Ethnic identity, perceived classmate support and general self-efficacy in ethnic minority adolescents in rural Chinese school settings

Angel Hor Yan Lai, Cheryl Hiu-kwan Chui, Jade Kin Yu Wong, Cynthia Tsz Ching Leung and Zhijun Chen

Children and Youth Services Review, 2022, vol. 137, issue C

Abstract: This study examines the associations among ethnic identity, perceived classmate support, and general self-efficacy in a group of hard-to-reach Yi ethnic minority adolescents. The sample comprises youths who have suffered from poverty and parental loss (n = 450, age 14–17, male = 23.3%) in Liangshan, rural China. Using Phinney's ethnic identity development theory, we take Yi adolescents as a case to conceptualize ethnic identity exploration and commitment as cultural assets that link the association between perceived classroom support and general self-efficacy. We used the structural equation modelling (SEM) technique to test our hypotheses. Age, gender, parental loss, and posttraumatic stress (PTSD) risk were included as covariates. Our findings show that: (1) Perceived classmate support was positively associated with general self-efficacy, but the effect was attenuated when ethnic identity exploration and commitment were included in the model; (2) Perceived classmate support was positively associated with ethnic identity exploration and commitment; (3) Ethnic identity exploration was positively related to general self-efficacy while classmate support was not, when accounting for the shared relationships among all three variables; (4) No associations were found between ethnic identity commitment and general self-efficacy; (5) The covariate of PTSD risk was positively associated with ethnic identity exploration and commitment. Our findings suggest a possible mediating role of ethnic identity exploration between perceived classmate support and general self-efficacy, indicating an avenue for future research. These results shift current narratives; from seeing ethnic minorities as vulnerable populations towards advocating for classmate support and ethnic identity as assets for positive development. The theoretical contributions of this study are also discussed.

Keywords: Ethnic identity; Early adolescent; Self-efficacy; Classmate support; China; Ethnic minority (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:137:y:2022:i:c:s0190740922001220

DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2022.106486

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