Peer Norms as a Predictor of Academic Achievement: An Ecological Perspective

• In Event: 25.019 - Academic Engagement, Achievement, and Risk in Adolescence: School, Family, and Peer Predictors

Abstract

Academic achievement presents as a critical outcome variable in adolescence, where influence from peer values/norms has been documented. This study used multilevel modeling to analyze the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 dataset. Data included 15,362 sophomores within 752 public and private schools. The final model found that peer academic and job norms/values significantly predicted academic achievement, after controlling for the following significant student-level predictors: gender, family socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, and whether one has received special education services; and school-level predictors: socioeconomic status and school urbanicity. This study indicates that practitioners should account for peer influences in understanding student academic achievement in adolescence across diverse populations.

Authors

• Carmen Angelica Carrion, Georgia State University

• Sarah Elizabeth Kiperman, Georgia State University

• Audrey J. Leroux, Georgia State University