School Bonding – an Analysis of Attachment to School and Commitment to Schooling in High School Students

Vezanost za školu (School bonding) se može razmatrati kroz različite oblike odnosa učenika sa školom, nastavnicima, vrijednostima i normama koje škola promiče. Kao takva ona je snažan zaštitni čimbenik za razvoj rizičnih ponašanja kojima se krše socijalne norme koje sama škola promiče. Cilj istraživanja bio je provjeriti mjere privrženosti školi i predanosti izvršavanju školskih obveza kao dviju temeljnih dimenzija konstrukta vezanosti za školu. U tu su svrhu pripremljene odgovarajuće mjerne ljestvice u skladu s konceptualizacijom Maddox i Prinz (2003). Podaci za analizu su prikupljeni na uzorku od 1.927 adolescenata, učenica i učenika svih srednjih škola u Primorsko-goranskoj županiji. Dvodimenzionalnost konstrukta je potvrđena faktorskom analizom. Koeficijent pouzdanost (Cronbach alfa) ljestvice Privrženosti školi o d 10 t vrdnji i znosi 0 ,87, dok pouzdanost ljestvice Predanosti izvršavanju školskih obveza od sedam tvrdnji iznosi 0,86. Njihova konceptualna različitost potvrđena je usporedivim regresijskim analizama s nizom prediktorskih varijabli kojima se ispitao odnos učenika prema školi. Ljestvice su provjerene i s obzirom na školski uspjeh, spol i tip škole koju učenici pohađaju. Učenici koji ostvaruju bolji školski uspjeh iskazuju višu razinu privrženosti i predanosti, dok se učenici različitih tipova škola značajnije ne razlikuju po svojoj privrženosti školi, ali se značajno razlikuju po predanosti izvršavanja školskih obveza. Djevojke općenito i učenici gimnazijskih programa iskazuju višu razinu predanosti izvršavanju školskih obveza od učenika strukovnih škola. Provedene analize potvrđuju valjanost razvijenih mjernih ljestvica i njihovu upotrebljivost za dalje istraživanja konstrukta vezanosti za školu na hrvatskom govornom području.School bonding could be defined through various relations students have with their school, teachers, values and norms that school promotes. As such it is a strong protective factor for risk behaviour that violates such school norms. The aim of this study was to verify the attachment to school and the commitment to schooling as the two fundamental dimensions of school bonding. Two measuring scales were prepared in accordance with the conceptualization of Maddox and Prinz (2003). Data were collected on a sample of 1927 students of all secondary schools in the Primorsko-Goranska County. Two-dimensional construct was confirmed by factor analysis. The coefficient of reliability (Cronbach alpha) for the Attachment scale of ten items was 0.87, while the reliability of the Commitment scale of seven items was 0.86. Their conceptual differences were compared by two separate regression analysis with a list of predictor variables that examined the students’ relationship to school. The measures were also tested with regard to academic achievement, gender and type of school that students attend. Students who achieve better school grades show a higher level of attachment and commitment, while students of different types of schools do not differ significantly in their attachment to school, but they differ significantly in the commitment to carrying out school obligations. Girls and grammar school students reported a higher level of commitment to carrying out the school obligations, compared to students in vocational schools. The analysis carried out confirms the validity of the developed scales and their usefulness for further research of school bonding in Croatian language