Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South Korea
In intense academic environments such as in South Korea, students experience extreme levels of academic stress. This stress peaks as students prepare for the college entrance exam in the final year of high school. Stress is associated with a host of negative outcomes, and academic stress is the lead...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-10-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/9/11/187 |
| _version_ | 1827703634658328576 |
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| author | Jonathan A. Jarvis Allison W. Corbett Jared D. Thorpe Mikaela J. Dufur |
| author_facet | Jonathan A. Jarvis Allison W. Corbett Jared D. Thorpe Mikaela J. Dufur |
| author_sort | Jonathan A. Jarvis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In intense academic environments such as in South Korea, students experience extreme levels of academic stress. This stress peaks as students prepare for the college entrance exam in the final year of high school. Stress is associated with a host of negative outcomes, and academic stress is the leading cause of suicidal ideation among youth in South Korea. Research suggests that in high-stress contexts such as this, social capital can improve academic success and mental health, while reducing risky or deviant behaviors. However, this research has predominantly focused on Western contexts. Because of the unique intensity of educational pursuits and intense investment in education by parents, South Korea provides a compelling case for research on the effects of family and school social capital on youth academic stress. Using data from the Korea Youth Panel Survey (<i>N</i> = 2753), we find that particular components of family and school social capital can both reduce and exacerbate academic stress. While measures of closeness and connection to parents reduced academic stress, school social capital had a limited impact on academic stress. Furthermore, there may be a limit to the effectiveness of social capital to help with academic stress before it becomes too much of a good thing. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T15:23:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7b6796bf7d664d3299d15c2253f0c4b4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0760 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T15:23:44Z |
| publishDate | 2020-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-7b6796bf7d664d3299d15c2253f0c4b42023-11-20T18:16:15ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602020-10-0191118710.3390/socsci9110187Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South KoreaJonathan A. Jarvis0Allison W. Corbett1Jared D. Thorpe2Mikaela J. Dufur3Department of Sociology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USADepartment of Sociology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USADepartment of Sociology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USADepartment of Sociology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USAIn intense academic environments such as in South Korea, students experience extreme levels of academic stress. This stress peaks as students prepare for the college entrance exam in the final year of high school. Stress is associated with a host of negative outcomes, and academic stress is the leading cause of suicidal ideation among youth in South Korea. Research suggests that in high-stress contexts such as this, social capital can improve academic success and mental health, while reducing risky or deviant behaviors. However, this research has predominantly focused on Western contexts. Because of the unique intensity of educational pursuits and intense investment in education by parents, South Korea provides a compelling case for research on the effects of family and school social capital on youth academic stress. Using data from the Korea Youth Panel Survey (<i>N</i> = 2753), we find that particular components of family and school social capital can both reduce and exacerbate academic stress. While measures of closeness and connection to parents reduced academic stress, school social capital had a limited impact on academic stress. Furthermore, there may be a limit to the effectiveness of social capital to help with academic stress before it becomes too much of a good thing.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/9/11/187social capitalschool relationshipseducation in AsiaSouth Korea |
| spellingShingle | Jonathan A. Jarvis Allison W. Corbett Jared D. Thorpe Mikaela J. Dufur Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South Korea Social Sciences social capital school relationships education in Asia South Korea |
| title | Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South Korea |
| title_full | Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South Korea |
| title_fullStr | Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South Korea |
| title_full_unstemmed | Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South Korea |
| title_short | Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South Korea |
| title_sort | too much of a good thing social capital and academic stress in south korea |
| topic | social capital school relationships education in Asia South Korea |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/9/11/187 |
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