The importance of social connections for
educational attainment:
Shedding light on ethnic inequalities using
social network analysis
Dr Katherine Woolf
UCL Medical School
UCL Division of Psychology and Language Sciences
Fairness and equality
About you
Contents
 The ethnic attainment gap
– in Higher Education
– in medicine
 Possible causes
 Relationships between students from different
ethnic groups
– How might this help us understand and combat the
ethnic attainment gap?
Contents
 The ethnic attainment gap
– in Higher Education
– in medicine
 Possible causes
 Relationships between students from different
ethnic groups
– How might this help us understand and combat the
ethnic attainment gap?
Ethnic gap in attainment in UK
Higher Education known about since 1996
Fielding et al looked at ethnic differences in
degree attainment, controlling for:

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Prior attainment
Deprivation
Subject type
Living at home
Gender
Age
Institutional characteristics (Russell Group; mean
deprivation; % of BME students)
Fielding et al looked at ethnic differences in
degree attainment, controlling for:
 Prior attainment
 Deprivation
 Subject type
“Main ethnic-related gaps in higher education
 Living at home
attainment remain”
 Gender
Fielding et al (2008)
 Age
 Institutional characteristics (Russell Group; mean
deprivation; % of BME students)
Is the same true in medicine?
 Medical school finals are excluded from national
statistics on degree attainment
Yes
The ethnic attainment gap is present at
medical school
The ethnic attainment gap is present at
medical school AND in qualified doctors
What’s going on?
“The fallacy of the single factor”
Professor Lord Bhikhu Parekh, The Swann Report “Education for all” 1985
Social psychological research from the USA
 The importance of BME students’ self-perceptions
to their performance
Claude Steele
Geoff Cohen
Greg Walton
Stereotype threat (Steele & Aronson, 1995)
Stereotype threat (Steele & Aronson, 1995)
Negative stereotype
about group
Anxiety at confirming
stereotype
Psychological ‘threat’
Poor performance
Stereotype threat (Steele & Aronson, 1995)
Negative stereotype
about group
Anxiety at confirming
stereotype
Psychological ‘threat’
Poor performance
Woolf, Cave, Greenhalgh, Dacre (2008) BMJ.
Stereotypical ‘Asian’ medical student:
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Pushed into medicine by parents
Over-reliant on book learning
Poor at communicating with patients
Too quiet in class
Stereotypical Asian student
“Some of these sweet little Asian girlies
are very hard to get through to...They
smile sweetly, they’re good little girls”
‘Dr Richards’ White male physician
Stereotype threat?
“ [People] expect you to have been
forced into [medicine] …
I tended to try and prove myself, prove
my worth being here. …
The pressure of that, as well as, if
people have a complex about being
ethnic minority
…adds to the pressure.”
‘Madhu’ British Indian Female Year 4 (2006)
Overcoming stereotype threat
 By changing students’ perceptions of their own
identities
What helps you feel like you belong at
university?
 In pairs, think of at least two things that help(ed)
you feel like you belong(ed) on your course at
university
2 mins
What helps you feel like you belong at
university?

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Acceptance by teachers
Role models who seem like you
Good relationships with peers
Interest in the subject
Interest in and ability to do the work required
What helps you feel like you belong at
university?
 Good relationships with peers
Contents
 The ethnic attainment gap
– in Higher Education
– in medicine
 Possible causes
 Relationships between students from different
ethnic groups
– How might this help us understand and combat the
ethnic attainment gap?
In those original interviews we heard this….
“You find quite a lot of segregation…I don’t
like that – people look at me and they think …
all my friends are going to be Indian and I’m
only gonna, you know, talk to Indian people”
‘Aesha’ British Indian Female Year 4 (2006)
And this….
“When you walk into the [Lecture
Theatre], on that right hand side there
was definitely brown people,
and then in front of that you see the
graduates, and then behind them
it’s the Asian people.”
‘Kamesh’ British Indian male Year 4 (2006)
Is there really ethnic segregation at UCL
Medical School?
 If so
– what are the implications?
– what might we do about it?
The formation and influence of medical
student social networks
Social network study 1
Woolf K, Potts HWW, Patel S, McManus IC. (2012)
Questions
 What factors (including ethnicity) influence
students’ choice of friends?
 What effect do friends have on each others’
academic performance?
Measuring the social network
 Year 2 UCL medical students in November 2009
(n=317)
 Circled their friends on a list of all students in the
year
n=317 (mean number friends=19 SD=11)
Response rate 68%  data on 100% students in Year 2 (undirected ties)
Year 1 quartiles
bottom
2nd
3rd
top
Campus
Whittington
Royal free
UCH
Sex
female
male
Ethnicity (white and BME)
white
BME
Friends in Nov more likely to be same
ethnicity, sex & teaching group (p=.001)
Same ethnicity
Same sex
Same teaching group
Friends in Nov
Friends in Nov had more similar
end-of-year 2nd year results (p=.01)
Same ethnicity
Same sex
Same teaching group
Friends in Nov
Similar Year 2
results
Friends in Nov had more similar
end-of-year 2nd year results (p=.01)
Same ethnicity
Same sex
Same teaching group
Similar Year 1
results
Friends in Nov
Similar Year 2
results
Ethnic diversity and exam performance
 Did students with more diverse friendship groups
do better (or worse, or no different) in their
exams?
More diversity = better exam scores
Social network study 1 summary
 Ethnicity was a key influence on friendship
Social network study 1 summary
 Ethnicity was a key influence on friendship
 Friendship influenced performance
Social network study 1 summary
 Ethnicity was a key influence on friendship
 Friendship influenced performance
 More diverse friends, better exam scores
Social network study 1 summary
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
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Ethnicity was a key influence on friendship
Friendship influenced performance
More diverse friends, better exam scores
Random allocation to teaching group by the
medical school influenced friendships
Social network study 2
 Longitudinal investigation of the influence of
attributes on network formation, and of network
ties on attribute change
Woolf K & Crossley N. (2013) 9th UK Social
Networks Association Conference, Greenwich.
Questions
 How do people choose with whom to form ties at
the start of medical school?
 Do social ties influence their performance?
Methods
 Year 1 students 2011/12:
– Attitudes, habits, ethnic identity, and grades before & 6
months into medical school
– Social ties 1 & 6 months in to medical school
– How students knew each other (socially, live together,
studying)
November: one month in
Density=0.12
Mean degree=40
November “live together”
Density=0.02
Mean degree=7
November “study together”
Density=0.02
Mean degree=7
November “socialise together”
Density=0.06
Mean degree=21
Independent predictors of the November network
.07 p=.01
.05 p=.009
.10 p=.001
.07 p=.020
.10 p=.002
.03 p=.024
.16 p<.0001
Model explain 8.3% of the variance;
Alcohol….?
Put your hand up if….
 You think people who drink (or don’t) are more
likely to be friends with other people who drink (or
don’t)
Alcohol (p=.02) but not significant once
other factors accounted for
Doesn’t drink
Drinks
Friends in November
 similar performance in May exams?
Friends in November
 similar performance in May exams?
Yes: Overall network: r=.041 p=.048
 Studying network : r=.013 p=.012
 Living together network: ns
 Socialising network: ns
 “Other” network: ns
November: “study together”
Top quartile
2nd quartile
3rd quartile
Bottom quartile
November: “study together”
Dropout
Fail
Top quartile
2nd quartile
3rd quartile
Bottom quartile
Poor performers more peripheral (p=0.006)
Dropout
Fail
Top quartile
2nd quartile
3rd quartile
Bottom quartile
Friends in April
 similar in May exams?
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April overall network: ns
April living together network: ns
April studying network: ns
Yes: April socialising network: r=.06 p=.045
Social network study 2 summary
 Initial social ties influenced by ethnicity, teaching
group, nationality, graduate status, and common
interests
Social network study 2 summary
 Initial social ties influenced by ethnicity, teaching
group, nationality, graduate status, and common
interests
 Those who studied together at the start of the
year, and socialised together at the end of the
year had more similar (high or low) Year 1 results
Social network study 2 summary
 Initial social ties influenced by ethnicity, teaching
group, nationality, graduate status, and common
interests
 Those who studied together at the start of the
year, and socialised together at the end of the
year had more similar (high or low) Year 1 results
 Poor performers more peripheral
Summary of both social network studies
 Ethnicity important influence on social ties
 More peripheral students performed more poorly
 Students with ethnically diverse friendships
achieved more highly
 Medical schools influenced who people became
friends with
Is there really ethnic segregation at UCL
Medical School?
 If so
– why?
– what are the implications?
– what might we do about it?
Interviews with 32 UCLMS students from
Years 1 to 6 in 2010
Furmedge DS, Wolff J, Tirodkar S, Vaughan S, Woolf K
(2013) Let me belong: student perceptions of ethnic
segregation at medical school. Association for Medical
Education in Europe, Prague.
Anxiety about interacting with people who
seem different
“if someone’s never met someone of a
different ethnicity it can be quite
difficult…. You just stick to what you’re
comfortable with and what you know”
‘ Abdul’ Pakistani Male Year 4 (2010)
Stephan, W.G .& Stephan, C.W. (1985) Intergroup Anxiety. Journal of Social Issues
41(3) 157–175
“At my DGH everyone else would be in the
lounge, but there would be like five or six,
sort of, Asian, I think they were all sort of
Islamic, like, Muslim people in the kitchen.
And going into the kitchen to make a cup of
tea when they were all in there chatting was
sort of…
“What, awkward or…?"
“Just a bit awkward. Yeah really awkward”
‘George’ British White Male student Year 5 (2010)
Natural to want to be with
people you have something in common with
“You generally have more in common
with them culturally, and so often, and
you know, sometimes you may feel
more comfortable with people of the
same religion or background”
‘Haresh’ British Indian Male Year 4 (2010)
Judging “something in common”…?
Judging “something in common”…?
“You see a face similar to yours... you think
they might have the same background as you
then you’re gonna stick with them”
‘Rakesh’ Indian Male Year 1 (2010)
Judging “something in common”…?
“You see a face similar to yours... you think
they might have the same background as you
then you’re gonna stick with them”
‘Rakesh’ Indian Male Year 1 (2010)
“[Ethnicity] is the first thing you notice about
someone without having talked to them”
‘Yoshi’ Mixed Male Year 5 (2010)
Helps students from minority groups feel
more understood…
“it’s more just a shared culture that you
think “maybe other people maybe don’t
have that insight into my culture”
‘Amina’ British Pakistani Female Year 4 (2010)
…because they don’t feel understood by
people from outside their culture
“it’s more just a shared culture that you
think “maybe other people maybe don’t
have that insight into my culture”
‘Amina’ British Pakistani Female Year 4 (2010)
Negative assumptions about ‘cliques’
“The Muzzy Crew we call them. A bunch of
boys who, most of them are Muslim and they
tend to just stick with themselves, and won’t
even talk to me for instance because I don’t
fit in to their category”
‘Chathu’ British Sri Lankan Female Final Year (2010)
“You know rugger buggers, right?
“Yeah”
“I love them, I do, but as a group they can be really
intimidating. So unless you can put up with that, I
dunno, if I was a guy I wouldn’t, or I’d be less
inclined to join [the rugby club]”
“What makes them intimidating?”
“Um, they’re loud, um…Oh! Actually hockey girls are
the scariest ever [laughs]”
‘Chathu’ British Sri Lankan Female Final Year (2010)
Why does ethnic segregation happen?
 Ethnicity used as a shortcut or stereotype for
judging values and interests initially
 Anxiety at interacting with people of a different
ethnic group, particularly if you haven’t got much
experience
 May help minority students feel understood and
accepted
 Presumption that cliques are unwelcoming
Is there really ethnic segregation at UCL
Medical School?
 If so
– why?
– what are the implications?
– what might we do about it?
We know
 Minority ethnic students are stereotyped (Woolf et
al., 2008)
 Minority ethnic students may feel like they are not
understood by the majority (Furmedge et al.,
2013)
We know
 Stereotyping and lack of belonging can result in
minority ethnic underperformance (Steele &
Aronson, 1996; Cohen & Walton, 2007)
We know: Segregation increases
stereotyping, prejudice and conflict
We know: Segregation increases
stereotyping, prejudice and conflict
“People who stay separate have few channels of
communication. They easily exaggerate the degree of
difference between groups, and readily misunderstand
the grounds of it. Separateness may lead to genuine
conflicts of interests, as well as to many imaginary
conflicts”
Gordon W Allport, The Nature of Prejudice (1954)
We know: Intergroup contact reduces
negative feelings between groups
We know: Intergroup contact changes
categorisation (Crisp & Abrams, 2008)
We know: Intergroup contact changes
categorisation (Crisp & Abrams, 2008)
 Changes “us and them” to “we”
We know: Intergroup contact changes
categorisation (Crisp & Abrams, 2008)
 Changes “us and them” to “we”  ? belonging
We know: Intergroup contact changes
categorisation (Crisp & Abrams, 2008)
 Changes “us and them” to “we”  ? belonging
 Reduces outgroup stereotypical homogeneity
We know: Intergroup contact related to
improved performance
 Minority ethnic and white students with less
segregated (more diverse) friendships do better in
their exams
Put this all together…..
The hypothesised model
Ethnic
segregation
The hypothesised model
+
Ethnic
segregation
Ethnic
categorisation
The hypothesised model
+
Minority Ethnic
stereotyping
+
Ethnic
segregation
Ethnic
categorisation
-
Minority Ethnic
belonging
The hypothesised model
+
Minority Ethnic
stereotyping
-
+
Ethnic
segregation
Ethnic
categorisation
-
Minority Ethnic
performance
Minority Ethnic
belonging
+
Social capital: a networks perspective on
attainment
Social capital
Social capital
 The benefits you get from the people you know
Social capital
 The benefits you get from the people you know
 Social connections which can be converted into
economic benefits e.g.:
– Career success
– Team effectiveness
– Reduced turnover
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
Bonding capital
“All my, some of the black friends I’ve met,
they have made it their mission to know all
the black people in the lecture theatre”
‘Charity’ Black African Female Year 1 (2010)
Benefits of bonding capital
 Sense of identity and common purpose
 Psychological and tangible support
Problems with only having bonding capital
 “Intra-community ties can become a basis for the
pursuit of narrow sectarian interests” (Woolcock &
Narayan, 2000)
 Lack of resources and creativity
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
£
£
£
£
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
£
£
£
£
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
£
£
£
£
£
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
£
£
£
£
£
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
Bonding capital vs bridging capital
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
Bridging capital: ties that cross boundaries
 Create opportunities (Burt, 1992)
The hypothesised model
Decreased bridging
social capital for
minority students
+
Minority Ethnic
stereotyping
-
+
Ethnic
segregation
Ethnic
categorisation
-
Minority Ethnic
performance
Minority Ethnic
belonging
+
Finally, a look at belonging again
Decreased bridging
social capital for
minority students
+
Minority Ethnic
stereotyping
-
+
Ethnic
segregation
Ethnic
categorisation
-
Minority Ethnic
performance
Minority Ethnic
belonging
+
Does segregation
 lead to/reinforce lack of belonging in minority
students?
or
 help minority students feel less alone?
Does segregation
 lead to/reinforce lack of belonging in minority
students?
or
 help minority students feel less alone?
 Probably a bit of both
Medical school
University
Medical school
University
Medical school
Profession
University
Medical school
Profession
Two recent reports into BME student
attainment in higher education
Singh (2011)
Stevenson (2012)
Both recommend:
 Institutions do more to help BME students feel like
they belong, including reducing ethnic
segregation.
Stevenson (2012)
“Students repeatedly referred to what they
regarded as the universities failures to integrate
them effectively and develop a sense of
belonging”
“Both staff and students felt that reducing the
attainment gap required a greater commitment to
ensuring inter-ethnic integration”
Singh (2011)
“Universities need to…actively discourage
segregation and encourage cohesion among
students”
“Mentoring schemes and positive role models …
should be developed in ways that do not end up
reinforcing…the segregation of BME students”
What can we do?
 Create opportunities for people from different
backgrounds to learn about each other and work
together positively
 Avoid having social events that are always
focussed on alcohol or that otherwise exclude
whole groups of people
 Help increase diversity in our work and learning
environments (not just ethnic diversity)
Summary
 People tend to naturally segregate along ethnic,
gender, religion and class lines
 There are benefits - educational, economic, and
social - to be had from bridging social divides, for
all groups but particularly disadvantaged groups
 Specific strategies are required to help people
make those bridges
Singh (2011)