{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T06:04:22Z","timestamp":1790661862988,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":48,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1790640000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Psychol."],"abstract":"<jats:p>Drama-based social-emotional learning has gained increasing attention in higher education, yet participation in embodied activities does not in itself ensure sustained engagement or social-emotional development. Less is known about how teacher support, peer interaction, and embodied participation become interconnected in classroom practice, or about the conditions under which this process may be disrupted. This multisite interpretive qualitative study was conducted across four universities in eastern China. Data were generated through interviews with 24 students and eight teaching staff, supplemented by 24 reflective journals, 24 classroom observations, and 16 course documents. Reflexive thematic analysis produced three themes: participatory safety and bounded autonomy supported by teacher scaffolding; peer connection and group belonging developed through embodied collaboration; and emotional resonance and self-awareness emerging through embodied meaning-making. Safety, responsiveness, and a sense of meaning were associated with students\u2019 willingness to participate, whereas unclear boundaries, limited peer responsiveness, and excessive emotional intensity were associated with reduced participation. The findings conceptualize drama-based social-emotional learning as interconnected classroom processes involving teacher scaffolding, peer connection, embodied participation, and reflective integration.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1963943","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T05:46:43Z","timestamp":1790660803000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["How teacher support, peer connection, and embodied meaning-making interact in drama-based social-emotional learning in higher education"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Kunqi","family":"Wang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Art and Design, Zhongyuan University of Technology","place":["Zhengzhou, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xiyu","family":"Dai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Normal School, Changzhou Institute of Technology","place":["Changzhou, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1158","DOI":"10.1037\/edu0000783","article-title":"A classification system for teachers\u2019 motivational behaviors recommended in self-determination theory interventions.","volume":"115","author":"Ahmadi","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. 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