Belongingness is more strongly associated with academic achievement among marginalized students than among white students¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · theoretical r3 · q2
Currency · newest study 2026 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? A scoping review found belongingness more strongly associated with academic achievement for marginalized students compared to white students. → Jessica T. DeCuir-Gunby 2026

Evidence¶

Jessica T. DeCuir-Gunby 2026¶

Jessica T. DeCuir-Gunby, Paul A. Schutz, Saba L. Modaressi. (2026). Racializing Motivation: A Race-Reimaged Framework of Belonging, Emoting, and Achieving Within STEM Higher Education Contexts. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-026-10220-w

q2 · i? · theoretical · r3

The review reports, citing Fong et al. (2024), a scoping review finding that "belongingness was more strongly associated with academic achievement among marginalized students" relative to white students. The reviewed study's design is not described in this article beyond its scoping-review status.

"Fong and colleagues’ (2024) scoping review of research found that belongingness was more strongly associated with academic achievement among marginalized students, including racially marginalized students, when compared to white students."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Identity — moderator: an instructional effect differs with it

Related Claims¶

• Belongingness is among the factors that most strongly and reliably affect learners' academic motivation and achievement — a broader claim this one bears on
• First-year students' sense of belonging to their university predicts intentions to persist, controlling for background variables and other persistence predictors — related
• Students with a stronger sense of belonging tend to show more academic self-confidence, motivation, engagement and achievement (review reports Pedler et al.) — a broader claim this one bears on
• Learning happens best when students feel a sense of belonging, while alienation and exclusion create cognitive barriers — related
• Belonging mediates the relationship between racial/ethnic identity and both academic achievement and emotional symptoms — related
• Academic emotions moderate the relationship between belonging and achievement — related
• Sense of mathematics belonging predicts algebra learning, even after controlling for prior knowledge and background factors — related
• Underrepresented racial and first-generation students systematically report fewer institutional belonging opportunities than white and continuing-generation peers — related
• Sense of belonging in learning contexts is robustly associated with psychological well-being, academic motivation, and academic performance — related
• The belonging–outcome association is stronger in some cultural groups than others: reported moderation by ethnicity and by individualism–collectivism — possibly the same claim (merge candidate)