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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychol.

Sec. Educational Psychology

Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1579785

This article is part of the Research TopicBetween Emotional Regulation and Dysregulation: Perspectives, Interventions, Tools and Technologies for Psychological Well-BeingView all 13 articles

The teacher-student relationship in inclusive contexts: the role of mentalization and closeness

Provisionally accepted
Gelsomina CecereGelsomina Cecere1,2Ilaria La PennaIlaria La Penna1,2Francesco CercielloFrancesco Cerciello1,2Antonella CavallaroAntonella Cavallaro1,2Michela PonticorvoMichela Ponticorvo3Luigia Simona SicaLuigia Simona Sica3Alessandro FrolliAlessandro Frolli1,2*
  • 1University of International Studies of Rome, Roma, Italy
  • 2Developmental Neuroscience Research Lab – DNR Lab, Roma, Italy
  • 3University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Campania, Italy

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The teacher-student relationship is a central element in the educational context and significantly influences students' academic performance and socio-emotional well-being, with particular attention to teachers working with students with Special Educational Needs (SEN). Scientific literature has recognized several factors that determine the quality of this relationship, such as teachers' mentalization abilities, their emotion regulation skills, and relational closeness. This study analyzed gender differences in the mentalization abilities of special education teachers and identified the main predictors of relational closeness in educational relationships. The results revealed that female teachers show greater interest in the mental and emotional states of students and tend to be less prone to misinterpretations of them. Moreover, mentalization competencies, particularly interest in and certainty about students' mental and emotional states, positively predict relational closeness, while difficulties in emotional regulation and a tendency to misinterpret students' mental and emotional states reduce such closeness. Future research should further explore the relational dynamics between special education teachers and students with Special Educational Needs, utilizing complementary tools for a more comprehensive and accurate assessment.

Keywords: Special education teacher, mentalization, Relational Closeness, emotional regulation, special educational needs, gender differences, Education, School

Received: 24 Feb 2025; Accepted: 21 Jul 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Cecere, La Penna, Cerciello, Cavallaro, Ponticorvo, Sica and Frolli. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Alessandro Frolli, University of International Studies of Rome, Roma, Italy

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