psychological indicators.
- The 'Ostracized with Psychological Risk' group showed the highest levels of emotional problems and social exclusion.
- School belonging is shown to be a key factor in identifying both resilience and vulnerability among students.

## Abstract

Despite increasing interest in school belonging, few studies have applied person‐centered approaches to explore how emotional and psychological factors interact within adolescent populations. This study aimed to identify latent profiles of adolescents based on their experiences of school belonging, emotional problems, psychological symptoms, meaningful school engagement, and ostracism.

A multidimensional construct was developed, incorporating indicators such as ignorance, exclusion, somatization, depression, anxiety, purpose enjoyment, responsible understanding, and prosociality. A convenience sample of 749 adolescents (64.4% female; Mage
= 15.27, SD = 1.25) was recruited. Latent profile analysis was conducted to uncover distinct student profiles.

Four profiles emerged: (1) Distressed but Included—high emotional problems despite near‐average ostracism; (2) Adaptive and Successful—high meaningful school engagement and prosociality with low emotional problems; (3) Balanced and Typical—normative levels across all indicators; and (4) Ostracized with Psychological Risk—the highest levels of ostracism and emotional problems.

School belonging plays a critical role in identifying psychological risk and resilience among adolescents. Latent profile analysis offers a nuanced framework for developing targeted interventions to support students’ emotional and social well‐being.

This study explored how school belonging interacts with emotional and psychological factors among adolescents. Using latent profile analysis with a sample of 749 students, four distinct profiles were identified. The first group, Distressed but Included, showed high emotional problems despite average levels of ostracism. The second, Adaptive and Successful, demonstrated strong school engagement and prosocial behavior with low emotional problems. The third, Balanced and Typical, reflected normative levels across all indicators. Finally, the Ostracized with Psychological Risk group experienced the highest levels of ostracism alongside severe emotional difficulties. Together, these profiles highlight that school belonging is not uniform; it can signal both resilience and vulnerability. Recognizing these differences provides a framework for targeted interventions that strengthen emotional well‐being and social support in schools
.