Parental Factors as a Predictor of Student Educational Aspirations

Steven J. Hansman, Eastern Kentucky University

Abstract

There are many factors that affect a student’s decision to pursue further education. Finding out which factors closely correlate to a student pursuing that education is important to know. Educators and leaders can use this information to push for better policy and institute better practices to benefit education. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between different parental factors and how they relate to a student’s educational aspirations. The study tested the hypothesis that parental educational involvement at home, parental educational involvement at school, parental supportive messages, and authoritative parenting style are all significant predictors of educational aspirations. Participants (n = 158) were high school students who completed a questionnaire. The results of the linear regression shown that none of the factors in the hypothesis were significant predictors of educational aspirations in the model. However, when looking at correlations, parental involvement at school was found to be significantly correlated to educational aspirations (r = .15, p < .05). Age was also found to be negatively correlated to educational aspirations (r = -.20, p < .01).