(2001) contends that high schools promote college as a realistic goal for all students, regardless of their goals
and talents. As Rosenbaum (2001) and Schneider and Stevenson (1999) argue, students who aspire to
manufacturing or other less skilled positions may waste time and resources investing in a community college
education that they do not complete. Indeed, other researchers have also noted that expectations to attend
college among high school students are fast becoming universal (Hauser and Anderson 1991; Morgan 1996;
Reynolds, Stewart, MacDonald, and Sischo 2006).
A competing ideology of achievement focuses on the attainment of upward social mobility through
occupations in sports, fashion, or music. Youths, particularly males, may wish to become athletes of popular
sports such as basketball or football, or desire to be involved in the music or fashion industries as either
performers or designers (Carter 2005; Solomon 1992). These are careers that are portrayed as the result of
talent or luck. Family and school resources, and academic achievement are not seen as necessary to become a
sports star or a rapper, for instance (Carter 2005). As many scholars argue, low-income urban youth,
particularly black males, often idealize careers related to professional sports or music because of the limited
opportunity structure they perceive in other educational and career paths (Carter 2005; Collins 2004;
Hoberman 1997; Solomon 1992; Staples 1982).
Family Expectations
Though researchers are often concerned with the alignment between educational and occupational
expectations, we contend that especially among disadvantaged urban youth, family expectations may also be
important to consider. In recent work, Edin and Kefalas (2005) suggest that young women may decide to
start families when they realize that their aspirations for marriage will not likely be met. The expectations
that youth have for whether or not they will marry, and whether or not and when they will have children
likely affect their current behaviors and decisions about family planning. These decisions may then
influence educational and occupational expectations, and, through them, outcomes. However, holding an
expectation does not guarantee that it will be realized. Especially among poor youths in neighborhoods of
concentrated disadvantage, many factors can intervene that shape the eventual family formation outcomes,
despite a youth’s aspirations and expectations for family formation (Edin and Kefalas 2005).
3
Convention