Differences in parental involvement typologies among Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y parents : a study of select bay area region of Houston elementary schools.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine whether differences existed among generations (Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y) regarding the levels of parental involvement within each of these generations. Also examined were additional factors such as the parents' socioeconomic status, educational level, marital status, and ethnicity. The Parent and School Survey (PASS), based on Epstein's Theoretical Framework, was distributed to parents of elementary students in eight schools in the Bay Area region of Houston, Texas. Follow–up focus group interviews were conducted to draw inferences about each respective generation and their ideas concerning parental involvement with particular interest dedicated to how parents define parental involvement. An ANOVA was used to measure the intensity of the effect of the independent variable (parent's generation) on the dependent variable (parental involvement score). Then, additional analyses were done by adding in variables one at a time to determine what effect income (Socioeconomic Status), marital status, or parents' education may have had on the simple relationship. Finally, the Tukey's HSD test was used to determine which groups of generations differ from one another. The findings in this study support the literature. This study concluded that there are differences among generations of Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y regarding the levels of parental involvement and in some cases income (SES), marital status, ethnicity, and parents' education had an impact on level and type of parental involvement.