Dropping out of high school: Effects of close and distant friendships |
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| Authors: | William Carbonaro Joseph Workman |
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| Institution: | 1. University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Department of Criminal Justice, United States;2. Louisiana State University, Department of Sociology, United States;1. European Research Centre on Migration and Ethnic Relations (ERCOMER), Utrecht University, Padualaan 14, 3584CH Utrecht, The Netherlands;2. Research Unit Migration, Integration, Transnationalization, Social Science Research Centre Berlin (WZB), Reichpietschufer 50, 10785 Berlin, Germany;3. Institute of Economic and Social Research (WSI), Hans-Böckler-Str. 39, 40476 Düsseldorf, Germany;1. Department of Sociology, University at Albany, 1400 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12222, USA;2. Department of Sociology, Brigham Young University, 2045 JFSB, Provo, UT 84604, USA |
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| Abstract: | Prior research highlights the role of friends in influencing whether a student completes high school. Students who drop out tend to have fewer friends, as well as friends who are less oriented toward school success. We distinguish between close and distant friendships by developing a theoretical framework which predicts close and distant friends likely have distinct effects on dropping out. Close friendships provide valuable emotional support, and forging numerous close friendships at school should decrease one’s risk of dropping out. In contrast, the characteristics of distant friends help shape students’ social identities and beliefs about “what’s normative.” Our analyses of the Add Health data set confirm our expectations. Students with more close friendships are less likely to drop out, but close friends’ characteristics are unrelated to dropping out. Distant relationships (as measured by affect and regularity of interaction) with friends who have a high risk of dropping out significantly increase a student’s own risk of dropping out. |
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| Keywords: | Dropout Peer effects Social identity |
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