The source of the river : the social origins of freshmen at America's selective colleges and universities / Douglas S. Massey, Camille Z. Charles, Garvey F. Lundy, Mary J. Fischer.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Massey, Douglas S.

Charles, Camille Zubrinsky, 1965-

Lundy, Garvey F.

Fischer, Mary J.

Class of 1932 Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

College students--United States--Social conditions.

College students.

Minorities--Education (Higher)--United States.

Minorities.

Minorities--Education (Higher).

Social conditions.

United States.

Academic achievement--United States.

Academic achievement.

Educational equalization--United States.

Educational equalization.

Physical Description:

x, 283 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, [2003]

Summary:

African Americans and Latinos earn lower grades and drop out of college more often than whites or Asians. Yet, thirty years after deliberate minority recruitment efforts began, we still don't know why. In The Shape of the River, William Bowen and Derek Bok documented the benefits of affirmative action for minority students, their communities, and the nation at large. But they also found that too many failed to achieve academic success. In The Source of the River, Douglas Massey and his colleagues investigate the roots of minority underperformance in selective colleges and universities. They explain how such factors as neighborhood, family, peer group, and early schooling influence the academic performance of students from differing racial and ethnic origins and differing social classes. Drawing on a major new source of data -- the National Longitudinal Survey of Freshmen -- the authors undertake a comprehensive analysis of the diverse pathways by which whites, African Americans, Latinos, and Asians enter American higher education. Theirs is the first study to document the different characteristics that students bring to campus and to trace out the influence of these differences on later academic performance. They show that black and Latino students do not enter college disadvantaged by a lack of self-esteem. In fact, overconfidence is more common than low self-confidence among some minority students. Despite this, minority students are adversely affected by racist stereotypes of intellectual inferiority. Although academic preparation is the strongest predictor of college performance, shortfalls in academic preparation are themselves largely a matter of socioeconomic disadvantage and racial segregation. Presenting important new findings, The Source of the River documents the ongoing power of race to shape the life chances of America's young people, even among the most talented and able.

Contents:

1 The Puzzle of Minority Underachievement 1

2 Sample and Methodology 20

3 Family Origins 46

4 Neighborhood Background 70

5 Prior Educational Experiences 87

6 The Social World of High School 109

7 Racial Identity and Attitudes 133

8 Pathways to Preparation 155

9 Sink or Swim: The First Semester 184

Appendix A. Survey of College Life and Experience: First-Wave Instrument 209

Appendix B. Construction of Social Scales 251.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [269]-277) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Class of 1932 Fund.

ISBN:

0691113262

OCLC:

50205698