☆ Who has the advantage? Race and sex differences in returns to social capital at home and at school

Abstract

A growing body of literature suggests that social capital is a valuable resource for children and youth, and that returns to that capital can increase academic success. However, relatively little is known about whether youth from different backgrounds build social capital in the same way and whether they receive the same returns to that capital. We examine the creation of and returns to social capital in family and school settings on academic achievement, measured as standardized test scores, for white boys, black boys, white girls, and black girls who were seniors in high school in the United States. Our findings suggest that while youth in different groups build social capital in largely the same way, differences exist by race and sex as to how family social capital affects academic achievement. Girls obtain greater returns to family social capital than do boys, but no group receives significant returns to school social capital after controlling for individual- and school-level characteristics.

Can Social Capital Protect Adolescents from Delinquent Behavior, Antisocial Attitudes, and Mental Health Problems?

“…Research looking at both children and adolescents finds that social capital in both the family and the school is associated with greater math and reading achievement (Dufur et al, 2013a;, 2001b (Morgan & Sørensen, 1999). These patterns hold for both boys and girls, and for both white and minority students (Dufur et al, 2016a…”

“…Social capital refers to relationships among actors, as well as resources that pass across the ties that connect them (Coleman 1988;1990). Like financial capital and human capital, social capital can be exchanged to facilitate a range of social outcomes (Dufur, et al, 2016a;Parcel & Bixby, 2016;Parcel, Dufur, & Zito, 2010). While social capital can be conceptualized both as relationships among individuals and as relationships between individuals and institutional actors, we focus here primarily on the social capital created and exchanged between individual youth and other individual actors in their lives.…”

“…Following Coleman's (1988) articulation of how parents must invest in social capital connections with their children that allow for the flow of human capital from parent to child, scholars have articulated a number of ways parents might build social capital at home. Family social capital is comprised of the bonds between parents and children, which include the time and attention parents spend interacting with children, investment in their activities, and promotion of their well-being (Dufur et al, 2016a;Dufur, Parcel, & Troutman, 2013;Kim & Schneider, 2005). Such interactions can begin at birth, and are refreshed through childhood and adolescence as parents monitor and enhance children's activities and engage in concerted cultivation of desirable outcomes (Lareau, 2011).…”

“…In addition to social capital built specifically between parents and their children, there is considerable empirical evidence that children build and use social capital through the social ties they and their parents have with neighbors, church cocongregants, school personnel, family friends, and work colleagues (Crosnoe, 2004;Dufur, Parcel, & McKune, 2008, Dufur et al, 2015Dufur et al, 2016a;Hoffmann & Dufur, 2008;Johnson et al, 2001;, 2001b. These connections illustrate bridging social capital (Putnam, 2000; see also Granovetter's [1977;1983] Parcel et al, 2010).…”

Adapting the Friends of the Children programme for child welfare system‐involved families

“…Having Friends take an even more active role in supporting relationship building between children and bio family members, foster caregivers, siblings, and other caring adults, potentially through developing clearer expectations and procedures for Friends interacting with and providing networking opportunities for all involved parties, could be a particularly fruitful strategy for helping bolster youth outcomes. Supporting the development of social networks has been found to be particularly helpful in promoting achievement for youth of colour from low socioeconomic status families, especially boys (Dufur, Parcel, Hoffmann, & Braudt, ). This is meaningful for the FOTC context given that all FOTC children live in poverty and 86% are children of colour.…”