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Social Class Discrimination and Academic Success: A Person-Centered Approach Among Adolescents Disadvantaged in
Christine R Starr1, Anna P Veenendall1, Zena R Mello2
1University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, USA.
Journal of Adolescence
|February 27, 2026
Summary
Social class discrimination, especially from teachers and classmates, negatively impacts high school students' academic performance and socio-emotional well-being. Reducing in-school discrimination is crucial for improving student outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Sociology of Education
- Educational Psychology
Background:
- Social class is a known predictor of academic achievement.
- The influence of social discrimination on this relationship is under-researched.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the link between social class discrimination and academic outcomes in high school students.
- To identify patterns of social class discrimination experienced by adolescents.
Main Methods:
- Latent profile analysis of discrimination from five sources (teachers, classmates, friends, other teenagers, community members).
- Assessment of socio-emotional (school isolation, impulsivity) and academic achievement (GPA, grades) outcomes.
- Study included 956 working-class adolescents (ages 13-18) in the western US.
Main Results:
- Four distinct patterns of social class discrimination were identified.
- In-school discrimination from teachers and classmates was associated with lower academic outcomes.
- High levels of discrimination from all sources also correlated with negative outcomes.
Conclusions:
- In-school social class discrimination poses a significant risk to academic performance and socio-emotional well-being.
- Targeting in-school discrimination is essential for supporting disadvantaged students.
- Findings underscore the detrimental effects of peer and teacher discrimination based on social class.
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