Family background and classroom belonging among adolescent students in Finland

We study whether a family’s economic situation and parental educational level are associated with classroom belonging among students in comprehensive secondary, upper secondary general and upper secondary vocational education in Finland. We also study whether there are educational-level differences in this possible association. We use survey data from the Finnish School Health Promotion study from 2017 (N = 114,528). We conduct random effect linear probability models with schools as the second-level grouping variable. The results show that family’s low economic situation predicts a higher probability of lack of sense of classroom belonging in Finland, despite the country having one of the world’s most equal educational systems and comparably low economic inequality. Neither mother’s nor father’s educational level has any association. A family’s low economic situation seems to predict the lack of a sense of belonging most strongly in comprehensive secondary education and most weakly in upper secondary vocational education. Our results slightly support the proposed significance of context-specific hierarchies in determining the association between economic resources and sense of belonging. A family having a poor economic situation is not reflected in the sense of classroom belonging as strongly in schools where students have a low average economic situation compared to those where students have a high average economic situation. We suggest measures, in addition to alleviating economic inequalities, to support the sense of school belonging, especially for low-income students.

Psychological Well-Being and Social Competence During Adolescence: Longitudinal Association Between the Two Phenomena

Despite previous research on adolescence points to an association between social competence and well-being, limited knowledge is available. Most studies have documented a one-way pattern of influence, although reciprocity has also been suggested. However, they mainly use a cross-sectional design, do not focus on psychological well-being, and do not use integrative and multidimensional constructs. From a eudaimonic approach to well-being and situation-specific to social competence, this study aimed to: (1) explore the factorial structure of the dimensions assessed; (2) analyse the longitudinal relationship between psychological well being and social competence during adolescence; and (3) examine psychological well-being and social competence levels and their stability over time. The sample consisted of 662 adolescents aged between 14 and 16 years old (Time 1 Mage = 14.63; SD = 0.64; 51% girls). Structural equation analysis confirmed the existence of second-order factors, showing evidence of a positive and bidirectional relationship between psychological well-being and social competence. Results also revealed medium–high levels in both constructs, which remained stable over time. These findings highlight the importance of promoting both psychological well-being and social competence to achieve successful, healthy development.