Latent Profile Analysis of High School Students’ Sense of Community: Effects of School Experiences and Differences in Civic Outcomes in Early Adulthood

This study aimed to classify latent profiles of adolescents’ sense of community, explore the effects of self-governance and volunteer activity experiences as well as democratic school culture on profile classification, and examine differences in citizenship and social participation in adulthood based on latent profiles. Using data from the 2013 Korean Education Longitudinal Study (KELS), a latent profile analysis was conducted. The main findings are as follows. First, three latent profiles were identified based on the characteristics of sub-factors. All profiles were labeled as either “moderate-level group,” “moderate/high-level group,” or “high-level group.” Second, participation in self-governance activities, perceptions of volunteer activities, and the degree of student opinion reflection significantly influenced profile classification. Higher levels of these factors were associated with a greater likelihood of belonging to the high-level group. Third, the high-level group demonstrated significantly higher levels of citizenship in adulthood. For social participation, results varied by type: groups with higher levels of sense of community were more likely to engage in volunteering, voting, signing petitions or protests, and participating in online discussions, while no significant differences were observed for other types of social participation. Based on these findings, the study discusses educational implications for fostering a sense of community during high school.