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The Role of Church Attendance on the Academic Performance of Korean American College Students. Denise Kim New York University. I would like to give special thanks to Dr. Beth Shinn and peer reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions. Korean Americans in the U.S.
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The Role of Church Attendance on the Academic Performance of Korean American College Students Denise Kim New York University I would like to give special thanks to Dr. Beth Shinn and peer reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions.
Korean Americans in the U.S. • In the last 50 years, there has been an influx of Korean immigrants into the U.S. • There are 1,076,872 Korean Americans in the U.S. (U.S. Census 2000). • Korean American immigrants have been characterized by high degrees of acculturation and overall success in adapting to the U.S. • The Korean American community in the U.S. is highly affiliated with the Christian church: • In 2001, there were 3,375 Korean churches in the U.S. • This figure is equivalent to one church for every 319 Koreans in the U.S. • The academic performance of Korean American students has been well documented.
Academic Performance of Korean Americans • The collectivistic nature of Korean American families is a key factor in motivating students to succeed academically. • Parental expectations play a major role in explaining Korean American students’ success. • Education is viewed as a social and economic tool for upward mobility and advancement. • Korean American youth achieve higher scores on standardized tests, have higher GPAs, and attend four-year colleges at higher rates than students of different ethnic backgrounds.
Religiosity & Church • Religion provides Korean Americans with a sense of inclusion and solidarity in the United States. • Church acts on three levels: • Religious piety and devotion • Social nature • Psychological healing • Korean Americans retreat to church to socialize among people who share similar cultures, beliefs, and values. • Religion and church plays a strong role in forming, maintaining, and reinforcing the Korean American identity.
Religiosity & Academics • Religiosity refers to an individual’s attendance and involvement in church. • Like schools, church is a socializing agent where youths build interpersonal relationships and instill routines. • Church attendance is a form of social integration that reinforces positive values leading to higher academic achievement. • Church involvement is positively correlated with math and reading achievement (Regnerus, 2000). • Church attendance increases the likelihood individuals complete high school and attend college (Loury, 2004).
Rationale for Study • Literature portrays Korean American youth as high academic achievers. • However, there is a large group of Korean American youth who do not do well in school (Ang & Huan, 2006; Blair & Qian, 1998). • Exploring the relationship between church attendance and academic performance might provide new insights into the disparate academic success among Korean American youth.
Study Objective • The purpose of the present study is to examine the relationship between religiosity and academic performance. • In the proposed study, religiosity will be measured through church attendance and academic performance through GPA. Research Question: Is there a significant relationship between frequency of church attendance and overall grade point average? Hypothesis: Korean American college students who attend church will exhibit higher performance in school.
Participants & Procedure • 100 Korean American New York University students • Korean American students must have been born in the U.S. or have immigrated to the U.S. before age five. • All majors/disciplines • Participants will be recruited from NYU by an open-call method: • Filter for Korean Americans in NYU’s student directory and send email to participate in the study • Survey will be administered via SurveyMonkey • 5-10 minute completion time
Measures • Two-part survey • Part A: Academic performance • Year in college • Cumulative GPA • Part B: Church attendance • Religious affiliation • Frequency of church attendance while in school (4-point scale)
Data Analysis • Descriptive Statistics • Year in college • Cumulative GPA • Religious affiliation • Frequency of church attendance • Hierarchical Regression • Frequency of church attendance GPA
Potential Results & Implications • Results of the present study will show a significant and positive association between church attendance and academic achievement for Korean American students. • Religious institutions act as socializing agents that facilitates positive interpersonal relationships amongst peers and families. • Attending church influences the formation and maintenance of community values, specifically values conducive to educational aspirations and achievement.
Future Research Directions • The present investigation is largely exploratory as few studies have examined the relationship between religiosity and academic achievement, and even fewer among Korean Americans. • Future research directions might include a qualitative investigation of this relationship, thereby providing a more in-depth understanding of the mechanisms at play. • Additionally, a longitudinal study tracking students (e.g., through high school or college years) would provide a comprehensive portrayal of other factors that moderate and/or mediate this relationship across diverse ethnic groups.