Abstract
Educational research has long noted the impact of parental involvement with the school on a student's educational success. Despite decades of research, only a few studies have attempted to identify factors that account for variations in parental involvement. In this study, we have employed Coleman's notion of social capital to study the effects of family structure and residence location on parental participation in school related activities. Based on a large stratified sample of Missouri parents, our analyses have demonstrated that parents from dual-parent families and parents who have lived in a school district for a long period of time tend to participate more than their respective counterparts. Further, parents living in nonmetropolitan-rural areas participate in school activities more than those who live in other communities, net of effects of parents' social and demographic characteristics. Also, parents' socioeconomic status (SES) exerts a greater impact on involvement in nonmetropolitan-rural than in other types of communities. Our analysis has concluded that favorable family structures and rural residence location facilitate parental involvement with the school.
Recommended Citation
Sun, Yongmin, Daryl Hobbs, William Elder, and Dongchu Sun. 1997. "The Effects of Residence Location on Parental Involvement with the School: A Contrast Between Nonmetropolitan Rural and Other Communities." Journal of Rural Social Sciences, 13(1): Article 3. Available at: https://egrove.olemiss.edu/jrss/vol13/iss1/3
Publication Date
12-31-1997
