Understanding School Happiness: The Influence of Justice Disposition and Demographic-Social and Behavioral Factors

This study investigated the levels and predictors of school happiness among primary school students, with a particular emphasis on justice disposition. The sample consisted of 1065 students from public schools in three provinces of Aegean Region in Türkiye. Data were collected using the Justice Disposition Scale and the School Happiness Scale, and analyzed through descriptive statistics, correlations, and hierarchical regression. Results revealed that students reported moderately high levels of both school happiness and justice disposition. Regression findings showed that behavioral adaptation was the strongest predictor of school happiness, followed by justice disposition. In contrast, academic achievement, age, grade level, and family income were not significant. Screen time variables (mobile phone and television use) and number of siblings emerged as negative predictors, while maternal education showed a small positive contribution. Importantly, the inclusion of justice disposition provided the largest incremental increase in explained variance, underscoring the central role of fairness in student well-being. Overall, the findings suggest that relational, ethical, and behavioral factors outweigh purely demographic or academic indicators in shaping children’s happiness at school, highlighting the need for school environments that foster fairness, emotional support, and positive peer relations.