One of the most controversial and popular explanations for racial disparities in achievement in the US is that minorities experience an oppositional culture in which high-achievers are rejected by their peers because of their achievement and pro-school norms. These students then decrease their achievement to gain acceptance. Although several studies attempt to document this process, these studies are limited by their cross-sectional approach. To demonstrate a relationship between changes in achievement and changes in peer acceptance, a longitudinal approach is necessary. Using stochastic actor-based models for network and behavior dynamics, and data from two schools from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, this article shows how changes in achievement affect changes in social relationships and how changes in social relationships affect changes in achievement across a two year period. Results reveal important variation in the social sanctions imposed on minority adolescents for high-achievement. In the typical high school, Black students who increase their achievement are more likely to be dropped as friends. In spite of this evidence in support of an oppositional culture, social sanctions for high achievement do not lead to changes in achievement among minority populations.
Presented by:
Jennifer Flashman (Yale)
Date & time:
June 11, 2012 3:00 pm
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