Is Fitting in at School Always Good? Gender Differences in Cardiovascular Activity Among African American Adolescents

• In Event: 70.026 - School Belonging, School Connection, and School Climate

Abstract

Biomarkers of emotional, physical, and cognitive states are rarely explored by education researchers, but may be useful for extending research linking students’ social experiences to their healthy functioning. In a sample of African American high school students, we found that patterns of cardiovascular activity are a function of students’ perceptions of how much they fit in with their peers. Importantly, these patterns differ markedly by gender. Students’ own conceptualizations of standing out and fitting in are used to contextualize these findings. This work represents an effort to think beyond the current borders of education research in hopes of substantially advancing discourse on the in-school experiences of African American adolescents in inner-city high schools.

Authors

• DeLeon Lavron Gray, North Carolina State University

• LaBarron K. Hill, Duke University

• Jason R. Wornoff, North Carolina State University

• Lauren H. Bryant, North Carolina State University

• Oriana T. Johnson, North Carolina State University

• Lisa Jackson, Virginia Commonwealth University