Chapter 11: Parent Social Networks: A Resource to Shape Parent Responsibility

This chapter explores the relationship between parent social networks and individual parent responsibility. It uses a social network framework to explain how social forces shape parent responsibility in education. Survey data were collected from a random sample of 5th grade parents across elementary schools in a large urban district with high levels of poverty. Two types of social networks were identified and measured: parent networks consisting of other parents in the school and parent networks consisting of other, nonschool adults. Findings indicate that contact among parents within schools was limited, and that social networks were related to parent responsibility. Post hoc analyses suggest that parent social networks may serve as mediating factors in the relationship between SES and parent responsibility.