Main Effect Rather Than Buffering: A Mixed Methods Study of Communication Quality, Social Support, and First-Year Student Adjustment in Compulsory Dormitory Living

Compulsory dormitory living places first-year students in shared rooms they do not choose, making interpersonal communication a condition of daily life rather than an option. Previous studies have examined sources of social support separately, leaving unclear whether peer, Senior Resident, and family support strengthen the effect of communication quality on adjustment when operating simultaneously. This study addresses that gap through an explanatory sequential mixed methods design with a dominant qualitative component. The quantitative phase surveyed 151 first-year dormitory residents at a private university in Indonesia and analysed the data using PLS-SEM with 10,000 bootstrap subsamples. The qualitative phase involved ten informants selected through extreme case sampling on adjustment outcome, analysed thematically. Communication quality was positively associated with student adjustment, while no statistically significant moderating effects were detected for the three support sources, either individually or simultaneously. Senior Resident support showed a significant direct association with adjustment, whereas peer support demonstrated a borderline association. These findings are more consistent with a main-effect pattern, although measurement limitations prevent definitive conclusions about the underlying mechanisms. The qualitative phase provided further insight into these findings and identified five additional themes beyond the hypothesised framework. Participants' accounts suggested that persistence in initiating communication after an initially unreciprocated attempt may distinguish different adjustment experiences. The interviews also indicated that the first three months of residence may represent an important period for early adjustment.