Family Capital, Learning Engagement, and Students’ Higher Education Gains: An Empirical Study in Mainland China

Shutao Wang and Cui Huang
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Shutao Wang: College of Education, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
Cui Huang: School of Public Affairs, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 21, 1-12

Abstract: This study aimed to determine whether learning engagement plays a mediating effect on the relationship between family capital and students’ higher education gains in mainland China. We used family capital, learning engagement, and higher education gains as measures and analyzed data using a structural equation model. Data were collected from 1334 students at a Chinese university. The results show that family cultural capital had the most significant effect on students’ learning engagement, while economic capital also played a positive role, and social capital had no significant impact. Learning engagement played a mediating role in the relationship between cultural capital and higher education gains, as did the relationship between economic capital and higher education gains. However, learning engagement did not have a mediating effect on the relationship between social capital and higher education gains. Our results show that we should focus on the importance of students’ learning engagement, improve the cultural capital of disadvantaged groups, and provide financial support for students from low-income families.

Keywords: economic capital; social capital; cultural capital; learning engagement; higher education gains (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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