Social Capital and the Psychosocial Adjustment of Chinese Migrant Children: The Role of Child's Personal Agency

Background and Purpose: Migrant children have become a fast growing population in mainland China as a consequence of China's internal migration characterized by a population flow from rural to urban areas. However, government policies designed to control the flow of migration render these children ineligible for many social services, placing them at higher risk of developing psychosocial adjustment problems. Applying the social capital theoretical framework, this study aims to investigate how social capital (i.e. resources inherent in social relationships that facilitate a social outcome) (Coleman, 1988) embedded in the family, school, and community influences the psychosocial adjustment of Chinese migrant children. Moreover, it examines whether children's personal agency, that is, their initiative and actual efforts in generating and mobilizing social capital, moderates the effect of social capital on their psychosocial adjustment. Methods: Data for the study comes from a questionnaire survey with 772 4th to 9th grade migrant students as well as their parents in Shanghai, China. Psychosocial adjustment was assessed by self-esteem, depression, hostility, and life satisfaction, using standardized scales that have been validated in the Chinese context: Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965), Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale for Children (Faulstich et al., 1986), Aggression Questionnaire (Buss & Perry, 1992), and Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985). Family social capital was assessed by parent-child interactions and parental monitoring; school social capital was assessed by school climate and student-teacher relationships; and community social capital was assessed by social cohesion and trust among neighborhood adults and children, informal social control, and neighborhood solidarity. Children's personal agency in constructing family, school, and community social capital was each assessed by five items asking how often they initiated interactions with or offered help to parents, teachers, and neighbors as a means to forge stronger ties and generate potential resources in those contexts. Structural equation modeling (via Mplus 5.0) was employed to test the hypothesized model of social capital effects. Results: The multiple-group SEM revealed significant moderating effects of child's personal agency. Family social capital exhibited stronger positive effect on psychosocial adjustment for children showing higher levels of personal agency in constructing family social capital (B = .602, p <.001) than for those showing lower levels of personal agency (B = .355, p <.01). School social capital also showed stronger association with psychosocial adjustment for children from the high personal agency group (B = .833, p <.001) than for those from the low personal agency group (B = .450, p <.01). Nevertheless, the effect of community social capital on psychosocial adjustment was not contingent on the level of personal agency. Conclusions and Implications: This study advances social capital theory by taking into account children's personal agency in generating and mobilizing social capital as a potential modifier of social capital effects. The findings imply employing empowerment strategies in youth service programs that encourage and enable migrant children to make investment in their various social relationships, thus developing and mobilizing social capital in order to promote their psychosocial adjustment.