Conceptualizing Latina/o College-Going Behavior in High School

This study examined the influence of participation in school and extracurricular activities on Latino males' intention to pursue a bachelor's degree in relation to their Latina peers. Using nationally representative High School Longitudinal Study data from 2012, researchers developed two factors and three dichotomous variables focused on academic, non-academic, or pre-college activities and ran multivariate regression models to determine the effect on intention to pursue a bachelor's degree. After accounting for background characteristics, being female retained a strong positive effect on intention to pursue a bachelor's degree. Two factors were positively associated with Latino males' bachelor's degree intention: "Hours on School Work" and "College Planning and Preparation." Two dichotomous variables, "Math Activities" and "Science Activities" were positively associated; however, the other dichotomous variable, "Non-academic Activities," was negatively associated. Most significantly, this study found that effects of high school activities and preparation for college are not constant across gender.