Antiracism Socialization and School-Level Political Engagement of Adolescents: The Influence of Teachers, Peers, and Families

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 1:45 pm - Gold 2
  In Roundtable Session: Mentorship, Antiracism, and Fugitive Literacies in Youth Justice Work

Abstract

Schools are central to youth civic development, yet little research has examined how school-based antiracism socialization shapes students’ political engagement within school contexts. Using longitudinal data from 1,230 adolescents across 44 states, this study tested conditional change models to assess whether antiracism socialization by teachers, peers, and families predicted students’ interest, efficacy, opportunities, and likelihood of political action in schools. Teacher socialization was significantly associated with all four outcomes, while peer and family effects were more domain-specific. Findings suggest that educators who engage students in critical antiracist learning may foster conditions for meaningful school-level civic participation. These results highlight schools as a critical site for developing youth political agency and imagining more just educational futures through antiracist practice.

Authors

• Emily Maurin-Waters, University of California - Los Angeles

• M. Alejandra Arce, University of California - Riverside

• Jada Cheek, University of California - Santa Cruz

• Christopher Wegemer, University of California - Los Angeles

• Laura Wray-Lake, University of California - Los Angeles

• Elan Hope, Policy Research Associates