I have always been confused about interpreting main effects in the presence of interaction effects.
Put simply,
Y = a sense of belonging to school
X1 = ethnicity (0= white, 1=black) / negative effect
X2 = relationship with teachers (1= very bad ~ 4 very good) / negative effect
X1*X2 = interaction term / positive effect
In this case, Should I say,
Black students have a lower sense of belonging to school than white students do. The students' relationship with teachers is negatively associated with their sense of belonging to school. However, black students have a higher sense of belonging to school when they have good relationships with teachers.
Or,
Black students have a lower sense of belonging to school than white students do. However, black students have a higher sense of belonging to school when they have good relationships with teachers even after controlling the main effect of the relationship with teachers on their sense of belonging to school.
Thanks,