The relationship between social adaptation, academic stress, and homesickness in Islamic boarding schools: Moderating effects of prior separation experience and family attachment
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
This study contributes to the state of the art by addressing the scarcity of empirical research on homesickness within the unique context of Islamic boarding schools (pesantren), which differ substantially from Western residential education settings commonly examined in the literature. While previous studies have explored homesickness, social adaptation, and academic stress in general boarding or international student populations, this research advances the field by integrating these constructs with family attachment and prior separation experiences as moderators. Data were obtained from pesantren students in Yogyakarta region utilizing a cross-sectional survey approach and analyzed through Structural Equation Modeling with Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS). The research utilized five validated tools to assess social adaptation, academic stress, homesickness, prior separation experiences, and familial attachment. The model accounted for 65.8% of the variance in homesickness levels. Social adaptation markedly diminished homesickness (β = -0.241, p < 0.001), whereas academic stress exacerbated it (β = 0.326, p < 0.001). Family attachment was identified as the most significant predictor of homesickness (β = 0.487, p < 0.001), suggesting that stronger familial connections paradoxically heighten feelings of homesickness. Previous separation experience acted as a protective factor (β = -0.198, p < 0.001) and attenuated the association between academic stress and homesickness. The findings indicate that homesickness in pesantren is a complex issue necessitating specialized intervention programs that take into account adolescents' attachment styles and prior separation experiences to improve psychological well-being and adaptive outcomes.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Psikis: Jurnal Psikologi Islami by http://jurnal.radenfatah.ac.id/index.php/psikis is licensed under a Lisensi Creative Commons Atribusi-BerbagiSerupa 4.0 Internasional.
How to Cite
References
Ahmed, M., Umar, I. A., Azkiya, R., & Ghofur, S. A. (2023). Stressors and Coping Mechanism Strategies of Islamic Boarding School Students. International Journal of Academic Studies in Science and Education, 1(1), 56–70. https://doi.org/10.55549/ijasse.8
Armsden, G. C., & Greenberg, M. T. (1987). The Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment: Individual differences and their relationship to psychological well-being in adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 16(5), 427–454. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02202939
Archer, J., Ireland, J., Amos, S., Broad, H., & Currid, L. (1998). Derivation of a homesickness scale. British Journal of Psychology, 89(2), 205–221. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2044-8295.1998.tb02681.x
Ashokan, A., Sivasubramanian, M., & Mitra, R. (2016). Seeding Stress Resilience through Inoculation. Neural Plasticity, 2016, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/4928081
Ayob, M. A. S., Sham, F. M., & Alias, J. (2025). Exploring the interplay of religion and spirituality: an Islamic perspective on spiritual seeking and human existence. Journal of Religious Education, 73(2), 189–205. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40839-025-00259-2
Baard, S. K., Rench, T. A., & Kozlowski, S. W. J. (2014). Performance Adaptation. Journal of Management, 40(1), 48–99. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206313488210
Bethel, A., Ward, C., & Fetvadjiev, V. H. (2020). Cross-Cultural Transition and Psychological Adaptation of International Students: The Mediating Role of Host National Connectedness. Frontiers in Education, 5. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2020.539950
Blehm, A. (2025). The viciousness of psychological resilience. Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-025-10075-6
Bradshaw, E. L., Duineveld, J. J., Conigrave, J. H., Steward, B. A., Ferber, K. A., Joussemet, M., Parker, P. D., & Ryan, R. M. (2024). Disentangling autonomy-supportive and psychologically controlling parenting: A meta-analysis of self-determination theory’s dual process model across cultures. American Psychologist. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0001389
Cabaniss, E. R., & Cameron, A. E. (2018). Toward a Social Psychological Understanding of Migration and Assimilation. Humanity & Society, 42(2), 171–192. https://doi.org/10.1177/0160597617716963
Chen, I.-S. (2025). Role of homesickness among expatriates in creativity at work: mediating role of online leisure crafting moderated by technology self-efficacy. Asia Pacific Journal of Management. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-025-10049-x
Crocetti, E. (2017). Identity Formation in Adolescence: The Dynamic of Forming and Consolidating Identity Commitments. Child Development Perspectives, 11(2), 145–150. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdep.12226
Demetriou, E. A., Boulton, K. A., Bowden, M. R., Thapa, R., & Guastella, A. J. (2022). An evaluation of homesickness in children: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders, 297, 463–470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2021.09.068
Fadilah, R., Parinduri, S. A., & Nurhayani. (2024). Forgiveness Therapy in Islamic Psychology Perspective: Healing the Inner Child Parenting Wounds. Psikis : Jurnal Psikologi Islami, 10(2), 386–398. https://doi.org/10.19109/psikis.v10i2.24160
Frydenberg, E. (2008). Adolescent Coping. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203938706
Hack-Polay, D., & Mahmoud, A. B. (2021). Homesickness in developing world expatriates and coping strategies. German Journal of Human Resource Management: Zeitschrift Für Personalforschung, 35(3), 285–308. https://doi.org/10.1177/2397002220952735
Gadzella, B. M. (1991). Student-Life Stress Inventory.
Haryanto, S. (2022). Internalization of Islamic Boarding School Values in an Indonesian Islamic Educational Institution. AL-ISHLAH: Jurnal Pendidikan, 14(4), 6371–6380. https://doi.org/10.35445/alishlah.v14i4.2099
Hazan, C., & Shaver, P. R. (1994). Attachment as an Organizational Framework for Research on Close Relationships. Psychological Inquiry, 5(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327965pli0501_1
Höltge, J., Mc Gee, S. L., Maercker, A., & Thoma, M. V. (2021). Steeling in Later Life: Exploring Age-Specific Effects of Varying Levels of Stress on Psychological Resilience. The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 92(2), 170–196. https://doi.org/10.1177/0091415019871202
Jahidin, A. (2023). Traditional Pesantren, Parental Involvement, and Santri Well-being: Insights from Pesantren Sunan Pandanaran of Yogyakarta. Jurnal Pemberdayaan Masyarakat: Media Pemikiran Dan Dakwah Pembangunan, 7(1), 27–48. https://doi.org/10.14421/jpm.2023.071-02
Jetten, J., Haslam, C., & Haslam, A. (Eds.). (2012). The Social Cure. Psychology Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203813195
Lobben, M., & Laeng, B. (2024). Zooming in and out of semantics: proximal–distal construal levels and prominence hierarchies. Frontiers in Psychology, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1371538
Macfarlane, B. (2015). Dualisms in Higher Education: a Critique of Their Influence and Effect. Higher Education Quarterly, 69(1), 101–118. https://doi.org/10.1111/hequ.12046
Main, M., Hesse, E., & Hesse, S. (2011). Attachment theory and research: overview with suggested applications to child custody. Family Court Review, 49(3), 426–463. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-1617.2011.01383.x
McELWAIN, N. L., COX, M. J., BURCHINAL, M. R., & MACFIE, J. (2003). Differentiating among insecure mother - infant attachment classifications: A focus on child - friend interaction and exploration during solitary play at 36 months. Attachment & Human Development, 5(2), 136–164. https://doi.org/10.1080/1461673031000108513
Mekonen, Y. K., & Adarkwah, M. A. (2023). Exploring homesickness among international students in China during border closure. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 94, 101800. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2023.101800
Muslih, Q. A. Z. N. P., & Nashori, F. (2024). The Role of Islamic Religious Coping and Social Support in Parenting Stress among Working Mothers with Young Children. Psikis: Jurnal Psikologi Islami, 10(2), 186-200. https://doi.org/10.19109/psikis.v10i2.24537
Oyewobi, L. O., Bolarin, G., Oladosu, N. T., & Jimoh, R. A. (2021). Influence of stress and coping strategies on undergraduate students’ performance. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, 13(4), 1043–1061. https://doi.org/10.1108/JARHE-03-2020-0066
Rathakrishnan, B., Bikar Singh, S. S., Kamaluddin, M. R., Ghazali, M. F., Yahaya, A., Mohamed, N. H., & Krishnan, A. R. (2021). Homesickness and Socio-Cultural Adaptation towards Perceived Stress among International Students of a Public University in Sabah: An Exploration Study for Social Sustainability. Sustainability, 13(9), 4924. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13094924
Saepullah, U. (2021). Cultural Communications of Islamic Boarding Schools in Indonesia. AL-ISHLAH: Jurnal Pendidikan, 13(3), 2188–2202. https://doi.org/10.35445/alishlah.v13i3.1154
Santos de Souza, F. de O., & Chimenti, P. (2024). Emotions in Organizational Change: An Integrative Review. Journal of Change Management, 24(2), 137–176. https://doi.org/10.1080/14697017.2024.2345078
Scattolin, M. A. de A., Resegue, R. M., & Rosário, M. C. do. (2022). The impact of the environment on neurodevelopmental disorders in early childhood. Jornal de Pediatria, 98, S66–S72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jped.2021.11.002
Selya, A. S., Rose, J. S., Dierker, L. C., Hedeker, D., & Mermelstein, R. J. (2012). A Practical Guide to Calculating Cohen’s f2, a Measure of Local Effect Size, from PROC MIXED. Frontiers in Psychology, 3. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00111
Soledad, R. G. M., Carolina, T. V., Adelina, G. C. M., Fernández, P., & Fernanda, M. (2012). The Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ) for Use with Spanish Students. Psychological Reports, 111(2), 624–640. https://doi.org/10.2466/08.10.20.PR0.111.5.624-640
Stroebe, M., Schut, H., & Nauta, M. (2015). Homesickness: A Systematic Review of the Scientific Literature. Review of General Psychology, 19(2), 157–171. https://doi.org/10.1037/gpr0000037
Sulastri, T., Dewi, E. M. P., & Nurdin, Muh. N. (2020). Effectiveness of Psychoeducation to Reduce Homesickness in Islamic Boarding School Students’. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Education, Science, and Technology (ICEST 2019). https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.201027.039
Syafii, M. H., Purnomo, H., Ramadhan, C. S., & Azhari, H. (2024). Predictive Factors of Academic Procrastination: A Cross-Cultural Comparison between Indonesian and Egyptian Students. Psikis : Jurnal Psikologi Islami, 10(2), 319–329. https://doi.org/10.19109/psikis.v10i2.24641
Tabarani, P., Restubog, S. L. D., Kiazad, K., Lagios, C., Schilpzand, P., & Wang, L. (Sky). (2025). Heartsick for Home: An Integrative Review of Employee Homesickness and an Agenda for Future Research. Group & Organization Management, 50(2), 461–513. https://doi.org/10.1177/10596011241309953
Tomás, J. M., Gutiérrez, M., Pastor, A. M., & Sancho, P. (2020). Perceived Social Support, School Adaptation and Adolescents’ Subjective Well-Being. Child Indicators Research, 13(5), 1597–1617. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-020-09717-9
Travis, J., Kaszycki, A., Geden, M., & Bunde, J. (2020). Some stress is good stress: The challenge-hindrance framework, academic self-efficacy, and academic outcomes. Journal of Educational Psychology, 112(8), 1632–1643. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000478
Vu, M. C., & Case, P. (2025). Overcoming Contemporary Academic Attachments: Developing Even-Mindedness in Neoliberal Cultures of Excellence. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 24(2), 244–264. https://doi.org/10.5465/amle.2024.0002
Yulianto, J. E., & Lestari, M. D. (2025). Inter-ethnic Relationships and Marriages in Indonesia. In The Routledge International Handbook of Interracial and Intercultural Relationships and Mental Health (pp. 233–244). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003385547-22
Zaidi, S. G. S., Zahra, S. K., Zaidi, S. Z. R., & Aun, S. M. (2025). A Qualitative Study on the Effects of Homesickness on Mental Health and Sleep Among Newly Admitted Students Residing in Hostels in Public Universities of Punjab, Pakistan. Journal of Health and Rehabilitation Research, 1-6. https://doi.org/10.61919/jhrr.v5i2.1760