The mediating role of social capital in the relationship between socioeconomic status and adolescent wellbeing: evidence from Ghana

Evelyn Aboagye Addae

doi:10.1186/s12889-019-8142-x

Abstract

BackgroundSocial capital is generally portrayed to be protective of adolescents’ health and wellbeing against the effects of socioeconomic inequalities. However, few empirical evidence exist on this protective role of social capital regarding adolescents’ wellbeing in the low-and middle-income country (LMIC) context. This study examines the potential for social capital to be a protective health resource by investigating whether social capital can mediate the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and wellbeing of Ghanaian adolescents. It also examines how SES and social capital relate to different dimensions of adolescents’ wellbeing in different social contexts.MethodsThe study employed a cross-sectional survey involving a randomly selected 2068 adolescents (13-18 years) from 15 schools (8 Senior and 7 Junior High Schools) in Ghana. Relationships were assessed using multivariate regression models.ResultsThree measures of familial social capital (family sense of belonging, family autonomy support, and family control) were found to be important protective factors of both adolescents’ life satisfaction and happiness against the effects of socioeconomic status. One measure of school social capital (school sense of belonging) was found to augment adolescents’ wellbeing but played no mediating role in the SES-wellbeing relationship. A proportion of about 69 and 42% of the total effect of SES on happiness and life satisfaction were mediated by social capital respectively. Moreover, there were variations in how SES and social capital related to the different dimensions of adolescents’ wellbeing.ConclusionSocial capital is a significant mechanism through which SES impacts the wellbeing of adolescents. Social capital is a potential protective health resource that can be utilised by public health policy to promote adolescents’ wellbeing irrespective of socioeconomic inequalities. Moreover, the role of the family (home) in promoting adolescents’ wellbeing is superior to that of school which prompts targeted policy interventions. For a holistic assessment of adolescents’ subjective wellbeing, both life evaluations (life satisfaction) and positive emotions (happiness) should be assessed concomitantly.

Highlights

Social capital is generally portrayed to be protective of adolescents’ health and wellbeing against the effects of socioeconomic inequalities
The analyses showed that those with high family sense of belonging (FSB) (r = .409, p < 0.001), high school sense of belonging (SSB) (r = .192, p < 0.001), high family autonomy support (FAS) (r = .331, p < 0.001) and low family control (FC) (r = −.214, p < 0.001) are more likely to have high life satisfaction
This study has provided some evidence to suggest that social capital is more important for Ghanaian adolescents’ wellbeing outcomes than their socioeconomic status (SES)

Summary

Introduction

Social capital is generally portrayed to be protective of adolescents’ health and wellbeing against the effects of socioeconomic inequalities. This study examines the potential for social capital to be a protective health resource by investigating whether social capital can mediate the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and wellbeing of Ghanaian adolescents It examines how SES and social capital relate to different dimensions of adolescents’ wellbeing in different social contexts. To translate social capital to the wellbeing of adolescents, this study defines social capital as a valuable social resource that can be accessed by adolescents at the individual and community level of their social contexts for promotions of health and wellbeing These resources can be assessed and accumulated from families, schools, peers, and neighbours to optimise health benefits and potentially protect adolescents’ wellbeing from the effects of socioeconomic inequalities [5,6,7, 11, 19]. As Coleman emphasised some negative facet of social capital [12], this present study recognises ‘high or excessive control’ within the family context as a negative facet of social capital that can negatively affect adolescents’ wellbeing

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion