Do You Like Me as Much as I Like You? Friendship Reciprocity and Its Effects on School Outcomes among Adolescents

Social scientists have long suspected that friendship dyads are not always reciprocated and those that are reciprocated are likely to be more intimate. Close friendships may provide youth with an environment conducive to healthy development and educational outcomes. Using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), a nationally representative data set of youth, we examine how attributes of respondents and their friends affect the odds of reciprocity between adolescents. Asian Americans and females are the most likely to have reciprocated friendships. Interracial friendships are less likely to be reciprocated than intraracial friendships. Further, adolescents with reciprocated friendships report higher levels of school belonging. Finally, reciprocity and school belonging both exert independent effects on academic performance. Friendship reciprocity is an important indicator of social support above and beyond the numbers of friends reported by youth.     

Extracurricular activities and teens’ alcohol use: The role of religious and secular sponsorship

Much research has found that more religious youth are less likely to engage in riskier health-related behaviors. However, very little research has examined the role that religion may play in shaping the health-related behaviors of secular youth. There is reason to think that more and less religious youth may gain some health-related benefits from involvement with religious organizations through activities such as basketball and volunteering. Using two waves of data from the National Study of Youth and Religion, this study finds that involvement in religion-supported secular activities is associated with less alcohol use for all involved teens. The number of friends who belong to a religious youth group, in part, explains the relationship. Conversely, network overlap between parents and teens, the number of friends who drink or use drugs, and having an adult confidant from a religious group are not mechanisms that mediate the relationship.     

Schooling, Work, and Idleness among Mexican and Non-Latino White Adolescents

This article examines the activities of Mexican and non-Latino white adolescents using multilevel data from the 1990 U.S. Census. A primary aim of the research is to evaluate whether the classic assimilation model or a model of segmented assimilation best describes the generational pattern of schooling among Mexican-origin youth. Results show that foreign-born Mexicans are more likely to drop out of school than their native-born counterparts, but the behavior of the foreign born depends upon age at immigration. Third(+)-generation Mexicans are more likely to drop out of school than both second-generation Mexicans and non-Latino whites. Youth residing in the central city or in MSA/PMSAs with unfavorable economic characteristics are more likely to drop out of school than others. Consistent with a segmented assimilation model, the generational pattern of schooling for Mexican youth differs for those living in the central city and those living outside the central city.     

Ethnoracial patterns of schooling and work among adolescents: Implications for Mexican immigrant incorporation

This paper investigates Mexican immigrant incorporation by examining labor force participation and schooling among Mexican-origin adolescents in the United States. Theoretical perspectives on immigrant incorporation, labor migration-related cultural repertoires and adolescent development considered together imply that studying ethnoracial differences in schooling among adolescents without taking work into account can yield mis-leading pictures of Mexican-origin non-high school completion patterns, thus hampering the assessment of incorporation theories. To avoid this, we analyze Mexican-origin generational differences in the relationship between schooling and workforce participation among adolescents compared to non-Hispanic whites and blacks. Using micro-data from the 2000 US Census, we find that Mexican immigrant boys who are not enrolled in school are more likely to be in the workforce, and conversely that those who are enrolled in school are much less likely to be in the workforce, compared to whites and blacks. Such relative differences in school/work specialization, as predicted, diminish across Mexican-origin generations. Moreover, based on supplementary analyses, we find similar patterns for a cohort of young adults who failed to complete high school during the 1990s. Overall, the results are consistent with the idea that cultural orientations growing out of the nature and experience of Mexican labor migration are important for assessing school enrollment patterns among Mexican-origin youth and for gauging their implications for educational policy and immigrant-group incorporation.     

Informal mentoring and young adult employment

This study explores the role of informal mentoring (i.e., developing an important relationship with a non-parental adult) in the transition to full time employment among young adults (age 23–28). Multivariate analysis of the Add Health data reveals that mentoring is positively related to the likelihood of full time employment, and the relationship involves both selection and causation processes. Entrance into the world of work facilitates the development of mentoring relationships, especially among youth who identify work-related mentors after adolescence. These relationships have the potential for promoting attachment to the labor force. Mentoring relationships that develop outside of work settings and during adolescence have a positive impact on the odds of full time employment. The receipt of guidance and advice from mentors, as well as access to weak-tied mentoring relationships, teacher mentors, and friend mentors all contribute to the increased odds of employment in young adulthood. However, adolescent mentoring may be less effective among young women than it is among young men.     

Should Mom go back to school? Post-natal educational attainment and parenting practices

Although the relationship between educational attainment and parenting practices is well documented, it is typically examined at only one point in time. What happens if mothers acquire more education after the birth of their children: do they alter their parenting practices? Panel data models based on longitudinal data from ECLS-K indicate that changes in mother’s educational attainment are positively associated with increases in parental school involvement, having books in the home, and participating in non-academic family activities, but not with attitudes toward discipline. Although post-natal maternal education does not change all aspects of parenting, our findings are broadly consistent with the theory of cultural mobility and provide insights into the extent of socio-cultural mobility in contemporary American society.     

Protective factors against juvenile delinquency: Exploring gender with a nationally representative sample of youth

Youth's social bonds' with conventional social institutions (e.g., family and school) and parental management of youth's leisure time represent two dimensions of suppressants against juvenile delinquency. Using Multivariate regression, this paper assesses these two dimensions of factors simultaneously on youth's aggressive and non-aggressive delinquency, and examines if their effects are gender sensitive. Findings suggest that girls have significantly lower involvement in both aggressive and non-aggressive delinquency than boys. However, girls are disproportionately involved in non-aggressive delinquency. Parental monitoring protects boys and girls distinctively on aggressive delinquency; this factor has a more pronounced inhibitory effect on girls' aggressive behavior. This study elucidates that there is a gendered pattern in adolescent delinquency, and that gender moderates the effect of some protective factor.     

Education and fertility decline in China during transitional times: A cohort approach

We examine the effect of education on birth outcomes in China during the period of economic transition and large-scale changes in mass education and population control measures. Retrospective micro data from the 2008 Chinese General Social Survey and discrete time event history analysis are used to examine the fertility history of several cohorts of women born between 1945 and 1968. We observed births at different parities, distinguishing the education effect across cohorts and rural/urban sectors. We found differences across cohorts consistent with unique features of the Chinese context, such as the radical egalitarian era of educational expansion, and the Reform Era. We also found that despite the increase in some education levels across cohorts (e.g., junior high school in rural areas), birth chances were more likely to be concentrated among less educated women, suggesting the impact of factors related to returns to education and hence the desire for children.     

How do they do it? The immigrant paradox in the transition to adulthood

How do children of immigrants consistently outperform children of native-born U.S. parents, in spite of lower familial resources? Using the Transition to Adulthood Study of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, children of immigrant and native-born parents completing high school in 2005–13 are followed as they move into the young adult years. Children of immigrants are more likely to enroll in college, be employed or in school, and less likely to have a criminal record as young adults or to have a child than children of nonimmigrants. This is not a result of immigrant parentage but due primarily to greater parental educational expectations; immigrants enjoy a differential return to parental expectations for boys' college enrollment as well. Reading skills and activity patterns in the secondary school years also contribute to better outcomes. Children of immigrants are better able to translate their reading comprehension skills to college or employment later on.     

Me and Jasmina down by the schoolyard: An analysis of the impact of ethnic diversity in school on the trust of schoolchildren

Earlier research has indicated a negative relationship between ethnic diversity and trust. Whereas previous analyses have been carried out at the country, city or neighbourhood level, this paper adds to the literature by analyzing the impact of ethnic diversity on generalized trust in others and out-group trust in the primary school context. The question of the impact of ethnic diversity in school on the trust of schoolchildren is addressed by drawing on a unique survey of children with immigrant and native Danish backgrounds, respectively, in the last three grades of primary school in Denmark. The survey design holds several qualities strengthening the potential for drawing inference about the impact of ethnic diversity in school on trust. The results of the analysis do not confirm the negative relationship between ethnic diversity and trust found in earlier research. In the primary school setting, ethnic diversity does not affect generalized trust and even has a positive impact on out-group trust of native Danish pupils (i.e., their trust in immigrants).     

中国比较文学的现代语境与危机问题

比较文学的“危机论”层出不穷 ,但真正的问题意识应切实正视自身的状况。对中国比较文学来说 ,它的真实问题源自其现代处境 ,在中国进入现代转型和中西方文化遭遇冲突时期而迫切需要比较的形势下 ,它并未得到正常发展 ,反而阻力重重 ,直至被彻底禁绝 ,然后又突然兴起、迅速扩张 ,以至它的知识学基础未能充分得到奠定。这造成了对比较文学的误解 ,忽略了它作为学科的特征 ,即对文化中心主义的超越性和世界文学的理想性。目前中国比较文学的任务不是在条件尚不成熟的情况下急于创立学派 ,而是要正确处理好前沿发展、分支衍生和基础学理建设之间的关系。     

Growing educational differentials in the retreat from marriage among Korean men

Applying discrete-time hazard models to person-year data constructed from 1% microdata sample of 2010 Korean Census, we explore how men's education affects their transition to first marriage, and how the relationship between education and marriage has changed across three 10-year birth cohorts of Korean men born from 1946 to 1975. Drawing on Oppenheimer's theory of marriage and review of changing educational and economic contexts of Korean men, we develop a hypothesis on growing educational differentials in marriage. We find that the high educated delay marriage until later ages but catch up to the extent to which they are eventually more likely to marry than the low educated. There is a continued trend across cohorts toward the delay and avoidance of marriage at all educational levels. However, the trend of retreat from marriage has been more substantial for men with high school or less education compared to men with a university degree, leading to growing educational gaps over time in marriage. Among the three cohorts, the youngest cohort, among which low educated men's economic prospects have particularly deteriorated due to rapid educational expansion and economic crisis, shows most pronounced decline in marriage.     

The academic attitudes of American teenagers, 1990–2002: Cohort and gender effects on math achievement

Using data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 and the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002, I compare the academic attitudes of high school students from Generation X and the Millennial Generation. I then analyze the effects these attitudes have on mathematics achievement test scores. Compared to the earlier group, students in the later cohort were less likely to indicate academic reasons for attending school and largely perceived their friends as being less engaged academically. Students in both cohorts whose friends held academic values experienced an increase in math scores. The more students in the earlier cohort disagreed that they came to school for academic reasons, the more their math scores decreased; this relationship did not appear for the later cohort. Females in each cohort showed stronger academic attitudes than males; additionally, believing that popularity was important was associated with lower test scores for females, but not males, in the Millennial cohort.     

Dropping out of high school: Effects of close and distant friendships

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.     

从政策应对到组织解决——试论国民党三大前后青年运动政策之转变及其困境

南京国民政府成立之后,对治下青年运动历经“清党”、“暂停”、“整理”等多个阶段,但收效甚微。与此同时,国民党方面也一直试图从青年团体组织结构入手,寻求彻底解决青年问题之途径。在总结以往经验基础上,1929年3月召开的国民党第三次全国代表大会作出决议,将今后青年运动限定在“学校以内之自治生活”。国民党青年运动政策的这一转变使得青年学生的活动范围被限于校内而不至形成区域乃至全国联合,从而对“五四”以来青年运动的既定模式产生重大影响。然而,就其实施情况而言,这一青年运动新政又使得国民党方面陷入更为深层的困境之中。     

Population migration and children’s school enrollments in China, 1990–2005

This paper examines the impact of migration on children’s school enrollment by analyzing the micro-data from Chinese population censuses in 1990 and 2000 and mini-census in 2005. We match school-age children (7–14 years old) with their parents, and examine how migration status and parents’ absence affect children’s school enrollment in urban China. We also compare rural–urban migrant children with their peers in both origin counties and destination districts. Results show that migrant children are less likely to be enrolled in school than urban local children and that children of rural registration status are particularly disadvantaged in school enrollment over the whole examined period in urban China. Rural–urban migrant children fare significantly worse than non-migrant children in both origins and destinations and noticeably they are even less likely than left-behind children to be enrolled in school. The likelihood of being enrolled in school increases for rural–urban migrant children as they spend more time in destinations.     

Extradyadic sex and union dissolution among young adults in opposite-sex married and cohabiting unions

This study investigates extradyadic sex (EDS) among contemporary opposite-sex married and cohabiting young adults and examines how EDS is associated with union dissolution. By analyzing data from 8301 opposite-sex spouses and cohabiters in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, we estimate the prevalence of self-reported EDS, reports of partners' EDS, and reports of mutual EDS (i.e., both partners' engagement in EDS). Roughly 1 in 4 respondents reported that either they, their partner or both engaged in EDS. Young men were more likely than women to self-report EDS, while young women were more likely to report partners' EDS. Relative to no EDS, partners' EDS was associated with union dissolution, but self-reported EDS and mutual EDS were not. A partner's EDS was also associated with union dissolution relative to self-reported EDS. Associations between a partner's EDS and dissolution were consistent among spouses and cohabiters and among men and women.     

A cluster analysis of service utilization and incarceration among homeless youth

Our paper examines service usage (e.g., shelter) as well as a typology of individuals who are most likely to use groupings of services among 249 homeless youth. Our results revealed that the majority of homeless young people have used food programs (66%) and street outreach (65%) on at least one occasion within the past year. Cluster analysis of services revealed four distinct groups: (1) basic survival service use, characterized by above average shelter, food, and outreach service use, but below average on counseling, substance abuse/mental health services, and incarceration; (2) multiple service use, which included above average use of all six services; (3) incarceration experience, characterized by above average incarceration experience, but below average use of all other five services; and (4) minimal service use, which included slightly above average use of counseling, but below average use of all other services. These findings have the potential to provide important information that may assist with targeting services to homeless youth.     

现代社区对青少年群体的教育与引导探析

青少年群体的教育和引导不仅是学校和家庭的责任,而是全社会的责任。在对青少年进行全方位教育和引导的过程中,社区由于它所具有的地理优势、时间优势、交往优势,社区影响和社区教育对青少年的教育和引导起着不可缺少的重要作用,而且是最直接、最具体的、潜移默化的。文章从青少年的特殊性入手,初步探讨了具有针对性的正确人生观、终身学习习惯、正确性知识、挫折承受力和健康心理的教育和引导方式。     

列宁青年观及其时代价值

列宁青年观是马克思主义青年观的坚持和发展,是紧密结合俄国革命和建设实际的产物,其主要内容有青年理想观、青年学习观、青年人才观和青年组织观,具有革命性、实践性和针对性等特征。列宁青年观不仅引导和激励了无数杰出青年在俄国革命和建设中顽强拼搏、建立不朽功勋,而且对于今天青年的成长和发展,在中国特色社会主义伟大实践中建功立业仍具有引领和指导价值。