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Scholarship
Research Interest: Stratification and Inequality
The black-white gap in basic premarket skills remains a prominent cause of racial inequality in earnings (1). When blacks and whites have the same twelfth grade test scores, blacks are more likely than whites to complete college (2). Similarly, adequate schooling remains an obstacle for the progress of Latina/os. Therefore, if the American ‘creed of equal opportunity’ is to be inclusive of all groups, then factors that permit individuals to fully participate in American life must be unrelated to race. Reducing the racial achievement gap seems to be the best first step for attaining racial equality and realizing the democratic values U.S. laws/policies strive to achieve. Prominent explanations of racial academic disparities include genetic differences (3), which is no longer seriously considered given lack of empirical evidence (4), minorities' greater exposure to non-intact family structures (5), and various forms of spatial and economic disadvantage (6). Standardized tests have also been criticized for rigidity and failure to capture the overall academic experience (7), or for racial/ethnic biases (8). However, socioeconomic differences generally account for one-third of the gap, and the gap exists on non-test measures, even in middle-class suburban schools (9).
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Scholarship
My research agenda consists of five themes aimed at providing further understanding of social inequality. Each phase is described below. I also provide the list of studies from my research agenda that correspond to each phase. (Click here to see numbered references).
I. Racial Achievement Gap: The Dominant Explanation
I begin my research agenda by interacting with what is currently the dominant explanation for group differences in academic investment within the social sciences: the oppositional culture explanation (or resistance model) (10). The theory posits that the achievement gap occurs because some ethnic minorities perceive lower returns to education and fewer occupational opportunities than whites. Ogbu (10) argues that achievement motivation is rooted in beliefs that education improves chances for attaining better jobs and higher wages and social status. Because blacks and some Hispanics are involuntary minorities—people who interpret the incorporation of their group into the U.S. as forced by white Americans (i.e., dominant group)—they experience or perceive barriers to success for future employment and earnings due to persistent forms of racial discrimination and structural inequalities (i.e., job ceiling). These experiences / beliefs lead them to become disillusioned about the future and doubt the value of schooling. Consequently, they develop a culture oppositional to the dominant group and resist educational goals (e.g., good performance is regarded as "acting white"). This contrasts with the experience of voluntary minorities—groups that willingly move to the U.S.—who fail to adopt counterproductive school behaviors because they view education as the primary mechanism for upward mobility (Read more about the theory). Despite work by numerous scholars challenging the notion that an oppositional culture is prevalent among blacks, the theory remains popular among some researchers, educational practitioners, and the general public. The first phase of my research program is concerned with providing a rigorous and thorough assessment of the theory to determine whether researchers and policy makers should reconsider the extent to which they attribute blacks’ lower school achievement to a culture of school resistance.
Harris, Angel L. 2006. “I (Don’t) Hate School: Revisiting ‘Oppositional Culture’ Theory of Blacks’ Resistance to Schooling.” Social Forces 85: 797-834. (Read Article).
Harris, Angel L. 2008. “Optimism in the Face of Despair: Black-White Differences in Beliefs about School as a Means for Upward Social Mobility.” Social Science Quarterly 89:629-51. (Read Article).
Harris, Angel L., and Keith Robinson. 2007. “Schooling Behaviors or Prior Skills?: A Cautionary Tale of Omitted Variable Bias within the Oppositional Culture Theory” Sociology of Education 80:139-57. (Read Article).
Harris, Angel L. “Gender, Perceptions of Opportunity, and Investment in Schooling.” Forthcoming in Global Network on Inequality, edited by Paul Attewell and Katherine Newman, Oxford University Press. (Read Study).
Harris, Angel L. and Kris Marsh. “Is a Raceless Identity an Effective Strategy for Academic Success Among Blacks.” (Forthcoming, Social Science Quarterly).
Harris, Angel L., Jeremy Staff, and Ricardo Sabates. “Oppositional Culture Beyond the United States?: Perceptions of Discrimination and Academic Engagement within the United Kingdom.” (Under Review).
II. Potential Solutions to the Achievement Gap: Parents/Peers
While the first strand of my research program deals with understanding group disparities in schooling, in the second strand of my research I focus on strategies that might help reduce racial achievment gaps. An important part to finding soultions for the achievement gap is identifying other poential causes. I focus my attention on the role of parents and peers. Given previous research on the importance of parents in the schooling process, it is not surprising that parental involvement is one of the major goals of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)—the national legislation for closing racial differences in achievement by 2014 (see Section 1118). While this portion of the act is driven by the belief that families are critical for improving the achievement of inadequate performing students, there remains a dearth of knowledge on how parents respond to inadequate academic performance. Also, virtually no attention has been given to the potential impact these responses have on school achievement. While schools can enact strategies to handle inadequate performance such as recruiting and training high-quality teachers, or strengthening the quality of program instruction, it is less clear what measures parents can take to help their child improve academically. Another potential soultion might be found in the academic experience of Asian American students, who experience greater academic success. However, can this be attributed to an exposure to a more achievement - oriented culture from their parents and peers relative to other groups? This question represents the reciprocal to the resistance model which uses “bad culture” to explain Blacks’ lack of academic success. Can the academic success of some immigrant minorities be attributed to an immigration advantage?
Robinson, Keith and Angel L. Harris. “The Asian American Achievement Advantage: The Significance of Immigration, Parental Expectations, and Parent/Peer Influences.” (In Progress).
Robinson, Keith and Angel L. Harris. “Race, Parental Responses to Inadequate Achievement, and Academic Outcomes.” (Under Review)
Harris, Angel L., Monica Trujillo, and Kenneth Jamison. 2008. “Academic Outcomes among Latino/a and Asian Americans: An Assessment of the Immigration Effect.” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 620: 90-114. (Read Article).
III. The Importance of Youths' Aspirations
While the first and second strands of my research program focus on the causes and potential soultions to the racial achievement gap, the third strand of my research program deals with youths' aspirations. It is important to remember that youths are making important decisions about their future with the skills they have during adolescence. Therefore, while the focus on academic outcomes is critical, youths' aspirations should also receive substantial attention. As a sociologist who studies social inequlity and youths' transitions to adulthood, I was struck by the lack of research on the substantial number of youth in recent cohorts who do not report any occupational aspirations or report that they do not know what they "want to be" when they grow up. Increasing numbers of young people are facing uncertain combinations of education, training, and non-standard work arrangements (14). In this context, uncertainty may be beneficial if it leads to continued education, career development, and even enduring partnerships. In contrast, uncertainty may be detrimental if it involves prolonged education without the acquisition of a degree, residential dependence, and frequent movement from job to job in the secondary labor market. Furthermore, research suggests youths’ occupational plans are often based on little knowledge of job requirements (15). Some scholars have raised concern that youths give little thought to the steps and plans necessary to achieve their educational and occupational goals. Therefore, does uncertainty in aspirations vary by race? Is there a cost associated with uncertainty? Are aligned ambitions during adolescence important for shaping and constructing life paths and realizing long-term educational and occupational goals?
Jeremy Staff, Angel Harris, Ricardo Sabates, Laine Briddell. “Uncertainty in Early Occupational Aspirations: Role Exploration or Floundering?” (Revise and Resubmit at Social Forces).
Ricardo Sabates, Angel Harris, Jeremy Staff. “The Long-term Consequences of Misaligned Ambitions: Evidence from the 1970 British Cohort Study.” (Under Review).
Yates, Scott, Angel L. Harris, Ricardo Sabates, and Jeremy Staff. “Young People’s Ambition and Future Employment Outcomes in the United Kingdom.” (Under Review)
IV. Adolescent Development
Lacy, Karyn and Angel L. Harris. 2008. “Breaking the Class Monolith: Understanding Class Differences in Black Adolescents’ Attachment to Racial Identity.” Pp. 152-178 in Social Class: How does it Work?, edited by Dalton Conley and Annette Lareau. New York: Russell Sage Foundation Press. (Read Chapter).
Mahoney, Joseph L., Angel L. Harris, and Jacquelynne S. Eccles. 2006. “Organized Activity Participation, Positive Youth Development and the Over-Scheduling Hypothesis.” Society for Research on Child Development Social Policy Report, 20 (4):3-30. (Read Article).
V. Studies on Higher Education
Harris, Angel L., and Marta Tienda. “Minority Higher Education Pipeline: Consequences of Changes in College Admissions Policy in Texas.” Forthcoming in Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
Chavous, Tabbye M., Angel Harris, Deborah Rivas, Lumas Helaire, and Laurette Green. 2004. “Racial Stereotypes and Gender in Context: African Americans at Predominantly Black and Predominantly White Colleges.” Sex Roles 51: 1-16. (Read Article).
Harris, Angel L., and Marta Tienda. “Hispanics in Higher Education and the Texas Top Ten Percent Law.” Forthcoming in David Leal and Robert Linberry (eds). (Read Study).