Happiness-Oriented Parents: An Alternative Perspective on Privilege and Choosing Schools

Autor/inn/en	Debs, Mira; Kafka, Judith; Makris, Molly Vollman; Roda, Allison
Titel	Happiness-Oriented Parents: An Alternative Perspective on Privilege and Choosing Schools
Quelle	In: American Journal of Education, 129 (2023) 2, S.145-176 (32 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0195-6744
DOI	10.1086/723066
Schlagwörter	Parents; Advantaged; Power Structure; Psychological Patterns; Emotional Response; Urban Areas; School Choice; Competition; Parent Attitudes; Selection Criteria; New York (New York); Connecticut (Hartford) + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Eltern; Emotionales Verhalten; Urban area; Stadtregion; Choice of school; Schulwahl; Wettkampf; Elternverhalten; Selection criterion; Auslesekriterium
Abstract	Purpose: Research on privileged parents, defined here as those with the economic, social, and educational resources to navigate school choice processes to their advantage, often depicts such parents as anxious about maintaining social mobility, leading them to "opportunity hoard" desirable or academically competitive schools in ways that exclude other families. In contrast, we identify a subset of privileged parents in urban settings that we term "happiness-oriented parents" who seek schools that prioritize their child's social-emotional happiness. Research Methods: Using a qualitative meta-analysis combining seven studies conducted by the authors in New York City; Hartford, Connecticut; and a small East Coast city between 2012 and 2021, we reanalyzed interview data from semistructured interviews with 106 privileged parents who have the ability to access and navigate a range of school choice options. Findings: We found a happiness orientation in a diverse group of privileged parents (40% identified as Black, Latinx, Asian American, or multiracial, and the remaining 60% were white). Although these parents were choosing a range of school options in different contexts and they identified different criteria as important to cultivating happiness, they consistently (1) centered happiness, (2) chose for social-emotional and noncompetitive academic factors, and (3) saw this choice as different from the norm. Implications: In identifying this repeated but understudied phenomenon, we consider that happiness-oriented parents' choices might affect a range of education policy changes and outcomes. In the case of our studies, we examine the potential of these parents as allies in school integration efforts. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01