Chapter 3: Social Capital and Academic Help Seeking: Late Adolescents’ Use of People as Information Sources

The study examines how late adolescents use the resources embedded in their social network to obtain the information and support they need to do their homework. A particular attention is paid to how social network sites (SNSs) are used and perceived by late adolescents for academic help seeking.

This qualitative study uses in-depth interviewing and critical incident technique. An egocentric approach to Social Network Analysis is also employed to examine the core social network of each participant.

Most adolescents had a solid personal social network but did not always fully take advantage of the resources embedded in it for schoolwork. Availability was the most important criteria for deciding who to approach. SNSs were often used to obtain the help they needed, although phone calls and in-person visits were considered more efficient in certain situations.

This study draws on a small purposive sample that may limit generalization. This research contributes to our understanding of the resources late adolescents have access to within their core social network, the way they take advantage (or not) of these resources for schoolwork, and the role SNSs play in the process. Findings have implications for services that educators and school librarians should provide to support the educational needs of late adolescents.

This study contributes more generally to our understanding of late adolescents’ use of people as primary sources of information to complete school-related homework.