Diverse Belongings: How Social Networks Shape Belongingness for Law Students

We are using the 2019-20 Diversity and Networking in Law School survey to analyze perceived belonging during the first and second semesters of students in their first year of law school.  First, we will estimate regression models of perceived belonging on diversity measures, egocentric network structures, and other variables. Next, to examine whether perceived belonging is clustered in networks, we will employ social network analyses, including stochastic actor-oriented models to parse whether homophily in belonging is linked to selection processes or network diffusion.

Research has shown that belonging is both an element of social capital and can help generate social capital. Consequently, perceived belonging may reflect differences in student backgrounds and identities that otherwise respond to the traditional kinds of social capital recognized in law school and the legal profession.  Using these two waves of data, in this project, we hope to be able to explore belonging as a dynamic process and contribute recommendations to universities in order to improve student experiences.