Operationalizing Bourdieu for the study of student aspirations : conceptual and methodological challenges

The study ‘Educational and Career Aspirations in the Middle Years of Schooling: Understanding Complexity for Increased Equity’, funded by the Australian Research Council and the NSW Department of Education, sought to identify the relative impact of, and complex interplay among, student- and school-related factors influencing the career and educational aspirations of students. Both the scale of the study and its mixed-method longitudinal design were innovative in the field of aspirations research, where cross-sectional analyses and small samples are common (e.g. Guo et al. 2015). Our goal of providing comprehensive quantitative and qualitative longitudinal analyses of factors influencing students’ aspirations (see Figure 5.1) drew us to a composite capitals construct. Becker and Tomes’ (1986) idea of human capital, or rational decision-making, based on potential gains in productivity as compared with direct/indirect costs, helped us gain insights into academic preparation for tertiary education (e.g. academic achievement, curriculum advice and pathways, test results, and planning and saving for educational expenses). Bourdieu’s theory of capital interaction assisted us to conceptualize components contributing to both the differential distribution and the reproduction of aspiration, attainment and achievement.