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Two Functions of Peer Influence on Upper-secondary Education Application Behavior
Stockholm University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Sociology.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-0832-972X
2018 (English)In: Sociology of education, ISSN 0038-0407, E-ISSN 1939-8573, Vol. 91, no 1, p. 72-89Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Peers have a paradoxical influence on each other's educational decisions. On one hand, students are prone to conform to each other's ambitious educational decisions and, on the other hand, are discouraged from ambitious decisions when surrounded by successful peers. In this study I examine how peers influence each other's decision to apply to an academic track in upper-secondary education through these two functions of peer influence. The results show that students are more likely to conform to their in-group peers. However, discouraging effects are structured differently, whereby expectations about self- and peer achievement seem to be a mediating factor. This suggests that the point of reference varies with the mechanism mediating interpersonal influence together with characteristics of both peers and egos. The analysis benefits from rich population registers covering 13 full cohorts of Swedish students, facilitating controls for several sources of endogeneity, such as unobserved time-constant school and family effects.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2018. Vol. 91, no 1, p. 72-89
Keywords [en]
social contrast, conformity, application behavior, peer influence, educational decisions
National Category
Sociology (excluding Social Work, Social Psychology and Social Anthropology)
Research subject
Sociology
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:su:diva-152613DOI: 10.1177/0038040717746113ISI: 000419722300004OAI: oai:DiVA.org:su-152613DiVA, id: diva2:1180277
Available from: 2018-02-05 Created: 2018-02-05 Last updated: 2022-02-28Bibliographically approved
In thesis
1. Social Influence and Educational Decisions: Studies on Peer Influence in Secondary Education
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Social Influence and Educational Decisions: Studies on Peer Influence in Secondary Education
2018 (English)Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

This thesis examines the role of peers when students’ educational decisions are formed. The thesis uses rich administrative data from Sweden, which provides opportunities to follow students over different transitions in their educational career and assess the role of peers in different educational situations. The thesis consists of one introductory chapter and four empirical studies. Study I examines how peers influence each other’s applications to upper secondary education through two different influence functions, where students both conform to their peers’ ambitious decisions and simultaneously can be discouraged from ambitious decisions by high-achieving peers. Study II builds on the findings from Study I and examines if students who conform to their peers’ educational ambitions and enroll in ambitious and demanding educations are more prone to leave such educations since their applications potentially were too myopic when influenced by their peers. Study III examines how students’ decisions to apply to gender typical and gender atypical upper secondary educations were affected by their peers. The study additionally examines if students enrolled in atypical educations are more likely to leave the education and if such decisions are mediated by the peer composition in their upper secondary education. Study IV examines how an admission reform to upper secondary education, which increased the sorting of students on achievements, affected application behavior to different tertiary education.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Stockholm: Department of Sociology, Stockholm University, 2018. p. 33
Series
Stockholm studies in sociology, ISSN 0491-0885 ; 74
Keywords
Peer influence, educational decisions, school leaving, application behavior, reference group
National Category
Sociology (excluding Social Work, Social Psychology and Social Anthropology)
Research subject
Sociology
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:su:diva-160739 (URN)978-91-7797-492-5 (ISBN)978-91-7797-493-2 (ISBN)
Public defence
2018-11-16, William-Olssonsalen, Geovetenskapens hus, Svante Arrhenius väg 14, Stockholm, 13:00 (English)
Opponent
Supervisors
Note

At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 2: Manuscript. Paper 3: Manuscript. Paper 4: Manuscript.

Available from: 2018-10-24 Created: 2018-10-03 Last updated: 2022-02-26Bibliographically approved

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Rosenqvist, Erik

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