“We Belong Here”: Identities, Family, Sense of Belonging, and Persistence in Latinx First-Generation College Students’ Educational Journeys

Abstract

Schools often perceive Latinx youth as disengaged and even dangerous. However, they and their parents often have high educational aspirations and view college as the pathway to economic mobility. This mixed-methods cross-sectional study investigated the roles of sense of belonging at the university, ethnic-racial identity (ERI), perceptions of ERI discrimination, and family emotional support in first-generation (FG) college students' academic self-efficacy and well-being, as indexed by depressive symptomatology. Multiple regression analyses showed that only sense of belonging at the university and the belonging subscale of ERI significantly predicted academic self-efficacy and depression symptomatology. However, the qualitative analyses revealed the importance of siblings for Latinx FG college students' academic self-efficacy, mental health, and future career and life goals.

The Role of Family, Friends, and Colleagues Supporting Workers and Learners Navigating College

“…Workers and learners alongside their siblings and cousins engaged in knowledge brokering and shared strategies that were based on their own college experiences (Delgado, 2023;Jusinski, 2019;Yosso, 2005). These sources of information and strategies shared by their siblings and cousins allowed workers and learners to better navigate higher education (Brookover et al, 2021;Delgado, 2023;Jones, 2015;Roksa et al, 2020;Takimoto et al, 2021;Yosso, 2005).…”

Predictors for growth mindset and sense of belonging in college students

“…Won et al (2021) find similar evidence that students lacking a sense of belonging are less likely to engage in helpseeking behaviors for their coursework. Takimoto et al (2021) find evidence that sense of belonging among Latinx college students is essential to their motivation and academic selfefficacy.…”

What does it mean to belong? An interdisciplinary integration of theory and research on belonging

“…A politics of belonging reveals how privileged access to critical social resources and networks, like cultural guides (e.g., mentors, parents) who are familiar with the college setting, affords greater ability to maneuver through institutional spaces and challenges and to feel a sense of place within those institutions (Cooper, 2011; Jack, 2016; Laiduc & Covarrubias, 2022; Lareau, 2015; Yee, 2016). Institutional efforts can include recognizing the social capital that marginalized students already possess, including deep ties to home communities, and leveraging these ties for enhanced learning (Covarrubias, 2021; Covarrubias et al., 2022; Rios‐Aguilar et al., 2011; Tachine et al., 2017; Takimoto et al., 2021; Yosso, 2005). They can also include creating opportunities for marginalized students to build more social capital by connecting with others, like through counterspaces (Keels, 2020).…”