Abstract
AbstractIn this paper, we seek to answer the research question as to whether students take into account the predictions of human capital theory (namely the higher wages associated with further studies) in their decision to participate in higher education. Our alternative research question is whether students can be described by Bourdieu's theory on capital conversion, that is, whether they aim to accumulate cultural and social capital during their studies, which can also be profitable for them in the future. Our research method is quantitative: we use cluster analysis to examine the motives behind further studies and employ cross tabulation and variance analysis to reveal the relationship between clusters and social background variables. We find that the wage premium associated with further studies is not the most important motive among students; it holds only minor importance even for those from a disadvantaged social background. The results suggest that students in secondary schools, especially talented but underprivileged ones, should be motivated to enter higher education by informing them about the potential wage premium they can attain if they study further. Importantly, we also find that underprivileged students may be unaware of the fact that higher education is an efficient mechanism to accumulate social and cultural capital, which then can be converted into economic capital.
Highlights
In this study, we analyse the motivation to pursue higher education studies and the demographic and social background variables which affect it, based on a database of student surveys
Human capital theory predicts that students could be primarily motivated by financial return in the future, the importance of social and cultural capital acquired during higher education studies should not be understated, either
Among the motives behind the decision to pursue higher education studies, the elevated salary associated with higher education is only the fourth in the order of importance, while professional goals are listed only in the second and third places, respectively. This strongly suggests that students take the predictions of human capital theory into account only partially
Summary
We analyse the motivation to pursue higher education studies and the demographic and social background variables which affect it, based on a database of student surveys. Human capital theory predicts that students could be primarily motivated by financial return in the future, the importance of social and cultural capital acquired during higher education studies should not be understated, either. Students may convert the social and cultural capital they have accumulated into economic capital, that is to say, even these capital forms could yield a financial return. Based on Veroszta (2014) we suppose that students from a favourable economic and cultural background take the predictions of human capital theory into account to a lesser extent, that is, financial motivations are not as instrumental to them as they are to their underprivileged peers. Cluster analysis has the advantage that it forms groups from people, unlike factor analysis, which does so from motivational variables, but it has the disadvantage that the connections between clusters and social background variables cannot be analysed with linear regression and only bivariate methods can be employed
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
