Investigating the Social Capital & Help-Seeking Behaviors of High School Latino Foster Youth

<p>Foster youth in high school face a barrage of obstacles not faced by their peers, obstacles which make it challenging to finish high school and gain acceptance into four-year universities. But foster youth are resilient in ways that we can only begin to understand, navigating how to codeswitch, and speak to social workers, lawyers, foster parents, teachers, and peers to gain the resources they need to be successful. Within the past ten years, there has been a multitude of research on foster youths, which examine mental health, graduation rates, college acceptance, and the importance of mentorship. Missing from the research has been the specific examination of Latino male foster youth in high school, a minority that is often grouped in research with other minorities. This qualitative study gives voice to Latino male foster youth, showcasing how these youths develop social capital and help-seeking behaviors within their high schools and communities. A sample of 12 Latino males between the ages of 14-24 was interviewed about their high school experiences, finding that Latino youth develop social capital and help-seeking behaviors while in foster care and utilize these networks to their advantage.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Education, PhD

Level thesis:degree_level

Open Access Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

School of Educational Studies

Year dc:date.available

2020

Author dc:creator

• Acosta, Rachel

Contributors dc:contributor

• Thomas Luschei
• Eligio Martinez

• Foster Youth
• Help-Seeking Behavior
• Intersectionality
• Latino
• Social Capital
• Education

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_etd/313

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarship.claremont.edu:cgu_etd-1263