Investigating the Imagination of Possible and ‘Like-to-Avoid’ Selves among Higher Education Students from Different Socioeconomic Backgrounds at a Selective English University

Abstract

Access to and participation in higher education (HE) remains unequal, with social background continuing to influence decisions and experiences. In this paper, we undertake a proof-of-concept design to apply the theory of ‘possible selves’, as adapted by Harrison and published in Social Sciences (2018), to university students from different socioeconomic backgrounds. In 2019, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 12 first-year students, from different socioeconomic backgrounds, currently studying at a selective English university. We applied a deductive analysis based on Harrison’s adaptation of the ‘possible selves’ model originally put forward by Markus and Nurius in the 1980s. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds had a clear drive to ‘avoid’ future selves that would emerge without HE. Across all socioeconomic groups, we found a strong sense of agency, and a strong personal belief in success. Overall, our study shows that the model of possible selves is useful for understanding personalised and individualised student experiences, and the interrelation between social structure (socioeconomic condition) and agency. The model also offers a new way for practitioners to plan interventions for enhancing equity in HE access and participation.

Legal apprenticeships: Enhancing capabilities, wellbeing, and diversity in the profession?

“…Anna's encounter with an alumna and the subsequent work experience confirms the influence of significant others in developing future-selves (Barg et al, 2020). Her experience illustrates how interlinked the different aspects of capability can be (Stewart, 2013, p. 9), for example, the social network facilitated by the school provides a fertile capability for the development of practical reason.…”

“…It means increasing opportunities for everyone to get productive work that delivers a fair income, workplace security, social protection for families, better prospects for personal development and social integration (United Nations, 2023). In the UK, which in the global context is relatively advanced in terms of some of these aspects (minimum pay and some social protection; see for instance Barg et al, 2020), decent work has sometimes helped to focus debates on wellbeing (Blustein et al, 2016). There are various research endeavours and policy initiatives in this field (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development [CIPD], 2023).…”

Managing Uncertainty and Risk in Access to the Solicitors’ Profession in England: Classed Pathways?

“…For some participants, going to an elite university and pursuing a professional career were longstanding goals. For example, Vic’s (private school, elite university, middle class, male) pathway to university and a career in law had been cultivated within the family and the legal internship opportunities this facilitated for him, shaping his self-concept, aspirations and expectations for education and career goals, such that he felt no doubt that he would achieve his ambitions: ‘I will probably be a solicitor, I would say that’s 80% sure.’ For Vic, the university pathway was a longstanding elaborated expectation, by both family and school, as is typical of those from advantaged backgrounds (Barg et al, 2020), influencing expectations for the future and dispositions towards career decision making. Vic explained: ‘there was such a tight focus, there was never any question that I wasn’t going to go to university.…”