Neither Friend nor Foe: Ethnic Segregation in School Social Networks

• Published in: Socius : sociological research for a dynamic world Vol. 9
• Main Authors: Bracegirdle, Chloe, Jonsson, Jan O., Spiegler, Olivia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01-01-2023; Sage Publications Ltd; SAGE Publishing
• Subjects: Bullying; Ethnic relations; Ethnicity; Friendship; intergroup relations; School environment; Segregation; Social networks; friendship; intergroup relations; segregation; social networks; bullying
• ISSN: 2378-0231; 2378-0231
• DOI: 10.1177/23780231231214956

High levels of ethnic segregation have been widely observed in school friendship networks, whereas the degree to which school bullying networks are divided along ethnic lines remains uncertain. Using data from 981 students (53% girls, 47% boys; 11–14 years of age) in British schools, we sought to visualize, quantify, and compare the degree of ethnic segregation in friendship and bullying networks. Our findings contradict the common belief that ethnic segregation in friendship networks fosters interethnic conflict; instead, we identified similarly high levels of ethnic segregation in both friendship and bullying networks. Students may therefore simultaneously avoid positive and negative interethnic relationships. The findings indicate that positive and negative networks should both be considered to provide a comprehensive assessment of interethnic relations in the school environment.