Fostering resilience of students at the university: assessing the influence of peers' socioeconomic and cultural status

Sulis, Isabella

;Columbu, Silvia;Porcu, Mariano;Usala, Cristian

2025-01-01

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Abstract

This study examines how high school and university contexts, particularly peers' socioeconomic and cultural conditions, interact in shaping the academic performance of disadvantaged university students and influencing the development of resilient behaviours. Disadvantaged students are identified based on their family's socioeconomic and cultural background, measured using the INVALSI ESCS index. Resilience is assessed based on the number of formative credits earned by the end of the first university year, with high-performing students from low socioeconomic backgrounds classified as resilient. Administrative data from MOBYSU.it, covering students who enrolled in an Italian university in 2019, are used to analyse multiple factors that interact to influence students' performance and the development of resilient behaviour. A multilevel logistic modelling approach is employed to disentangle the role of high schools from the influence of peer socioeconomic and cultural factors at both the high school and university levels in shaping resilient behaviours in tertiary education.