The role of race and teachers’ cultural awareness in predicting low-income,Black and Hispanic students’ perceptions of educational attainment

Demographic shifts in the United States have resulted in similar demographic shifts between K-12 teachers and their students, resulting in important implications for the educational outcomes of traditionally marginalized students and educators’ cultural awareness required in teaching diverse classrooms. Using data from the Three-City Teacher Study, this study examined students’ (N = 207; 55 % female; 52 % non-Hispanic Black, 48 % non-White Hispanic; mean age = 16.70 years, SD = 1.67) and teachers’ (N = 202; 71.5 % female; 64.3 % white; mean years of experience = 13.80 years, SD = 10.83) agreement on the potential educational attainment of the student. Specifically, we explored the probability that teachers had lower, matched, or higher perceptions of educational attainment compared to their low-income Black and Hispanic students’ perceptions of attainment while accounting for teachers’ and students’ reports of school connectedness, teachers’ cultural awareness, and moderating effects of students’ race. Results from multinomial logistic regressions found that teachers were more likely to have lower perceptions of educational attainment for Hispanic students compared to Black students. Teachers were also more likely to have lower perceptions when they perceived students to have low school connectedness. For Black students, teachers’ cultural awareness attenuated this association; that is, teachers were more likely to have higher perceptions of educational attainment for Black students when they reported higher cultural awareness. The reverse was true for Hispanic students. These results enhance our understanding of how teacher and student perceptions shape expectations of educational attainment with implications for teacher education and professional development domestically and internationally.     

Parental expectations and school relationships as contributors to adolescents’ positive outcomes

Researchers examined associations of parental expectations and parental school relationships with school outcomes among U.S. middle and high school students. Nationally representative data involving families from the National Household Education Surveys were analyzed with structural equation modeling. Measures included interview responses about parent expectations for their children’s long term educational attainment (ranging from dropping out of high school to obtaining a JD/PhD/MD) and how much parents feel welcomed at school, trust and have positive interactions with educators. The latter three variables formed a latent variable called parent school relationship. Analyses controlled for SES (parents’ educational attainment and household income), family structure, gender, and ethnicity. The school outcomes variable was derived from parental report of students’ grades, retention in any grade and behavior problems at school. Parental expectations were positively related (standardized path coefficient = .44, $p<.01$ ) to positive school outcomes and had a stronger effect than SES (standardized path coefficient = .24). Parent school relationships were also positively related to school outcomes. These findings suggest that psychologists and educators should be aware of the potential for parents to play a significant role (e.g., via expectations and developing supportive relationships with educators) in children’s education, even in middle and high school.     

Educational attainment, intelligence, interstate migration, and suicide rates in the United States: rejoinder to Abel and Kruger (2005)

Abel and Kruger (2005) reported a negative association of educational attainment and suicide rate across the United States. Given strong links between intelligence and educational attainment, this appears to be inconsistent with positive associations of intelligence and suicide rate reported in several other geographical studies. However, the apparent inconsistencies may reflect interstate migration within the U.S. adult population. Testing this hypothesis showed that interstate migration was more strongly related to state suicide rates than educational attainment. Thus, the different results obtained by Abel and Kruger could reflect migration effects, which for the U.S. might render adult-age indicators of educational attainment inappropriate to reflect regional variation in intelligence by place of birth.     

The Effect of Religious‐Based Mentoring on Educational Attainment: More than Just a Spiritual High?

Although research has found a positive relationship between various forms of adolescent religious involvement and educational outcomes, little research has examined connections to educational attainment. Using a nationally representative sample of youth (the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health—Add Health), we examine the extent to which adolescent religiosity facilitates educational attainment (i.e., high school completion and college enrollment) and whether informal mentorships formed during adolescence with religious and nonreligious adults can help explain the link between adolescent religious involvement and educational attainment. The findings confirm that, like academic outcomes, religious youth are more likely to complete high school and enroll in college even when controlling for other individual and interpersonal factors that affect educational attainment. Furthermore, informal mentorships, particularly those with adults who have official religious positions (e.g., priest, minister, rabbi) play an important role in college enrollment.     

The Role of Religiosity on Postsecondary Degree Attainment

Although previous researchers found that several individual, family, and school characteristics influenced adolescents' academic performance, religion‐related factors have not typically been considered for models of bachelor's degree attainment. Using longitudinal data in a national database, the authors examined the relationship between high school students' religiosity and bachelor's degree attainment. The results indicate that high school students' religiosity was significantly related to bachelor's degree attainment when other variables (i.e., locus of control, self‐concept, parental involvement, and prior academic performance) were controlled for.     

Affective,Biological, and Cognitive Predictors of Depressive Symptom Trajectories in Adolescence

Heterogeneity in the longitudinal course of depressive symptoms was examined using latent growth mixture modeling among a community sample of 382 U.S. youth from ages 11 to 18 (52.1 % female). Three latent trajectory classes were identified: Stable Low (51 %; displayed low depressive symptoms at all assessments), Increasing (37 %; reported low depressive symptoms at age 11, but then significantly higher depressive symptoms than the Stable Low class at ages 13, 15, and 18), and Early High (12 %; reported high early depressive symptoms at age 11, followed by symptoms that declined over time yet remained significantly higher than those of the Stable Low class at ages 13, 15, and 18). By age 15, rates of Major Depressive Disorder diagnoses among the Early High (25.0 %) and Increasing (20.4 %) classes were more than twice that observed among the Stable Low class (8.8 %). Affective (negative affectivity), biological (pubertal timing, sex) and cognitive (cognitive style, rumination) factors were examined as predictors of class membership. Results indicated general risk factors for both high-risk trajectories as well as specific risk factors unique to each trajectory. Being female and high infant negative affectivity predicted membership in the Increasing class. Early puberty, high infant negative affectivity for boys, and high rumination for girls predicted membership in the Early High class. Results highlight the importance of examining heterogeneity in depression trajectories in adolescence as well as simultaneously considering risk factors across multiple domains.     

Predictors of Secondary School Completion Among Refugee Youth 8 to 9 Years After Resettlement in Melbourne,Australia

Being able to attend school and achieve an education is one of the most desired opportunities among resettled refugee young people. However, turning educational aspirations into reality is not straightforward. There is a large body of research documenting the barriers associated with educational achievement among refugees who resettle as teenagers, both in Australia and internationally. No studies, however, have identified the factors that predict completion of secondary school among resettled refugee youth over time. This paper reports the predictors of completion of secondary school among a cohort of 47 refugee youth resettled in Melbourne, Australia. Eight to 9 years after resettlement, 29 (62 %) had completed secondary school and 18 (38 %) had left school prior to completing year 12. Age on arrival and experiences of discrimination in Australia were significant predictors of secondary school completion. Older refugee youth (on arrival) and those who reported experiences of discrimination over the first 8 to 9 years in Australia were significantly less likely to complete secondary school. This longitudinal study confirms that, as a group, refugee youth are particularly at risk of not completing secondary school education, which can have an impact on their wellbeing and long-term socio-economic standing in their settlement country. Our study provides further evidence of the negative impact of discrimination on the educational outcomes of disadvantaged young people.     

母亲受教育水平和青少年学业自尊的关系:母亲教养方式的中介作用和性别的调节作用

本研究探索了母亲教养方式在母亲受教育水平与青少年学业自尊关系间的中介作用,以及性别对上述中介效应的调节作用。以715名初中生为被试,采用母亲教养方式量表、儿童自尊量表进行测量。结果发现,母亲受教育水平能够正向预测青少年的学业自尊;母亲温暖、拒绝、惩罚的教养方式在母亲受教育水平和青少年的学业自尊之间起部分中介作用;并且上述中介作用受性别的调节。相比男生,母亲温暖的教养方式更显著正向预测女生的学业自尊;母亲拒绝和惩罚的教养方式更显著负向预测女生的学业自尊。提升母亲受教育水平,对于促进母亲的积极教养和降低母亲的消极教养,进而促进青少年形成积极的学业自我评价有重要的意义。     

Educational Attainment and Cohort Change Among Conservative Protestants, 1972–2004

A growing literature examines how conservative Protestants have made status gains relative to mainline Protestants over the past three decades. The results of these studies are inconclusive: by some measures conservative Protestants have achieved socioeconomic parity, in other accounts significant discrepancies remain. This article examines the relationship between religion of origin and educational attainment, highlighting the significance of both religious background (rather than adult affiliations) and cohort change in understanding religious stratification. The findings are somewhat mixed: while conservative Protestants born since 1960 are no less likely to finish high school than their mainline counterparts, the negative effect of a conservative Protestant background on college completion remains virtually unchanged for cohorts born before 1940, between 1940 and 1959, and between 1960 and 1972, even when controlling for family background. Conservative Protestants are keeping pace with the educational gains made by mainline Protestants in the postwar era, but other factors associated with a conservative Protestant background still exert a negative influence on educational attainment.     

Gender differences in motivational pathways to college for middle class African American youths

Using a sample of predominantly middle-class African American adolescents and parents (N = 424), the authors tested a path model linking parental expectations for children's future educational attainment, youths' motivation during Grade 11, and youths' subsequent on-time postsecondary educational progress. Parents' expectations were positively related to adolescents' educational attainment aspirations, attainment expectations, utility values (i.e., beliefs about the usefulness of education), and perceptions of racial barriers to upward mobility. Relationships between parents' expectations and youths' aspirations and expectations were mediated by youths' perceptions of parents' expectations. For boys, but not girls, Grade 11 educational expectations and utility values each uniquely predicted college attendance 1 year after high school graduation. In addition, boys' perceptions of racial barriers were negatively related to subsequent postsecondary progress through their influence on values. Findings underscore the importance of academic achievement motivation as a developmental resource for African American boys and suggest that boys are especially likely to benefit from interventions promoting positive motivational beliefs.     

Prematurity at birth: trends,racial disparities,and epidemiology

While infant mortality rates have continued to decline in the U.S., low birth weight and preterm rates have dramatically increased. Although the combination of factors that underlies these trends has not been fully described, there is growing concern that an appreciable part of the rise in prematurity rates stems from efforts taken to improve the survival of these high-risk infants. While advancements in medical technology and practice, augmented by improvements in prenatal care use, may have adversely effected prematurity rates and played a role in broadening racial disparities in pregnancy outcomes, they have positively impacted infant survival. Although many risk factors for prematurity have been identified, there are presently few areas for effective prevention. Accordingly, there is little encouragement for a downturn in prematurity rates in the near future. The prospect of continuing growth in the annual number of surviving preterm infants in the U.S. highlights the need for early detection and treatment of developmental problems for these high-risk survivors, and emphasizes the importance of assuring that needed support services are available to these children and their families.     

Do relational and structural characteristics of negative school environments independently predict immigrant adolescents’ academic achievement?

A critical issue facing the majority of immigrant adolescents in U.S. public schools is persistent academic underperformance. Using data from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study, this study investigates the extent to which negative social environments in U.S. public schools predict the academic achievement of immigrant adolescents. Importantly, we simultaneously examine the roles of both the relational (individual-level) and structural (school-level) characteristics of these negative social environments. Multilevel structural equation modeling revealed that immigrant students who are embedded in more negative relationships (e.g., having peers who discriminate against them) have lower levels of academic achievement. These predictive effects of individual-level negative social environments on academic achievement are mediated by both perceived school safety and educational expectations. Furthermore, we find double mediation effects (i.e., three-pathway mediations) via perceptions of school safety and educational expectations. The existence of these double mediation effects implies that relational characteristics strongly predict immigrant adolescents’ perceptions, attitudes, and school outcomes. Finally, we find that structural characteristics of negative social environments in U.S. public schools (i.e., total student enrollment and school-level dropout rate) also negatively predict immigrant adolescent achievement. We discuss the implications of these findings for improving immigrant adolescents’ achievements in U.S. public schools.     

The Relationship Between General Population Suicide Rates and Educational Attainment: A Cross‐National Study

Suicides are associated with both high and low levels of intelligence and educational attainment in both individual‐level and aggregate‐level studies. A cross‐national study examining the relationship between general population suicide rates (y) and educational attainment (x) was undertaken with the a priori hypothesis that the relationship would be curvilinear and follow a U‐shaped curve with the quadratic equation Y = A + BX + CX², where A, B, and C are constants. Data on suicide rates and the Education Index (a proxy measure of educational attainment) were ascertained from the World Health Organization and the United Nations Web sites, respectively. The main finding was the predicted curvilinear relationship between general population suicide rates, in both sexes, and the Education Index fit the above quadratic equation. Given the cross‐sectional study design, a causal relationship cannot be assumed. The impact of educational attainment on general population suicide rates may occur through interaction with other factors, mediation of the effects of other factors, or by its effects being mediated by other factors, and require further study.     

Educational–Occupational Mismatch,Race/Ethnicity,and Immigrant Wealth Attainment

This paper uses wealth attainment as an indicator of economic integration and assesses how educational–occupational mismatch (i.e., over/underqualification) and race/ethnicity affect the wealth attainment of a sample of legal permanent residents in the USA. Using data from the New Immigrant Survey, this paper finds that overqualification is positively associated with wealth attainment, but below the rate for adequately qualified workers in the same occupation. Underqualified immigrants are associated with a pattern of wealth attainment that is equivalent to the adequately qualified. Racial/ethnic wealth inequality among legal permanent residents generally reflects the well-documented pattern among the U.S. native-born. This paper concludes with a discussion that places these results alongside previous research that examines the relationship between educational–occupational mismatch and income among immigrants.     

Adolescents as “producers of their own development”: Correlates and consequences of the importance and attainment of developmental tasks

In a four-wave longitudinal study, 228 adolescents from seven age cohorts were investigated annually regarding the importance and subjective attainment of age-specific developmental tasks. Distal outcomes (educational trajectory and residential independence) were examined when the adolescents were 21 years old. The results of latent growth models (LGM) showed that there was no mean level change in the importance of developmental tasks, whereas perceived attainment of developmental tasks increased over time. In general, whereas the importance of developmental tasks was more impacted by family factors, the attainment of tasks was more influenced by individual factors. Adolescents with more parental support for autonomy had higher developmental aspirations. Adolescents with unemployed fathers showed greater increases in the importance of developmental tasks, which subsequently predicted a higher educational trajectory. Only a small proportion of adolescents perceived a high initial level of attainment of diverse tasks; for 85% of the sample, the typical growth pattern with respect to overall attainment of developmental tasks was a moderate initial level, which increased over time. Girls, early maturers, and first-born adolescents reported higher perceived attainment of developmental tasks.     

The Longitudinal Effects of Oppositional Defiant Disorder Symptoms on Academic and Occupational Functioning in the Transition to Young Adulthood

The young adult years are particularly important for accruing the education and work experience needed for long-term economic stability. We examine the effects of symptoms of ODD at baseline (i.e., T1 ages 12 to 18 years; N = 662; 48 % male) and of increases in these symptoms on academic and occupational functioning in young adulthood (i.e., T6 ages 22 to 29 years; N = 478; 45 % male) using multiple measures; including achievement levels (i.e., educational attainment, occupational prestige, and income) and financial and work stress (i.e., debt, financial strain, and perceived workplace stress). Our findings show that both adolescent levels of and increases in symptoms of ODD influence academic and occupational functioning in young adulthood. We discuss the implications of ODD symptoms for accruing economic capital in young adulthood, as well as approaches to detecting and intervening that are needed to halt the potentially cascading effects of ODD symptoms.     

Effects of Gender, Age, and Education on Assertiveness in a Nigerian Sample

Two hundred fourteen (214) married persons, 101 men and 113 women aged 20–60, with at least high school education, participated in the study which investigated the effects of gender, age, and educational attainment on assertiveness among married persons in Nigeria. The Assertive Behavior Assessment scale (ABAS; Onyeizugbo, 1998 ) was used to measure assertiveness. It was hypothesized that persons with higher educational attainment will report more assertiveness than persons with lower educational attainment. Results supported the hypothesis. In addition, interactions between gender and age, and gender and educational attainment were found. Younger men reported more assertiveness than younger women whereas older women reported more assertiveness than older men. Also, women participants of lower educational attainment reported more assertiveness than their men counterparts whereas men of higher educational attainment reported more assertiveness than their women counterparts. Results of this study suggest that women in Nigeria may become more assertive with age.     

Cognitive function in older adults according to current socioeconomic status

Cognitive function may be influenced by education, socioeconomic status, sex, and health status. Furthermore, aging interacts with these factors to influence cognition and dementia risk in late life. Factors that may increase or decrease successful cognitive aging are of critical importance, particularly if they are modifiable. The purpose of this study was to determine if economic status in late life is associated with cognition independent of socioeconomic status in early life. Cross-sectional demographic, socioeconomic, and cognitive function data were obtained in 2592 older adults (average age 71.6 years) from the Center for Disease Control’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and analyzed with linear regression modeling. Cognitive function, as measured with a test of processing speed, was significantly associated with poverty index scores after adjusting for educational attainment as an estimate of childhood socioeconomic status, ethnic background, age, health status, and sex (P < 0.001). Our findings suggest that current economic status is independently associated with cognitive function in adults over age 60 years.     

Grit in adolescence is protective of late-life cognition: non-cognitive factors and cognitive reserve

Various psychological assets have been shown to protect against late-life cognitive impairment by promoting cognitive reserve. While factors such as educational attainment and IQ are well-established contributors to cognitive reserve, noncognitive factors, such as grit, have not been studied in this regard. We examined the contribution of adolescent grit, indexed by high school class rank controlling for IQ, to late-life cognition and its decline among approximately 4000 participants in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, a random sample of high school graduates followed from 1957 to 2011. Adolescent grit significantly predicted both immediate and delayed memory at ages 64 and 71, over and above the contribution of IQ. While the relative contributions of IQ and grit to immediate memory were comparable, grit was a stronger predictor of delayed memory. Cognitive reserve has noncognitive, as well as cognitive, components.