Does parental involvement matter for student achievement and mental health in high school?

Abstract

Parental involvement in education remains important for facilitating positive youth development. This study conceptualized parental involvement as a multidimensional construct-including school-based involvement, home-based involvement, and academic socialization-and examined the effects of different types of parental involvement in 10th grade on student achievement and depression in 11th grade (approximately ages 15-17 years). In addition, this study tested whether parental involvement influenced adolescent outcomes by increasing their academic engagement in school. A total of 1,056 adolescents participated in the study (51% males; 53% European American, 40% African American, and 7% other). Parental involvement was found to improve academic and emotional functioning among adolescents. In addition, parental involvement predicted adolescent academic success and mental health both directly and indirectly through behavioral and emotional engagement.