NCJ Number
161043
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 23 Issue: 6 Dated: (1995) Pages: 555-567
Date Published
1995
Length
13 pages
Annotation
Since positive and negative effects of the school environment and interracial contact within this environment have been widely debated, the present study explored whether self- esteem, race-esteem, school commitment, and delinquency differed according to school racial composition.
Abstract
Self-report questionnaires consisting of 103 items were administered to a random sample of 1,100 high school students in a large midwestern city in 1992, and 79 percent responded. Males constituted 42 percent of the respondents, blacks 48 percent, and whites 40 percent. Respondents ranged in age from 13 to 19 years, with an average age of 16 years. Findings suggested that self- esteem, academic performance, race-esteem, and delinquency differed by school environment. In particular, black students enjoyed higher self-esteem than white students, suggesting that racial diversity in certain school environments carried with it lower self-esteem levels. Higher rates of self-reported delinquency were found in equally mixed school environments than in racially homogeneous school environments. The social self- esteem scale and delinquency items used in the study are appended. 57 references, 11 notes, and 3 tables