A Longitudinal Study of Adolescents' Sense of Community over Three Years

This study investigated whether and how middle school adolescents' level of sense of community changes over three years. The middle school cohort data of the Korean Children-Youth Panel 2010 were used for analysis. The validity of using adolescents' sense of community as an outcome variable over three years was checked using multi-group confirmatory factor analysis. The sense of community items were interpreted in the same way by the adolescents at each point over three years. Using a two- level hierarchical linear growth model, this study assessed the pattern of change in adolescents' sense of community. The results of the basic growth model showed a positive linear trend in the level of sense of community. However, there was no statistically significant variation in the rate of change in the level of sense of community among adolescents. Adolescents' gender was not statistically significantly associated with the rate of change in their level of sense of community, either. Except for satisfaction with field study experience and time spent for reading, most variables used for level-1 predictors were statistically significant. Among the level 2 variables, female students, female school students compared to coed, and family annual income were positively associated with the adolescents' sense of community, but the hours spent for private education, the location of residence (city vs. others), and male only schools were not significant.