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14 SES 03 B: Family Experiences of Schooling.
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14. Communities, Families and Schooling in Educational Research
Paper The Role of Socioeconomic Background in the Transmission of Cultural and Intellectual Values Between Parents and Children 1: MCA - Collegium Professorum Hungarorum, Hungary; 2: University of Debrecen, Department of Sociology and Social Policy, CHERD-Hungary, MTA-DE-Development of Future Awareness Research Group, Debrecen, Hungary Presenting Author:Although numerous theories have been developed for the conceptualization and measurement of values, they share the view that values function as moral compasses and motivational constructs, ultimately playing a central role in the organization of behavior (Schwartz, 1992). Values are closely associated with a wide range of factors observable at different stages of human ontogenetic development. They are determinative for young children’s patterns of social information processing and thus influence the emergence of prosocial and antisocial behavioral tendencies (Elizarov et al., 2024). At later life stages, values may also affect career choice (Segal et al., 2025) and work-related behavior (Arieli et al., 2020). In light of these associations, the process of value transmission between parents and children predisposes children’s life trajectories in the long term (Knafo-Noam et al., 2020). This dynamic process of intergenerational value transmission is shaped, among other factors, by the depth and warmth of the parent-child relationship (Barni et al., 2011), as well as by parents’ different parenting styles and practices (Gorla et al., 2024; Roest et al., 2012). Although parent-child value transmission is a widely researched area, relatively little attention has been paid to the role of parents’ sociodemographic background in the value transmission process. However, research not explicitly focused on value transmission suggests that parents with more advantaged backgrounds are more likely to engage in cognitively stimulating activities with their children (e.g., visiting museums or using a more advanced vocabulary and more complex reasoning in communication) and to provide higher levels of emotional support (Kalil & Ryan, 2020; Pusztai et al., 2025). Based on these associations, it can be assumed that parents with more favorable social backgrounds are more successful in transmitting intellectual and cultural values. Through higher levels of cognitively stimulating activities, parents can convey more extensive and deeper knowledge, and the increased frequency of such activities also implicitly emphasizes the importance of these values to the child. Activities such as visiting museums and theaters or engaging in more in-depth discussions of public affairs may further enhance commitment to national culture. This process is further supported by the fact that parents with more favorable social backgrounds are more likely to adopt an authoritative parenting style (Kalil & Ryan, 2020). Through higher levels of emotional support and responsiveness, such parenting ensures the relational warmth necessary for children’s internalization of values (Barni et al., 2011; Kalil & Ryan, 2020; Pusztai et al., 2025). The primary aim of our study is to examine the relationships between parents’ socioeconomic status, their cultural and intellectually enriching parenting activities, and children’s national, cultural, and intellectual values. The vast majority of studies on parent-child value transmission and value similarity do not explicitly examine parental activities that are suitable for value transmission. Accordingly, a further objective of our research is to contribute to addressing this gap in the literature. Our first hypothesis is that parents with higher educational attainment and more favorable subjective financial circumstances are more likely to engage in cultural activities and activities that foster their children’s intellectual development. Our second hypothesis is that parental activities aimed at cultural engagement and the enhancement of children’s intellectual capacities mediate the relationship between parents’ socioeconomic status and children’s value identification with intellectuality and their own national culture. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used In this study, we used self-administered questionnaires completed by full-time students from higher education institutions in the Partium region (N=2,711). The sample consisted of students from Romania, Hungary, and Ukraine. Of the respondents, 65.5% were female, and the mean age was 22.3 years (SD=2.95). The variables examined were as follows: Parental highest educational attainment was measured using a 9-point Likert scale, where 1 = “less than 8 grades completed,” 2 = “completed 8 grades,” 3 = “vocational training without secondary school graduation,” 4 = “vocational training with secondary school graduation,” 5 = “high school,” 6 = “college degree,” 8 = “university degree,” and 9 = “doctoral degree.” Subjective family economic status was measured with a 4-point Likert scale, where 1 = “We often do not have enough money to cover daily needs,” 2 = “Sometimes we cannot cover our daily expenses,” 3 = “We have everything we need, but cannot afford major expenses,” and 4 = “We have everything and can afford significant expenses.” Participants’ values were assessed using a 15-item questionnaire, with responses provided on a 4-point Likert scale indicating the importance of each value. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted on this scale using the minimum residual method, Varimax rotation, and factor numbers determined by parallel analysis. Of the four factors identified, two were used in subsequent analyses: 1. Individual-Intellectual Values (IIV), including the items “interesting life, experiences,” “originality, imagination/creativity,” and “erudition/wisdom.” 2. Collective-Cultural Values (CCV), including the items “defense of homeland/nation,” “preservation of respectable traditions,” “social order and stability,” and “religious faith.” Internal consistency for both IIV (ω=0.701) and CCV (ω=0.684) factors was acceptable based on McDonald’s ω. Cultural-intellectual parenting practices (CIPP) were assessed using three items. Participants retrospectively reported the extent to which their parents engaged in these activities during their childhood. The three items were: “talked with you about books or films,” “talked with you about culture, politics, or public issues,” and “organized joint cultural programs with you.” The internal consistency of this scale was acceptable (ω=0.780). Data analysis included the Shapiro-Wilk test and path analysis using a Weighted Least Squares (WLS) estimator. Missing data were handled using listwise deletion. All statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS version 27 and Jamovi version 2.6.26. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings In our study, the Shapiro-Wilk test indicated significance for all variables employed, suggesting that they cannot be assumed to follow a normal distribution (p<0.001). Consequently, the path analysis was conducted using Weighted Least Squares (WLS) estimation, which provides reliable results even with non-normally distributed and ordinal-scale variables (Kline, 2023). In our model, the highest educational attainment of both mothers and fathers, as well as the family’s subjective financial situation, were included as endogenous variables. The CIPP variable was treated as an exogenous mediator, while IIV and CCV were modeled as exogenous outcome variables. Although the chi-square test indicated significance (p=0.013), other fit indices, including RMSEA (0.027), CFI (0.986), and TLI (0.964), suggested a good fit of the model. Our results showed that CIPP was positively predicted by both paternal (β=0.063; p<0.05) and maternal educational attainment (β=0.123; p<0.001), as well as by the family’s subjective financial situation (β=0.071; p<0.001). In turn, CIPP contributed to students’ individual-intellectual (β=0.155; p<0.001) and collective-cultural value identification (β=0.100; p<0.001). Indirect effects mediated through CIPP were also significant (p<0.05), with the strongest association observed between maternal educational attainment and children’s intellectual values (β=0.019; p<0.001). Overall, these findings support both of our hypotheses. Our model explains only a small proportion of the variance in CIPP (R²=0.038), IIV (R²=0.024), and CCV (R²=0.01), but the value transmission pathway examined is long-term and influenced by numerous additional factors. Our results contribute to filling a gap in the literature on parent–child value transmission and, based on a sample from three countries, highlight how differences in parents’ social background, as realized through parenting practices, can lead to variations in children’s value orientations. References Arieli, S., Sagiv, L., & Roccas, S. (2020). Values at Work: The Impact of Personal Values in Organisations. Applied Psychology, 69(2), 230–275. https://doi.org/10.1111/apps.12181 Barni, D., Ranieri, S., Scabini, E., & Rosnati, R. (2011). Value transmission in the family: Do adolescents accept the values their parents want to transmit? Journal of Moral Education, 40(1), 105–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057240.2011.553797 Elizarov, E., Ziv, Y., & Benish-Weisman, M. (2024). Personal values and social behavior in early childhood: Understanding the contribution of social information processing and attitudes. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 39(4), 3511–3536. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-024-00841-6 Gorla, L., Rothenberg, W. A., Lansford, J. E., Yotanyamaneewong, S., Alampay, L. P., Al‐Hassan, S. M., Bacchini, D., Bornstein, M. H., Breiner, K., Chang, L., Deater‐Deckard, K., Di Giunta, L., Dodge, K. A., Gurdal, S., Junla, D., Oburu, P., Pastorelli, C., Santona, A., Skinner, A. T., … Uribe Tirado, L. M. (2024). Individualism, collectivism and conformity in nine countries: Relations with parenting and child adjustment. International Journal of Psychology, 59(4), 598–610. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.13130 Kalil, A., & Ryan, R. (2020). Parenting Practices and Socioeconomic Gaps in Childhood Outcomes. The Future of Children, 30(1), 29–54. Kline, R. B. (2023). Principles and preactice of structural equation modeling (Fifth edition). Guilford Press. Knafo-Noam, A., Barni, D., & Schwartz, S. H. (2020). Parent–Child Value Similarity: Broadening from Intergenerational Transmission to Reciprocal Influences, Genetics, and Environmental Antecedents. In L. A. Jensen (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Moral Development (pp. 164–185). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190676049.013.12 Pusztai, G., Bacskai, K., Ceglédi, T., Kocsis, Z., & Hine, M. G. (2025). Mission Possible? Institutional Family-School-Community Partnership Practices and Parental Involvement in Hungarian Majority and Minority Schools in Three Central and Eastern European Countries. Social Sciences, 14(2), Article 2. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14020107 Roest, A. M. C., Dubas, J. S., & Gerris, J. R. M. (2012). Children’s value orientations as they traverse adolescence and emerging adulthood: Alternative routes of parental transmission. Family Science, 3(1), 22–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/19424620.2012.716207 Schwartz, S. H. (1992). Universals in the Content and Structure of Values: Theoretical Advances and Empirical Tests in 20 Countries. In M. P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vol. 25, pp. 1–65). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60281-6 Segal, H., Whartman, S., & Knafo-Noam, A. (2025). Values and educational decisions: How do values relate to adolescents’ academic track choices? European Journal of Psychology of Education, 40(2), 65. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-025-00964-4 14. Communities, Families and Schooling in Educational Research
Paper Stability and Change in Family Well-being Profiles Combining Adolescent Adjustment and Parental Well-being University of Jyväskylä, Finland Presenting Author:Adolescence constitutes a critical developmental transition that affects adolescent development, parental well‑being, and broader family relational mechanisms (Branje et al., 2020; Koivusilta et al., 2024; Stafford et al., 2016). This period introduces numerous challenges for both adolescents and their parents, often leading to fluctuations in adolescent behavior and variability in family functioning (Mastrotheodoros et al., 2020). However, research has tended to prioritize negative stressors, while prosocial experiences and positive stressors remain comparatively understudied, despite their relevance for healthy development (Núñez‑Regueiro & Núñez‑Regueiro, 2021; Sipes et al., 2022). Gender differences further complicate developmental processes, as boys and girls consistently exhibit distinct emotional and behavioral adjustment that differentially influence parental well‑being within the family system (Endendijk et al., 2018; Zahn‑Waxler et al., 2008). Although family systems theory underscores the reciprocal influences among family members (Beavers & Hampson, 2000; Bowen, 1966; Bronfenbrenner, 1977, 1979), notable gaps remain due to factors such as gender stereotypes and methodological constraints. These limitations underscore the need for research that integrates both positive and negative developmental factors and employs longitudinal, within‑family designs to examine gender‑differentiated processes in adolescent–parent dynamics (Endendijk et al., 2018; Sipes et al., 2022). In the previous literature, there are only a few longitudinal studies utilizing advanced methodology to broaden the comprehension of the relational mechanisms between adolescent adjustment and parental well-being (Zhou, & Sun, 2021). Most of them have utilized variable-oriented approaches that assume the same relationship applies to everyone equally in the studied group and thus overlook the individual differences (Bergman & Andersson, 2010; Virtanen et al., 2019). Alternatively, person-centered approaches like LPA could address this limitation by classifying families into latent profiles based on shared characteristics, thereby capturing subgroup differences and enabling further examinations of varying profile-movement probabilities across subgroups (Spurk et al., 2020). Nevertheless, to our surprise, the previous person-centered literature has mostly focused on single perspectives, such as profiles of adolescent stress (Chen et al., 2024), family-level profiles of reactions with parents' reactions to children's emotions (Edler et al., 2025). Hence, the literature still lacks longitudinal studies employing latent profile analysis (LPA) to identify family-level profiles that integrate both adolescent and parental indicators (Zhou & Sun, 2021). Consequently, the current study investigates stability and change of family well-being profiles including multiple indicators from both adolescent and parental perspectives through LPA, adopting a family systems perspective. Specifically, both adolescent positive and negative adjustment were included to examine adolescent well-being, while both paternal and maternal depressive symptoms and parenting stress were investigated to present parental well-being. Additionally, potential covariates, such as family income and parenting styles which may related to profile-movement patterns were examined to broaden the understanding of the family system. The current study aims to answer the following research questions: (1) what kind of family well-being profiles can be identified at three time points respectively. We hypothesize to identify at least three different profiles of family well-being (high-, moderate- and low-family well-being). (2) How stable are these profiles across three time points. We hypothesize that profiles will be rather stable over time (Dakin et al., 2021; Skipstein et al., 2010). (3) whether stable or changed profile memberships are associated with family income and parenting styles? We hypothesize that family income and parenting styles are associated with some profile-movement patterns across time (Edler et al., 2025; Wang et al., 2021). Hopefully, the present study which employed a large-scale, person-centered approch to examine both paternal and maternal well-being, as well as male and female adolescents’ positive and negative adjustment across three critical time points, grounded in a family systems perspective will broaden the understanding of family well-being. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used 1921 Finnish adolescents (1008 boys, 913 girls) and their parents from four municipalities (two in Central Finland, one in Western Finland, and one in Eastern Finland) were investigated at grades 6, 7 and 9, drawing from a large-scale longitudinal study (Authors, 2006-2016).The study followed a cohort of approximately 2,000 Finnish children from kindergarten through Grade 9. At each time point, adolescents filled in paper and pencil questionnaires provided by trained research assistants during normal school hours. At the same time points parents filled in questionnaires concerning their well-being and background information. A Finnish translation (Aro et al., 2009) of the Beck Depression Inventory (Beck et al., 1961) was applied to measure parental depressive symptoms.Parenting stress was measured by a Finnish translation (Rantanen et al., 2015) of the Gerris' Parental Stress Inventory (Gerris, 1993). A Finnish version (Koskelainen et al., 2000) of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; Goodman, 1997) was self-reported by to adolescents measure their behavior. Family total incomes per month were reported by parents. Parenting styles were assessed using the Finnish adaptation (Aunola & Nurmi, 2005) of Block’s Child-Rearing Practices Report (CRPR; Roberts et al., 1984). First, LPA (Muthén & Muthén, 1998-2017) was employed to identify profiles of family well-being (both maternal and paternal depressive symptoms and parenting stress, and adolescent externalizing, internalizing and prosocial behaviors), ranging from one to K latent profiles, separately for boys and girls at each measurement time (RQ 1). To assess the discrimination between latent classes, the Moderate Latent Class Posterior Probabilities (AvePP) for individuals with the highest probability of class membership, along with entropy, were utilized. Higher values of AvePP (with a maximum of 1) indicate greater distinctiveness between latent profiles (Nagin, 2005). Then, a simultaneous multinomial logistic regression analysis was conducted, combining all three measurement points and employing the number of profiles and initial values from the previous stage to maintain analytical consistency. This approach generated movement paths from one measurement occasion to the next across all three time points (RQ 2). All analyses described above were conducted by using the Mplus statistical package version 8.11 (Muthén & Muthén, 2017). The subsequent covariates analyses (RQ 3) were then performed through IBM SPSS, utilizing one-way ANOVA, Tamhane’s pairwise comparisons which allow different variances between groups (IBM, Armonk, NY, USA). Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings Results showed that 7 distinct profile types among boys and their parents and 6 profile types among girls and their parents were identified across time due to the gender differences. Whilst four common profile types, three types unique to boys and two unique to girls emerged at three time points. Besides, diversified profile-movement patterns were found over time. Specifically, seven profile-movement patterns among boy's families and six profile-movement patterns among girls' families were identified. It is worth mentioning that about one third of families across both genders stayed stable as Below Average Family Well-being, which suggested adolescence as a crucial period which need more family-level intervention to support family well-being. Furthermore, significant results of associations between family income and some patterns among boys’ families, and between maternal affection and some patterns among girls’ families were found in the current study. Given the complex nature of family systems, future investigations that include gender-inclusive perspectives are essential for capturing the multifaceted relational mechanisms, influencing both adolescent outcomes and overall family well-being. References Beavers, R., & Hampson, R. B. (2000). The beavers systems model of family functioning. Journal of Family Therapy, 22(2), 128-143. Bowen, M. (1966). The use of family theory in clinical practice. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 7(5), 345-374. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0010-440X(66)80065-2 Branje, S., de Moor, E. L., Spitzer, J., & Becht, A. I. (2021). Dynamics of Identity Development in Adolescence: A Decade in Review. Journal of research on adolescence, 31(4), 908-927. Chen, D., Zhou, X., Wu, H., Ying, J., Shen, Y., Zhu, Q., & You, J. (2024). The impacts of latent profiles and transitions of stresses on adolescent mental health: A person‐centred analysis. Stress and Health, 40(1), e3261. Edler, K., Hoegler Dennis, S., Wang, L., Valentino, K., Davies, P. T., & Cummings, E. M. (2025). Family‐level profiles of parental reactions to emotions: Longitudinal associations with multi‐informant reports of adolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Child Development, 96(1), 21-35. Endendijk, J. J., Groeneveld, M. G., & Mesman, J. (2018). The gendered family process model: An integrative framework of gender in the family. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47, 877-904. Finnish National Board of Education. (2016). National core curriculum for basic education 2014. Finnish National Board of Education. Gerris, J.R.M., Vermulst, A., van Boxtel, D., Janssens, J., van Zutphen, R., & Felling, A. (1993). Parenting in Dutch families. Nijmegen: Institute of Family Studies, University of Nijmegen. Koivusilta, L. K., Acacio-Claro, P. J., Mattila, V. M., & Rimpelä, A. H. (2024). Health and health behaviours in adolescence as predictors of education and socioeconomic status in adulthood - a longitudinal study. BMC public health, 24(1), 1178. Mastrotheodoros, S., Canário, C., Cristina Gugliandolo, M., Merkas, M., & Keijsers, L. (2020). Family Functioning and Adolescent Internalizing and Externalizing Problems: Disentangling between-, and Within-Family Associations. Journal of youth and adolescence, 49(4), 804-817. Nagin, D. S. (2005). Group-based modeling of development. Harvard University Press. Spurk, D., Hirschi, A., Wang, M., Valero, D., & Kauffeld, S. (2020). Latent profile analysis: A review and “how to” guide of its application within vocational behavior research. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 120, 103445. Stafford, M., Kuh, D. L., Gale, C. R., Mishra, G., & Richards, M. (2016). Parent-child relationships and offspring's positive mental wellbeing from adolescence to early older age. The journal of positive psychology, 11(3), 326-337. Zhou, X., & Sun, X. (2021). Family depression profiles among adolescents and their parents: A group-based multitrajectory modeling. Journal of Family Psychology, 35(7), 886-896. 14. Communities, Families and Schooling in Educational Research
Paper Parent Subgroups and Experiences of Home–School Partnerships in Upper Secondary Education: A Mixed-Methods Study 1: University of Jyväskylä, Finland; 2: University of Helsinki, Finland Presenting Author:Although home–school partnerships are widely considered essential for supporting students’ overall adjustment (Castro et al., 2015; Virtanen et al., 2019; Wang et al., 2018), research in upper secondary education remains scarce, and parents' perspectives have been rarely examined. Home–school partnership refers to the shared responsibility of families and schools to support student learning (Epstein, 2018; Goodall & Montgomery, 2014). Drawing on Epstein's (2018) framework, this study examines partnership in terms of school- and home-based communication, cooperation, trust and parents' knowledge of school personnel — dimensions that capture information flow, relational quality and shared responsibility (Epstein, 2018; Goodall & Montgomery, 2014). While partnerships ideally rest on mutual respect, trust, and shared goals, they are more challenging to sustain in secondary education (Epstein, 2018; Hornby & Lafaele, 2011). Upper secondary education is a pivotal stage at which 15–19-year-olds make important decisions about education and careers (Jónsdóttir & Blöndal, 2023), while taking greater responsibility for learning (Dotterer, 2022). As adolescents become more autonomous, parental involvement typically shifts from direct assistance to supporting adolescents’ academic engagement and decision-making (Hill & Tyson, 2009; Hornby & Lafaele, 2011). Research on parental involvement has largely focused on earlier stages of schooling, leaving upper secondary education comparatively underexplored (Otero-Mayer et al., 2025; Yang et al., 2023). Existing studies mainly adopt a variable-oriented approach, assuming sample homogeneity (Castro et al., 2015; Musengamana, 2023; Tan et al., 2020). Person-centred approaches, identifying subgroups and acknowledging heterogeneity (Berman & Trost, 2006), remain rare (Allemand et al., 2025; Zhou & Bowers, 2020), and quantitative, failing to fully capture the depth of parents' lived experiences. Previous qualitative research indicates that parents experience partnerships in diverse ways and that unmet needs may reinforce inequalities (Graham, 2021; Hornby & Lafaele, 2011). Building on prior work, this study adopts a mixed-methods approach to identify parent subgroups based on home–school partnership experiences and qualitatively examine their expectations and engagement preferences, providing a nuanced understanding of both patterns and meanings. Research at lower educational levels indicates that parents' educational background is associated with participation in home–school partnerships (Tan et al., 2020; Vincent, 2017) and the support adolescents receive at home (Lareau, 2011; Zhao & Zhao, 2022), yet findings vary across context. In Finnish context, there was no significant association between parental educational level and profile membership (Allemand et al., 2025), whereas in the United States higher-educated parents were more likely to belong to less involved profile (Zhou & Bowers, 2020). These differences highlight that the link between parental education and home–school partnership outcomes varies across contexts, making it essential to examine educational background within identified subgroups. Upper secondary education complicates home–school partnerships through academic and vocational tracks that may shape schools' expectations and parental engagement. However, no prior research has examined both tracks simultaneously, making it crucial to understand how parents experience partnerships across these pathways, as such experiences may influence and be influenced by adolescents’ educational choices. To address these existing gaps, this study adopts a mixed-methods approach, combining a person-centred approach with reflexive thematic analysis. The study investigates the following research questions: RQ1) What subgroups of parents can be identified based on their experiences of home-school partnership (i.e. school-based communication, home-based communication, home-school cooperation and trust and parental knowledge of school personnel)?, RQ2) How are parental educational level and adolescents’ educational track (academic vs. vocational track) related to subgroup membership of home-school partnerships?, and RQ3) What key parental experiences of home-school partnerships can be identified within different subgroups? The study is situated in the Finnish context and contributes to the broader European and international discussion on home–school partnerships by presenting findings across cultural and structural settings. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used The present study was conducted as a part of a larger national survey. A total of 7,168 parents of upper secondary school students participated in the study. Data for this study were collected via an online questionnaire in late autumn 2021. A mixed-methods approach was employed to address the research questions. To answer RQ1, parents' experiences of home–school partnerships were assessed using items adapted from Epstein's (2018) framework for school, family and community partnerships, which outlines four key dimensions: 1) school-based communication (five items), 2) home-based communication (two items), 3) home–school cooperation and trust (four items) and 4) parental knowledge of school personnel (two items). All variables were standardised prior to analysis to ensure comparability across scales. K-means clustering was conducted in SPSS to identify subgroups of parents based on their experiences of home–school partnerships. This person-oriented approach enables meaningful patterns to be identified and highlights the diversity of parental experiences, rather than treating parents as a homogeneous group (Bergman & Trost, 2006; Laursen & Hoff, 2006). To address RQ2, cross-tabulations were conducted to examine how the identified subgroups differed according to parental educational level and adolescents’ educational track. Chi-square tests and Cramer's V were used to assess the significance and strength of these associations, and adjusted residuals were examined to identify statistically significant over- or under-representation within each subgroup. To answer RQ3, a qualitative analysis of one open-ended question was carried out to deepen understanding of parents’ experiences of home–school partnerships. This analysis employed Braun and Clarke's (2006, 2021) reflexive thematic analysis (TA) approach, offering a systematic process for examining, organising, and interpreting data to develop themes across the dataset. TA enables critical engagement with language, meanings and context (Braun & Clarke, 2021), aiming to generate interpretative, meaning-based narrative accounts of themes rather than producing descriptive, topic-focused summaries (Braun & Clarke, 2023). Themes identified through TA within the entire dataset were then examined within the subgroups identified through K-means clustering to determine their frequency and how they were described by parents in each subgroup. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings In response to RQ1, a five-cluster solution was identified as the most optimal, as it revealed distinct patterns across key dimensions, including communication, partnership, trust and familiarity with school personnel (Epstein, 2018), and allowed for more nuanced differentiation between subgroups. In this solution, each subgroup represented a distinct pattern of parental experiences of home–school partnerships: 1) high home–school partnership (n = 1,832, 35%), 2) high home-based partnership (n = 829, 16%), 3) low awareness of school staff (n = 534, 10%), 4) low home-based partnership (n = 1,384, 26%) and 5) low home–school partnership (n = 666, 13%), demonstrating that parents perceive collaboration with schools in diverse ways. Regarding RQ2, clear associations emerged between parental educational level, adolescents’ educational track, and subgroup membership. Parents with a vocational qualification were overrepresented in the High home–school partnership subgroup and underrepresented in the Low home-based partnership subgroup, whereas parents with higher applied science or university degrees showed the opposite pattern. Adolescents’ educational track also influenced subgroup membership: parents of vocational track students were significantly overrepresented in the High home-based subgroup and underrepresented in the Low home-based subgroup, while the reverse applied to parents of general upper secondary students. With respect to RQ3, three themes and eight sub-themes captured key parental experiences within the subgroups. The first theme, re-orientation of home–school partnership, reflected a shift toward less intensive collaboration. The second theme, nature of knowledge, highlighted structural communication constraints, with information often generic rather than tailored. The third theme, trust in the partnership, underscored parents’ desire for respectful relationships and flexible forms of engagement. Together, these themes illustrate how changing practices, communication dynamics and trust shape meaningful and equitable home–school partnerships in upper secondary education. Overall, these findings highlight diversity in home–school partnerships in upper secondary education. References Allemand, L., Upadyaya, K., Niemelä, M., Merikukka, M. & Salmela-Aro, K. (2025). Profiles of parental involvement, adolescent activity, and trust and collaboration: Adolescents’ psychosocial well-being and socioeconomic status. European Journal of Developmental Psychology, 22(4), 560–583. https://doi.org/10.1080/17405629.2025.2498752 Castro, M., Expósito-Casas, E., López-Martín, E., Lizasoain, L., Navarro-Asencio, E. & Gaviria, J. L. (2015). Parental involvement on student academic achievement: A meta-analysis. Educational Research Review, 14, 33–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2015.01.002 Dotterer, A. M. (2022). Diversity and complexity in the theoretical and empirical study of parental involvement during adolescence and emerging adulthood. Educational Psychologist, 57(4), 295–308. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2022.2129651 Epstein, J. L. (2018). School, family, and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving Schools (2. p.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429494673 Graham, A., Truscott, J., O’Byrne, C., Considine, G., Hampshire, A., Creagh, S. & Western, M. (2021). Disadvantaged families’ experiences of home-school partnerships: Navigating agency, expectations and stigma. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 25(11), 1236–1251. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2019.1607913 Goodall, J. & Montgomery, C. (2014). Parental involvement to parental engagement: A continuum. Educational Review, 66(4), 399–410. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2013.781576 Hill, N. E. & Tyson, D. F. (2009). Parental involvement in middle school: A meta-analytic assessment of the strategies that promote achievement. Developmental Psychology, 45(3), 740–763. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0015362 Hornby, G. & Lafaele, R. (2011). Barriers to parental involvement in education: An explanatory model. Educational Review, 63(1), 37–52. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2010.488049 Jónsdóttir, H. H. & Blöndal, K. S. (2023). The choice of track matters: Academic self-concept and sense of purpose in vocational and academic tracks. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 67(4), 621–636. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2022.2042843 Kelty, N. E. & Wakabayashi, T. (2020). Family engagement in schools: Parent, educator, and community perspectives. SAGE Open, 10(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020973024 Lareau, A. (2011). Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life. University of California Press. Tan, C. Y., Lyu M. & Peng, B. (2020). Academic benefits from parental involvement are stratified by parental socioeconomic status: A meta-analysis. Parenting, 20(4), 241–287. https://doi.org/10.1080/15295192.2019.1694836 Vincent, C. (2017). ‘The children have only got one education and you have to make sure it’s a good one’: Parenting and parent–school relations in a neoliberal age. Gender and Education, 29(5), 541–557. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540253.2016.1274387 Virtanen, T. E., Vasalampi, K., Torppa, M., Lerkkanen, M-K. & Nurmi, J.E. (2019). Changes in students’ psychological well-being during transition from primary school to lower secondary school: A person-centered approach. Learning and Individual Differences, 69, 138–149. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2018.12.001 Zhou, X. & Bowers, A. (2020). A typology of parental involvement in student experience: A latent class analysis. 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Paper Beyond Participation: Seasonal Agricultural Worker Families’ Experiences with Education 1: Hacettepe Üniversitesi, Türkiye; 2: Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University (HBMSU), Dubai, UAE. Presenting Author:This study is part of a broader qualitative research project focusing on school-family relations in a rural community that attracts seasonal agricultural immigrants. While the first phase examined educators' experiences and institutional barriers (Gedik & Uzundal, 2025), the current phase focuses on family experiences. Family involvement is increasingly recognized as a context dependent practice shaped by the daily realities of families rather than superficial, school-centric, and prescriptive definitions (DeMatthews et al., 2016; Gedik, 2021; Kelty & Wakabayashi, 2020). For seasonal agricultural worker families, the school-family relationships fluctuate under conditions of economic insecurity, unstable employment, inadequate living conditions, and constant mobility (McLaughlin et al., 2017). Migration and seasonal labor reorganize family life around immediate survival needs, necessitating a continuous restructuring of caregiving, decision-making, and schooling practices (Chattier, 2019; Fiałkowska, 2019). While previous research has documented the educational disadvantages faced by children of seasonal workers (Avcı & Ekici, 2023), limited attention has been paid to how these families experience education and schooling and how they make sense of their educational roles within these constrained contexts. At this point, the current study intends to contribute to the discourse that takes a critical stand against the normalization of superficial involvement expectations that marginalize families whose realities fall outside dominant, school-centered assumptions about education and involvement. More specifically, we aim to explore how seasonal agricultural worker families experience, interpret, and negotiate school–family relationships within an unstable socioeconomic context shaped by seasonal labor, economic insecurity, and unstable living conditions. Guided by the following research question, the study examines: How do seasonal agricultural worker families make sense of their experiences with schooling and school–family relationships within contexts shaped by seasonal labor, economic insecurity, and mobility? Conceptual Framework This study is informed by an interpretative conceptual framework that foregrounds families’ lived experiences and sense-making processes within structurally constrained contexts. In this regard, interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) serves as the broad philosophical and methodological framework guiding the study’s epistemological orientation and analytic approach. Within this framework, IPA enables the study to attend closely to families’ narratives and discourses, particularly those that are often marginalized within dominant school-centered accounts, by foregrounding how participants themselves make sense of their experiences. Aligned with this, the study also builds on previous critical scholarship that problematizes school-centric and deficit-oriented assumptions about family involvement, particularly in contexts marked by structural inequality and marginalization (Dematthews et al., 2016; Gedik, 2021; Gil & Johnson, 2024; Yosso, 2005). Rather than treating parental involvement as a set of predefined behaviors, the framework positions involvement as an interpretive and relational process shaped by families’ everyday realities and their interactions with schools. (Kelty & Wakabayashi, 2020). Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used Methodology The study adopts a qualitative research design based on Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). IPA is a well-established qualitative approach that focuses on how individuals make sense of their lived experiences and the meanings they attribute to these experiences in their daily lives (Smith et al., 2009). In educational research, IPA is increasingly utilized to examine complex, emotional, and context-bound experiences that standardized or survey-based methods often fail to capture (Noon, 2018; Robinson et al., 2024). IPA is grounded in three core principles: a phenomenological focus on lived experience, a hermeneutic orientation that acknowledges the researcher’s interpretive role, and an idiographic commitment to the in-depth analysis of a small, purposefully selected sample (Smith et al., 2009). These principles align closely with the objectives of this study, which seeks to understand how the relationship with schooling is experienced and interpreted by families whose daily lives are shaped by seasonal agricultural labor. The study was conducted with seven seasonal agricultural worker families living in temporary tent settlements in a rural setting. Families were selected through purposeful sampling to ensure shared experiential features while allowing for individual idiosyncrasies. Data production involved repeated field visits to the settlements, ensuring prolonged engagement and a contextual understanding of the families' living and working conditions. This sustained presence facilitated rapport-building and provided insights into how education-related decisions are embedded in daily routines. Primary data were obtained through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with adult family members. Interview questions focused on perceptions of formal education, experiences with schools, expectations regarding children's schooling, and daily forms of family involvement under conditions of labor-oriented mobility. Additionally, informal observations focused on caregiving practices, children’s daily activities, housing conditions, and working environments were conducted during field visits. Consistent with IPA’s methodological orientation, these observations served as a means of contextualization and deepening interpretation rather than as a separate analytical element. Data analysis followed the iterative stages of IPA, including the close and repetitive reading of transcripts, the identification of emergent experiential themes in individual cases, and subsequent cross-case analysis to examine patterns of convergence and divergence across families. Throughout the analytical process, attention was paid to the double hermeneutic—the participants' interpretation of their own experience and the researcher’s interpretation of those interpretations (Smith et al., 2009). This approach enabled a nuanced exploration of school-family relations within constrained and marginalized contexts. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings Findings Findings indicate that family support for schooling often remains at a discursive level, as immediate economic needs take precedence over school attendance. Children frequently participate in seasonal agricultural work, and school attendance is limited to a small number of children who persist in obtaining an education despite these constraints. Similar to findings in other seasonal and transnational labor contexts, family roles and responsibilities are reorganized around income generation, and children take on additional domestic or labor-related tasks that reduce the time and energy available for schooling (McLaughlin et al., 2017). Education is widely valued in principle; however, families often describe it as a deferred or conditional goal shaped by economic exigencies. Inadequate living conditions and limited access to basic services further constrain families’ capacity for sustained interaction with schools, reinforcing their exclusion from formal institutions. The informal and precarious nature of seasonal agricultural labor, where working conditions and wages are largely at the discretion of employers, places families and children in a vulnerable position (Fiałkowska, 2019; Calnitsky, 2019). In this context, family involvement is not absent but reconstructed: emotional support, moral encouragement, and shared responsibility for survival emerge as primary forms of involvement. These findings align with international research showing that seasonal worker families remain strongly family-oriented, even as care and educational engagement are reshaped rather than simply diminished (Henderson, 2017; Chattier, 2019). Overall, the study highlights a clear mismatch between dominant school-based models of family involvement and the lived realities of seasonal agricultural worker families. 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