The relational costs of crossing class lines

Area of Science:

• Sociology
• Higher Education Studies
• Social Mobility Research

Background:

• Previous research highlights the cultural capital costs for underprivileged students in integrated higher education settings.
• The social capital costs, specifically the challenges in forming friendships across socioeconomic divides, remain less explored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the experiences of low-income scholarship students navigating cross-class interactions in an elite Colombian institution.
• To investigate the social capital costs associated with forming friendships with more affluent peers.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative analysis of 61 in-depth interviews with low-income scholarship holders.
• Ethnographic fieldwork within an elite higher education institution in a highly unequal society.

Main Results:

• Low-income students engaged with elite environments, facing relational costs to build friendships with affluent peers.
• Students employed camouflaging or disclosure strategies to overcome discrimination, micro-aggressions, and capital barriers.
• Benefits included symbolic belonging and acquiring middle-class cultural capital, justifying the costs.

Conclusions:

• Building cross-class ties presents a significant barrier to social mobility for underprivileged students.
• Institutions can implement strategies to mitigate the costs faced by low-income students in elite settings.