The Resilience-Support Paradox: Multilevel Analysis of Differentiated Support for Academic Resilience

This study re-examines whether a supportive school climate, specifically teacher- and classroom-level climate, is uniformly associated with academic resilience among socioeconomically disadvantaged students across education systems. Using a methodologically rigorous analysis of PISA 2022 data (N = 29,728), we uncover a 'Resilience--Support Paradox': a negative association between perceived teacher- and classroom-level support and academic resilience in multiple systems. Rather than implying that support is harmful, this pattern is consistent with a support-follows-need dynamic: targeted instructional resources are disproportionately directed toward students who are struggling, while resilient students exhibit greater autonomy, functioning independently of these remedial structures. In contrast, the strongest positive correlate of resilience is students’ internal Math Disposition (self-efficacy, interest, and low anxiety). We propose a 'Resilience Lifecycle' framework: institutional support may help build internal psychological assets early on, but later-stage resilience is characterized by greater autonomy. Practically, the results motivate differentiated interventions: (a) for disadvantaged low performers, interventions that cultivate math-specific confidence and reduce anxiety; and (b) for disadvantaged high performers, opportunities for autonomous exploration and appropriately challenging learning pathways. Scalable educational technologies may serve as a practical facilitator of such differentiation alongside instructional and policy-based approaches.