Matching Items (2)
Description
Currently, Latino youth are reporting greater academic achievement compared to prior decades; however, they continue to drop out of high school at higher rates compared to their peers. Given that Latino youth will soon take on adult roles in society, it is important to explore resources that can help them reach their academic potential, while also considering ethnic-racial discrimination as a barrier. Prior work has highlighted the benefits that family ethnic socialization experiences (FES), and having an informed understanding of ones’ ethnic-racial identity (ERI achievement) can provide for Latino youths’ academic adjustment. However, additional work is needed to examine contextual factors that may inform Latino parents’ FES engagement. Furthermore, limited work has explored the variability in how Latino youth experience these and other cultural resources, and in turn, how they inform youths’ academic adjustment. In Study 1, I explored whether Mexican-origin mothers’ and fathers’ workplace discrimination informed youths’ academic adjustment via parent-adolescent relationship quality, mothers’ and fathers’ FES, and youths’ ERI. Findings suggest that mothers and fathers who experience more frequent workplace discrimination engage in more FES, and mothers’ (but not fathers’) FES was associated with youths’ higher ERI achievement. Furthermore, greater mother-adolescent conflict was associated with lower academic adjustment. Overall, findings have implications for understanding how youths’ developmental competencies are informed by their familial relationships, and their parents’ experiences with workplace discrimination.
In Study 2, I utilized person-centered analyses to examine whether distinct typologies emerged based on Latino youths’ experiences with FES, ERI, and emotional support from Latino and non-Latino peers. Findings revealed three profiles of cultural resources. Furthermore, youth who reported the highest levels of all cultural resources demonstrated better academic adjustment compared to youth with low to moderate levels of resources, but not compared to youth with more moderate levels of resources. Finally, profile membership moderated the association between youths’ ethnic-racial discrimination and academic adjustment; however, the profile that provided protective effects varied by academic adjustment indicator. Overall, findings provide a nuanced understanding regarding the promotive and protective effects that cultural resource profiles can have for youths’ academic adjustment.
ContributorsMartinez-Fuentes, Stefanie (Author) / Updegraff, Kimberly A (Thesis advisor) / Umaña-taylor, Adriana J (Thesis advisor) / White, Rebecca M.B. (Committee member) / Bradley, Robert (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
Description
This action research investigated the predictors of academic adjustment, as measured by grade point average in the first year and persistence to completion, as measured by graduating on time, among undergraduate students at the School of Entrepreneurship and Business Innovation, the University of Guyana, from 2018 - 2022. The experiences of students in a chosen program were also examined to provide a qualitative deep dive into the tertiary journey of undergraduate students, using the self-efficacy framework to map this journey. Multiple regression and logistic regression analyses were conducted to investigate the effect of age, gender, geographic location, and academic preparation on academic adjustment and persistence to completion. The models explained 15% and 13% of the variance, respectively, in academic adjustment and persistence to completion. Geographic location and academic preparation proved to be significant predictors of academic adjustment while age, gender and academic preparation increased the likelihood of persisting to completion. While qualitative findings substantiated the role of academic preparation, students also spoke of the role of peer and familial relationships, opportunities for social modeling and the design of the chosen program which largely met the parameters of social persuasion as being integral to their adjustment and subsequent completion. In keeping with the principles of action research, students participated in a seminar on self-efficacy for university and beyond. The seminar, which was well received by students, introduced them to the concept, in a format that allowed for discussion and reinforced the importance of managing physical and emotional states at university and beyond.
ContributorsConnelly, Aletha Maria (Author) / Smith, Stephanie (Thesis advisor) / Basile, Carol (Committee member) / Ross, Lydia (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023