Equity in Higher Education Participation: A Prospective Analysis of Adolescent Social and Ethnic Identities

• In Event: Ethnic Identities, Critical Consciousness, and College Choices of Youth of Color

Abstract

Little attention has been paid to understanding adolescent socioemotional characteristics that are associated with a college-going culture for minoritized youth. This research project takes a social identity and ethnic-racial identity lens in examining predictors of later post-secondary enrollment for minoritized youth. It examines: 1) whether the strength of adolescent ethnic-racial identity influence later participation in post-secondary education; and 2) whether adolescent trajectories of self-efficacy, stereotype threat, and hope moderate social identity and its influence on post-secondary outcomes. Two existing data sets are used: the AACS, a longitudinal mixed-methods study (2009-2013) in an ethnically diverse, low socioeconomic city (N=1,044 youth); and six years of higher education enrollment data from the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC), in addition to interviews for qualitative analysis.

Authors

• Margaret Z. Booth, Bowling Green State University

• Audrey Conway Roberts, Bowling Green State University