Cambodian parental involvement: The role of parental beliefs, social networks, and trust

The role of social capital (parental beliefs, social networks, and trust) as a predictor of parental involvement in Cambodian children's education was examined, controlling for human capital (family socioeconomic status). Parents of elementary students (n = 273) were interviewed face to face in Cambodia. Teacher contact scored highest, followed by responsiveness, home involvement, and school meetings. Multiple regressions showed that parents' social networks (relatives' influence on academics), trust between people, academic aspirations, gender role attitudes, and fatalistic beliefs predicted some types of parental involvement. Gender role attitudes predicted parent-school responsiveness differently by corresponding gender of parents and children (father-daughter and mother-son), suggesting that fathers are less likely to be responsive to school for their daughters, and mothers for their sons. Results suggest that educators working with Cambodian/Cambodian American parents need to be proactive, taking into consideration parents' beliefs system and identifying resources within families and communities that can be used to increase parents' participation interest.