The Effectiveness of Positive Counseling-Based Self-Regulation Intervention in Enhancing Academic Resilience and Self-Efficacy among University Students

Abstract

This study examined the effectiveness of a Positive Counseling-Based Self-Regulation Intervention in enhancing academic resilience among university students. It investigated the mediating role of self-efficacy in this relationship. Increasing academic pressure in higher education underscores the need for theory-driven counseling approaches that strengthen adaptive psychological capacities. Grounded in positive psychology and self-regulated learning theory, this quasi-experimental study employed a pretest–posttest control-group design with 76 undergraduate students. Participants were assigned to either a six-session structured group counseling intervention or a control condition receiving standard academic advisory support. Academic resilience and self-efficacy were assessed using validated scales. Data were analysed using ANCOVA and bootstrapped mediation analysis. Results indicated significant improvements in academic resilience, F(1, 73) = 32.84, p < .001, and self-efficacy, F(1, 73) = 28.17, p < .001, in the intervention group. Mediation analysis revealed that self-efficacy partially mediated the intervention's effect on academic resilience. These findings suggest that strengthening efficacy beliefs constitutes a key psychological mechanism through which positive counseling-based self-regulation enhances students' adaptive functioning. The study advances integrative models of positive counseling in higher education contexts.