Citation
Vaquera, E. (2009). Friendship, educational engagement, and school belonging: Comparing Hispanic and White adolescents.
Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences. vol. 31 (4) pp. 492
Abstract
The current study explores the relationship between friendship formation, school engagement, and belonging among White and Hispanic students. It employed the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, a nationally representative sample of adolescents in high school. The sample consisted of 6,366 Mexican, 1,132 Cuban, 1,330 Puerto Rican, 4,446 Central/South Hispanic origin youth, and 46,592 non-Hispanic Whites. Hispanic students are less likely to report having friends and to having their best friend at school. Both Hispanic and White students who have a best friend report fewer engagement problems and a higher school belonging. However, only students whose best friend attends their same school report higher levels of school belonging. Findings suggest that ethnic origin is an important stratifier among Hispanics for the studied school outcomes. Signs for optimism are discussed as some Hispanic ethnic groups report higher levels of school belonging compared with their White counterparts.
URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0739986309346023Keyword(s)
Education School
Reference Type
Journal Article
Journal Title
Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences
Author(s)
Vaquera, E.
Year Published
2009
Volume Number
31
Issue Number
4
Pages
492
DOI
10.1177/0739986309346023
Reference ID
1044
