The Role of Parenting in Dropping out of School: Contributions and Limits of Qualitative Research Methods

Dropping out of school has been the theme of much research, speculation and controversy around the supposed factors, which explain it. Interviews of related actors in the field reveal that several convergent and divergent causes are put forward. Based on semi-structured interviews carried out with teachers and employers and on writings about families, different points of view on dropping out were analysed, with a special focus on parenting. In a second phase these results were tested with a quantitative survey done with students in secondary education. We conclude on the contributions and limits of qualitative research methods in the understanding of a phenomena where points of view are multiple and never neutral, but which can however be linked to the strategic positions of the actors in their fields.