Abstract
A developing literature continues to testify to the relationship between higher socio-economic status (SES) and better academic attainment. However, the literature is complex in terms of the variety of SES and attainment indicators used. Against the backdrop of a Scottish Government initiative to close the attainment gap between higher and lower SES children, the present study examined the relationship between individual-level Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) and National Lower Tariff Score in school children in the West of Scotland. Results showed a practically significant relationship between SIMD and Tariff Score. This relationship was partially mediated by higher academic self-efficacy, so that higher belief in academic competency partially mediated the SIMD-Tariff Score relationship. Further, this partial mediation was robust to the influence of gender, sensation seeking, level of school attendance and past month frequency of Heavy Episodic Drinking. It is suggested that increasing attendance and perceived academic competence are viable ways (among others) of attempting to close the attainment gap.
Highlights
Previous studies have evidenced inequalities in educational outcomes within Scotland
The present study sought to investigate the degree to which socio-economic status (SES) predicts Tariff Score in a sample of Scottish school children, the degree to which that relationship is mediated by self-efficacy, and whether or not those relationships were robust to the influence of sensation seeking, school attendance, Heavy Episodic Drinking (HED) and gender
While Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) was significantly associated with Tariff Score in the final model, the coefficients for attendance and academic self-efficacy were larger
Summary
Previous studies have evidenced inequalities in educational outcomes within Scotland. One of the problems identified in this literature is the fact that terms are used interchangeably to describe social class, status, deprivation, poverty, or a family’s ranking on the social ladder (e.g., Sirin, 2005; Rindermann and Baumeister, 2015) For these reasons, studies have reported widely varying effect sizes for the relationship between SES and academic outcomes. The present study matched data provided from a Local Authority in the West of Scotland with data gathered as part of a longitudinal study into alcohol-related behaviors to examine the relationship between SIMD and composite academic attainment, and the degree to which gender, school attendance, sensation seeking, Heavy Episodic Drinking (HED) and scores on three domains of self-efficacy mediate or moderate that relationship. What is the impact of sensation seeking, gender, attendance and Heavy Episodic Drinking (HED) on observed relationships?
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