School of Business and Economics, Maastricht University, Tongersestraat 53, 6211 LM, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University, Montessorilaan 3, PO Box 9104, 6500 HE, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
J Youth Adolesc. 2019 Jul;48(7):1296-1310. doi: 10.1007/s10964-019-01022-1. Epub 2019 Apr 19.
It is undesirable when students attend institutions that are less selective than their academic credentials would permit (i.e., undermatching) because of the long-term consequences for their job opportunities and wages, in particular for students from low-socioeconomic (SES) backgrounds. Undermatching may also affect students' satisfaction during college. Research from a life course perspective shows that subjective experiences during college may have long-term impact on adolescents' development. However, little is known about the relation between undermatching and students' subjective experiences during their years in college, and about whether this relation is moderated by SES. From an academic misalignment perspective, undermatching may lead to less satisfaction because undermatched students are not maximizing their potential. However, from a social misalignment perspective, experiences of social mismatch when low-SES students enter the most selective institutions are well documented, and such mismatch may be less pronounced in less selective institutions. Consequently, there may be a positive relation between undermatching and satisfaction with the social environment for low-SES students. The current study tested these relations by using propensity score matching (PSM) to analyse the association between undermatching, SES, and satisfaction among 21,452 respondents (67% female) among 1, 2, 3, and 4 year college students from a cohort study among students in the Netherlands (Dutch Student Monitor), all of whom were eligible for the most selective institutions. The results indicated a negative relation between undermatching and satisfaction with the social and academic environment, both for low- and high-SES students. The negative relation between undermatching and both forms of satisfaction increases toward the last year in college, especially for low-SES students. This lowered satisfaction in the final stage in higher education implies that the negative consequences of undermatching become more pronounced after students have become more integrated in their colleges. These findings have important implications for the understanding about undermatching in relation to students' development and for the formulation of policies and programs for promoting social mobility.
当学生选择的学校不如他们的学历所允许的那样具有选择性时（即不匹配），这是不理想的，因为这对他们的工作机会和工资会产生长期影响，尤其是对于来自低社会经济地位（SES）背景的学生。不匹配也可能影响学生在大学期间的满意度。从生命历程的角度进行的研究表明，大学生活期间的主观体验可能对青少年的发展产生长期影响。然而，对于不匹配与学生在大学期间的主观体验之间的关系，以及这种关系是否受到 SES 的调节，我们知之甚少。从学术不匹配的角度来看，不匹配可能导致学生的满意度降低，因为不匹配的学生没有最大限度地发挥他们的潜力。然而，从社会不匹配的角度来看，当低 SES 学生进入最具选择性的机构时，他们经历的社会不匹配的情况有充分的记录，而且这种不匹配在选择范围较窄的机构中可能不太明显。因此，对于低 SES 学生来说，不匹配与对社会环境的满意度之间可能存在正相关关系。本研究通过使用倾向评分匹配（PSM）分析了荷兰学生监测中的一个队列研究中 21452 名受访者（67%为女性）中不匹配、SES 和满意度之间的关系，这些受访者来自 1、2、3 和 4 年制大学生，他们都有资格进入最具选择性的机构。结果表明，不匹配与社会和学术环境的满意度之间存在负相关关系，无论是低 SES 学生还是高 SES 学生。不匹配与这两种形式的满意度之间的负相关关系在大学的最后一年增加，尤其是对于低 SES 学生。这种在高等教育最后阶段降低的满意度意味着，在学生更加融入他们的学院之后，不匹配的负面影响变得更加明显。这些发现对于理解不匹配与学生发展的关系以及制定促进社会流动的政策和计划具有重要意义。
