Loneliness Prevention in Online Learning: Psychological Support Moderating Emotion Regulation, Teacher-Student Interaction, and Social Isolation in Higher Education

Loneliness Prevention in Online Learning: Psychological Support Moderating Emotion Regulation, Teacher-Student Interaction, and Social Isolation in Higher Education | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Loneliness Prevention in Online Learning: Psychological Support Moderating Emotion Regulation, Teacher-Student Interaction, and Social Isolation in Higher Education Liang Hu, Yuan Yuan, Daishui Jiao This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6955797/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 13 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study explores the role of psychological support in moderating the relationship between emotion regulation and teacher-student interaction, specifically addressing its impact on loneliness and social isolation among university students in online learning environments. By utilizing a mixed-methods approach, the research examines how emotional regulation strategies like cognitive reappraisal can mitigate feelings of loneliness, while poor emotional regulation, such as emotional suppression, exacerbates isolation. The findings underscore the importance of fostering strong teacher-student interactions to alleviate the psychological and emotional toll of online learning, offering strategies to combat social isolation and enhance well-being.Using a mixed-methods approach combining educational data mining (EDM) and neural network analysis, we analyzed behavioral logs and self-reported data from 1,200 Chinese university students. Results revealed that cognitive reappraisal strategies significantly enhanced psychological fitness, while emotional suppression correlated with adverse outcomes. Teacher-student interaction quality mediated these effects, particularly in online environments. Our findings highlight the need for personalized psychological interventions and data-driven models to support students’ mental health in digital education. This study contributes to educational psychology by integrating machine learning with traditional surveys, offering scalable solutions for cross-disciplinary mental health challenges. Social science/Education Social science/Psychology University students' psychological fitness self-regulation teacher-student interaction emotion regulation psychological support Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviews received at journal 19 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 18 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 15 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 14 Apr, 2026 Reviews received at journal 07 Feb, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 30 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 29 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 29 Jan, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 03 Dec, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 30 Nov, 2025 Editor invited by journal 25 Sep, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 17 Aug, 2025 First submitted to journal 17 Aug, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6955797","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":554777207,"identity":"a0e2b70c-b926-4598-af9a-1ea26b1e59b0","order_by":0,"name":"Liang Hu","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Hunan First Normal University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Liang","middleName":"","lastName":"Hu","suffix":""},{"id":554777209,"identity":"69156ccd-e2a9-4cb4-97b5-1b31a71c076b","order_by":1,"name":"Yuan 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