Perceptions of School Climate and School Adjustment of Children With a Migration Background

Perceptions of school climate and school adjustment of children with a migration background

Maja Schachner

Peter Noack Fons Van de Vijver

9.6% of pupils in German schools do not hold a German passport

64% of under 5-year olds in cities like Stuttgart have a migration background

The setting

Increasing diversity in German schools

BUT

Tilburg, 08/04/2011Cross-Cultural Psychology Symposium

Poor integration in German schools

Cross-Cultural Psychology SymposiumTilburg, 08/04/2011

There is a considerable over-representation of ethnic minority children in lower track schools

On average children with a migration background seem to perform poorer than mainstream German children half a school year behind on average

Even in ethnically mixed schools they are often poorly integrated amongst their German class mates and feel isolated

The Acculturation Framework

Acculturation Conditions

Acculturation Outcomes

Cultural adoption

Cultural maintenance

Acculturation Orientations

Psychological well-being

(psychological distress, mood states, feelings of

acceptance, and satisfaction)

Socioculturalcompetence in ethnic

culture(interaction with

conationals, maintenance of

culturally appropriate skills and behaviors)

Characteristics of the receiving society

(e.g., discrimination, opportunity structures)

Characteristics of the society of origin

(objective, perceived)

Personal characteristics

Characteristics of the immigrant group

(objective, perceived)

Socioculturalcompetence in

mainstream culture(interaction with hosts, acquisition of culturally appropriate skills and

behaviors)

Arends-Tth & Van de Vijver, 2006


School climate reasearch


school climate as a microcontext shaping pupils interethnic attitudes (e.g. Gniewosz & Noack, 2008; Verkuyten & Thijs, 2001, 2002)

Research linking school climate with psychological and performance outcomes (e.g. Kupermic, Leadbeater, Emmons & Blatt, 1997)

But: Mostly focus on particular ethnic group and

/ or broad comparison of groups, intergroup relations

rather than acculturation perspective

Hypotheses


Acculturation Conditions

Acculturation Outcomes

Acculturation Orientations

Personal antecedents

Parental antecedents

School context

Cultural adoption

Cultural maintenance

Psychological (and) schooladjustment

Sample


Sample descriptives

1186 pupils with a migration background attending German secondary schools (Mage= 11.02; SDage=.89)

97% born in Germany or immigrated < 6 years old

82% of pupils with both parents from another country, 18% with one parent from Germany

91 countries of origin


Scales - IVs

personal antecedents cultural distance (adapted from Galchenko & Van de Vijver, 2007) Sex

parental antecedents SES (Currie et al., 2008 & Albert, Hurrelmann & Quenzel, 2010) parents adoption expectation (adapted from Arends-Tth & Van de Vijver, 2007) parents maintenance expectation (adapted from Arends-Tth & Van de Vijver,

2007) parents interest in school life (newly developed)

school context diversity friendly climate: Expectations regarding cultural maintenance and

integration, openness to diversity, multiculturalism in curriculum (partly adapted from Arends-Tth & Van de Vijver, 2007; partly newly developed)

discrimination / assimilation climate (adapted from Berry, Phinney, Sam & Vedder, 2006; Arends-Tth & Van de Vijver, 2007; Jugert, Noack & Rutland, in press)


Overall reliability was good (.70 < < .86), except for SES (=.31)

Scales - DVs

acculturation orientation: mainstream orientation (adapted from Arends-Tth & Van de Vijver, 2007; Phinney,

1992) ethnic orientation (adapted from Arends-Tth & Van de Vijver, 2007; Phinney,

1992)

outcome well-being: Attachment to school, academic and social self-concept and general life

satisfaction(Berry, Phinney, Sam & Vedder, 2006; Diener, Emmons, Larsen & Griffin, 1985; Marsh, 1989; Schne, Dickhuser, Spinath & Stiensmeier-Pelster, 2002)

psychological problems: Physiological stress and depressivity (Berry, Phinney, Sam & Vedder, 2006)

behavioural problems: Disruptive behaviour and delinquency (adapted from McCarthy & Hoge, 1987; Jenkins, 1999)


Overall reliability was good (.74 < < .94),

Results


Path model final model


culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation

diversityfriendlyclimate

parents maintenanceexpectation

parents interest in school life

discrimination/ assimilation

climate

pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt

well-being

psychologicalproblems

behaviouralproblems

outcomes

N=1010 after deleting cases with more than 20% missing variables

model fit:2(21, N = 1010) = 54.409, p = 0.000; AGFI = .964; TLI = .944; CFI = .985; RMSEA = .040 (90% CI: 0.0270.053)

mainstreamorientation

ethnicorientation

sex(male)

Path model complete mediation


culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation





climate

pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt

sex(male)



culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation





climate

pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt


ethnicorientation

sex(male)



sex(male)

culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation





climate

pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt


ethnicorientation

well-being


behaviouralproblems

outcomes

behaviouralproblems




culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation




pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt

well-being

outcomes


climate

-.10***

-.07**


ethnicorientation

sex(male)

-.04

p=.08

behaviouralproblems




culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation




pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt

well-being

outcomes


climate

.09***

.05***

.54***

-.14***

.10***

-.09**

.57***


ethnicorientation

sex(male)

behaviouralproblems




culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation



pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

ts

well-being

outcomes

.12***

-.12***

.10***


ethnicorientation

diversity friendly climate


climatesch

oo

l co

nte

xt

sex(male)

behaviouralproblems




culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation




pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt

well-being

outcomes


climate


ethnicorientation

.25***

.21***

sex(male)



culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation




pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt


ethnicorientation


climate

well-being


behaviouralproblems

outcomes

.82***

-.12**

-.35***

sex(male)

Path model partial mediation


culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation





climate

pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt


ethnicorientation

well-being


behaviouralproblems

outcomes

.30***

-.18***

sex(male)

Path model partial mediation



ethnicorientation

well-being

psychological problems

behavioural problems

outcomes

culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation

diversity friendly climate




climate

pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt

sex(male)

.23***

.19***

-.18***

.23***

.18***

-.12***

behaviouralproblems


Final model proportions of variance explained


*= % of variance explained by combined predictors

46%*

38%*

79%*

21%*

culturaldistance

SES

parents adoption

expectation





climate

pers

on

al

an

tece

den

tsp

are

nta

l an

tece

den

tssc

ho

ol co

nte

xt


ethnicorientation

well-being

outcomes

16%*

27%*

sex(male)

Conclusions

Out of the personal antecedents, sex played a particular role with regards to the negative outcomes

Out of the parental antecedents, parents acculturation expectations strongly predicted own acculturation orientations -> projection?

Parents interest in school life seemed to be related to all outcomes

Diversity relevant aspects of the school climate can explain psychological adjustment of pupils even when personal and parental factors are taken into account

Positive aspects of the school climate seem to be mostly linked to positive outcomes

Negative aspects of the school climate seem to have a broader effect but are also directly linked to negative outcomes

Overall, the model is better at explaining positive than negative outcomes -> because the former are more common?


Thank You!


Comments or suggestions?

Discussion


Maja SchachnerThe settingPoor integration in German schoolsThe Acculturation FrameworkSchool climate reasearchHypothesesSampleSample descriptivesScales - IVsScales - DVsResultsPath model final modelPath model complete mediationPath model complete mediationPath model complete mediationPath model complete mediationPath model complete mediationPath model complete mediationPath model complete mediationPath model complete mediationPath model partial mediationPath model partial mediationFinal model proportions of variance explainedConclusionsFoliennummer 25Discussion

Perceptions of School Climate and School Adjustment of Children With a Migration Background

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