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ERIC Number: EJ1262714
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1054-8289
EISSN: N/A
The Double-Edged Consequences of Beliefs about Opportunity and Economic Mobility
Destin, Mesmin
Future of Children, v30 n1 p153-163 Spr 2020
Beliefs about socioeconomic mobility have important consequences, writes Mesmin Destin, especially for young people. Moreover, research by psychologists shows that such beliefs are malleable, based on the information and circumstances people encounter. The consequences of beliefs about mobility can be quite positive. When young people perceive that they have opportunities and financial resources to help them reach their goals, they are more likely to take the steps that can lead to upward socioeconomic mobility. But the consequences can also be negative. Overemphasizing opportunities while de-emphasizing systematic barriers and inequality, Destin writes, makes it less likely that people will take collective action against discrimination and address inequality's structural roots. Destin proposes several ways that policymakers and others could navigate this tension. One, for example, is to convey a more balanced notion to young people: that opportunities are available, but unfair barriers exist that particularly affect members of certain groups. In the end, though, he concludes, perhaps the most effective way to shape people's perceptions of opportunity is to expand the pathways to upward socioeconomic mobility and make them more accessible to all young people.
Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University and The Brookings Institution. 267 Wallace Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544. Tel: 609-258-6979; e-mail: FOC@princeton.edu; Web site: http://futureofchildren.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A