Like with Like or Take a Hike? Friendship Networks in Italian Schools

This paper contributes to the literature by exploring the composition of friendship networks amongst school students in a sample of Italian high-school seniors, in relation to gender, parental education, migratory background and school proficiency. In the sociological literature, homophily is defined as "the principle that a contact between similar people occurs at a higher rate than among dissimilar people" (McPherson et al. 2001: 416). Homophily informs, consciously or unconsciously, much of our social relations and, by its very nature, tends to generate social segregation and reinforcement. By grouping 'like with like', the tendency towards social homophily means that network flows tend to be relatively localised, whilst the experiences and behaviours of social actors are amplified due to the similarities between individuals who interact with each other most intensely. A field where the study of homophily is particularly consequential is education: once classes are formed, students get to know each other, and friendship networks take shape. This process evolves over time, with students shaping the school environment and getting shaped in return. The influence of peers can hit back by amplifying or reducing the impact of family resources on school outcomes. The micro-structuring of social relationships at a very fine level of the social order could therefore be viewed as a significant element of the macro-level reproduction of social inequalities.