Authors : Aastha Govind Shirodker; Saurabh Srivastava

Volume/Issue : Volume 10 - 2025, Issue 7 - July

Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/mw5zcxea

Scribd : https://tinyurl.com/3a8bezx4

DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/25jul1047

Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Note : Google Scholar may take 30 to 40 days to display the article.

Abstract : This comprehensive review investigates the intricate relationship between social identity and its multi-faceted impact on tribal students in India by specifically examining their aspirations, academic performance, and overall well- being. This study adopts an interdisciplinary approach, drawing insights from social psychology, educational sociology, and indigenous studies to provide a holistic understanding of the subject matter. By synthesizing the existing literature, this review identifies critical research gaps, particularly concerning Goan tribal communities. The dearth of empirical studies focusing on the Gauda, Kunbi, and Velip tribes of Goa, underscore the need for targeted research in this underexplored context. This gap-focused analysis serves as a scholarly foundation, paving the way for future empirical investigations that can contribute to a more nuanced understanding of these tribal groups. By elucidating the current state of knowledge and identifying areas requiring further exploration, this review aims to stimulate academic discourse and promote research initiatives that address the unique challenges and experiences of the Goan tribal students. The findings of this study have potential implications for educational policy formulation, cultural preservation efforts, and the development of targeted interventions to support the academic and personal growth of tribal students in Goa and beyond.

Keywords : Aspirations; Academic Achievement; Gap Focused Review; Goa; Identity; Students; Tribal; Well-being.

References :

1. Adarves-Yorno, I., Mahdon, M., Schueltke, L., Koschate-Reis, M., & Tarrant, M. (2020). Mindfulness and social identity: Predicting well-being in a high-stress environment. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 50(12), 689–703. https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12708
2. Addy, N. D., Agbozo, F., Runge-Ranzinger, S., & Grys, P. (2021). Mental health difficulties, coping mechanisms and support systems among school-going adolescents in Ghana: A mixed-methods study. PLOS ONE, 16(4), e0250424. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0250424
3. Ali, S. R., & Menke, K. A. (2014). Rural Latino Youth Career Development: An Application of Social Cognitive Career Theory. The Career Development Quarterly, 62(2), 175–186. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.2014.00078.x
4. Aquino-Sterling, C. R., & Rodríguez-Valls, F. (2016). Developing Teaching-Specific Spanish Competencies in Bilingual Teacher Education: Toward a Culturally, Linguistically, and Professionally Relevant Approach. Multicultural Perspectives, 18(2), 73–81. https://doi.org/10.1080/15210960.2016.1152894
5. Axelrod, P., & Fuerch, M. A. (1996). Flight of the Deities: Hindu Resistance in Portuguese Goa. Modern Asian Studies, 30 (2), 387–421. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0026749x00016516
6. Bhoi, D., & Lakra, N. R. (2022). Marginality, educational opportunity and access to higher education: Experiences of scheduled caste and tribe students in India. Contemporary Voice of Dalit. https://doi.org/10.1177/2455328X221129453
7. Bos, A. E. R., Muris, P., Mulkens, S., & Schaalma, H. P. (2006). Changing self-esteem in children and adolescents: a roadmap for future interventions. Netherlands Journal of Psychology, 62(1), 26–33. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf03061048
8. Brandmiller, C., Schnitzler, K., & Dumont, H. (2023). Teacher perceptions of student motivation and engagement: longitudinal associations with student outcomes. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 39(2), 1397–1420. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-023-00741-1
9. Bros, C. (2014). The burden of caste on social identity in India. The Journal of Development Studies, 50(10), 1411–1429. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2014.940908
10. Campbell, T. (2015). Stereotyped at Seven? Biases in Teacher Judgement of Pupils’ Ability and Attainment. Journal of Social Policy, 44(3), 517–547. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0047279415000227
11. Chandras, J. (2023). (Out)Caste language ideologies: Intersectional raciolinguistic stigma and assimilation from denotified tribal students’ perspectives in rural India. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology, 33(2), 161–183. https://doi.org/10.1111/jola.12402
12. Chitrakar, N., & P.M, D. N. (2023). Frustration and its influences on Student Motivation and Academic Performance. International Journal of Scientific Research in Modern Science and Technology, 2(11), 01–09. https://doi.org/10.59828/ijsrmst.v2i11.158
13. Choi, H., Lee, S. M., Cho, S., & Kim, J. (2023). The role of teacher support in the self-esteem of Korean adolescents with burnout. Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools, 34(1), 84–96. https://doi.org/10.1177/20556365231207246
14. Dari, T., Chan, C. D., & Del Re, J. (2021). Integrating Culturally Responsive Group Work in Schools to Foster the Development of Career Aspirations among Marginalized Youth. The Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 46(1), 75–89. https://doi.org/10.1080/01933922.2020.1856255
15. Dasgupta, U., Mani, S., Sharma, S., & Singhal, S. (2022). Social identity, behavior, and personality: Evidence from India. The Journal of Development Studies, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2022.2139607
16. Deb Roy, A., Mondal, H., & Das, D. (2023). The Tribal Health System in India: Challenges in Healthcare Delivery in Comparison to the Global Healthcare Systems. Cureus, 15(6). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.39867
17. De Boer, H., Timmermans, A. C., & Van Der Werf, M. P. C. (2018). The effects of teacher expectation interventions on teachers’ expectations and student achievement: narrative review and meta-analysis. Educational Research and Evaluation, 24(3–5), 180–200. https://doi.org/10.1080/13803611.2018.1550834
18. Decuir-Gunby, J. T., & Schutz, P. A. (2016). Race and Ethnicity in the Study of Motivation in Education. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315716909
19. Dewangan, R., Sonber, B. K., & Modi, A. (2023). Relationship between Mental Health and Academic Stress among Adolescents: A Critical Review. Mind and Society, 12(02), 81–86. https://doi.org/10.56011/mind-mri-122-202310
20. Donovan, D. (2015). Healing of the canoe: preliminary results of a culturally tailored intervention to prevent substance abuse and promote tribal identity for Native youth in two Pacific Northwest tribes. American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research, 22(1), 42–76. https://doi.org/10.5820/aian.2201.2015.42
21. Eccles, J. S., Lord, S., & Midgley, C. (1991). What Are We Doing to Early Adolescents? The Impact of Educational Contexts on Early Adolescents. American Journal of Education, 99(4), 521–542. https://doi.org/10.1086/443996
22. Emslander, V., Holzberger, D., Ofstad, S. B., Fischbach, A., & Scherer, R. (2025). Teacher-student relationships and student outcomes: A systematic second-order meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 151(3), 365–397. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000461
23. Fray, L., North, B., Gore, J., & Harris, J. (2019). Key influences on aspirations for higher education of Australian school students in regional and remote locations: a scoping review of empirical research, 1991–2016. The Australian Educational Researcher, 47(1), 61–93. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-019-00332-4
24. Freund, R., Lee & Lance Freeland, C., & Lanoue, M. (2012). Feasibility, Acceptability, and Initial Findings from a Community‐Based Cultural Mental Health Intervention for American Indian Youth and their Families. Journal of Community Psychology, 40(4), 381–405. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.20517
25. Ghosh, D. (2013). Self-esteem and depression of the tribal and non-tribal students: Its role on academic achievement need. Indian Journal of Health and Wellbeing, 4(2), 362–365.
26. Gupta, N. (2019). Intersectionality of gender and caste in academic performance: Quantitative study of an elite Indian engineering institute. Gender, Technology and Development, 23(2), 165–186. https://doi.org/10.1080/09718524.2019.1636568
27. Haq, R. (2013). Intersectionality of gender and other forms of identity. Gender in Management: An International Journal, 28(3), 171–184. https://doi.org/10.1108/gm-01-2013-0010
28. Hobbs, G. (2016). Explaining social class inequalities in educational achievement in the UK: quantifying the contribution of social class differences in school ‘effectiveness.’ Oxford Review of Education, 42(1), 16–35. https://doi.org/10.1080/03054985.2015.1128889
29. Hogg, M. A., & Terry, D. J. (2000). Social identity and self-categorization processes in organizational contexts. Academy of Management Review, 25(1), 121–140. https://doi.org/10.2307/259266
30. Jamal, A. (2016). Why He Won’t Send His Daughter to School—Barriers to Girls’ Education in Northwest Pakistan. Sage Open, 6(3), 215824401666379. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244016663798
31. Johri, A., & Anand, P. V. (2022). Life satisfaction and well-being at the intersections of caste and gender in India. Psychological Studies. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12646-022-00667-6
32. Katapally, T. R. (2020). Smart Indigenous Youth: The Smart Platform Policy Solution for Systems Integration to Address Indigenous Youth Mental Health. JMIR Pediatrics and Parenting, 3(2), e21155. https://doi.org/10.2196/21155
33. Kumar, B. (2021). Discrimination in Indian higher education: Everyday exclusion of the Dalit–Adivasi student. Contemporary Voice of Dalit. https://doi.org/10.1177/2455328X211039332
34. Kunnel John, R., Xavier, B., Waldmeier, A., Meyer, A. H., & Gaab, J. (2020). The governmental ranking of class and the academic performance of Indian adolescents. PLOS ONE, 15(11), e0241483. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0241483
35. Lawrence, S. E., Watson, R. J., Eadeh, H.-M., Brown, C., Puhl, R. M., & Eisenberg, M. E. (2023). Bias-based bullying, self-esteem, queer identity pride, and disordered eating behaviors among sexually and gender diverse adolescents. The International Journal of Eating Disorders, 57(2), 303–315. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.24092
36. Liu, Q., Jiang, M., Li, S., & Yang, Y. (2021). Social support, resilience, and self-esteem protect against common mental health problems in early adolescence. Medicine, 100(4), e24334. https://doi.org/10.1097/md.0000000000024334
37. López, F. A. (2017). Altering the Trajectory of the Self-Fulfilling Prophecy. Journal of Teacher Education, 68(2), 193–212. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487116685751
38. Lowe, K., Tennent, C., Moodie, N., Guenther, J., & Burgess, C. (2020). School-based Indigenous cultural programs and their impact on Australian Indigenous students: a systematic review. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 49(1), 78–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866x.2020.1843137
39. Lum, K. (2019). The Dalit closet: Managing Dalit identity at an elite university in India. Journal for Critical Education Policy Studies, 17(1), 52–84.
40. Madankar, M., Kakade, N., Basa, L., & Sabri, B. (2024). Exploring Maternal and Child Health Among Tribal Communities in India: A Life Course Perspective. Global Journal of Health Science, 16(2), 31. https://doi.org/10.5539/gjhs.v16n2p31
41. Mau, W., & Bikos, L. H. (2000). Educational and Vocational Aspirations of Minority and Female Students: A Longitudinal Study. Journal of Counseling & Development, 78(2), 186–194. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6676.2000.tb02577.x
42. Mccarty, T. L., & Watahomigie, L. J. (1998). Indigenous Community-based Language Education in the USA. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 11(3), 309–324. https://doi.org/10.1080/07908319808666559
43. Mcclendon, K. A., Mcdougal, L., Ayyaluru, S., Belayneh, Y., Sinha, A., Silverman, J. G., & Raj, A. (2017). Intersections of girl child marriage and family planning beliefs and use: qualitative findings from Ethiopia and India. Culture, Health & Sexuality, 20(7), 799–814. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2017.1383513
44. Mishra, O. N., & Gupta, S. (2024). Drivers of indigenous entrepreneurship: an empirical investigation of Indian tribal youth. Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, 18(5), 902–917. https://doi.org/10.1108/jec-05-2022-0074
45. Mukherjee, P. (2017). The effects of social identity on aspirations and learning outcomes: A field experiment in rural India. IZA Discussion Paper Series.
46. Negru-Subtirica, O., & Pop, E. I. (2017). Reciprocal Associations between Educational Identity and Vocational Identity in Adolescence: A Three-wave Longitudinal Investigation. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47(4), 703–716. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-017-0789-y
47. Okpalauwaekwe, U., Ballantyne, C., Tunison, S., & Ramsden, V. R. (2022). Enhancing health and wellness by, for and with Indigenous youth in Canada: a scoping review. BMC Public Health, 22(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-14047-2
48. Pan, N. D., Gruber, M., & Binder, J. (2019). Painting with All the Colors: The Value of Social Identity Theory for Understanding Social Entrepreneurship. Academy of Management Review, 44(1), 213–215. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2017.0504
49. Panigrahi, K., Naik, C., & Das, B. (2019). Impact of ICT on career aspiration of students belonging to indigenous communities and most backward sections of India: An empirical study of tribal development board schools of Odisha. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Research, 7(1), 25–32.
50. Pandith, A. A. (2021). Spatiotemporal variations of academic excellence: A firsthand study on tribal and non-tribal population. Anvesak, 51(1), 89–98.
51. Pattanayak, D., & Naik, D. (2014). Career aspirations and career development barriers of tribal students in the Salboni block of Jangal Mahal. Journal of International Academic Research for Multidisciplinary, 2(4), 655–672.
52. Putri, D., Zulaikhah, S., Pramodana, D., Fadli, A., Syafe’I, I., & Bagaskara, F. (2025). The Importance of Effective Communication in Improving the Quality of Classroom Learning Interactions between Teachers and Students. Bulletin of Pedagogical Research, 5(2), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.51278/bpr.v5i2.1789
53. Rai, B. (2019). Exploring an aspirations failure trap among backward castes and Muslims in India. Indian Journal of Human Development, 13(3), 377–394.
54. Raj, A., Belayneh, Y., Mcdougal, L., Jackson, E. C., Mcclendon, K. A., Wyss, N., Salazar, M., & Khanna, A. (2019). Students and brides: a qualitative analysis of the relationship between girls\u2019 education and early marriage in Ethiopia and India. BMC Public Health, 19(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-018-6340-6
55. Ramanaik, S., Prakash, R., Beattie, T., Murthy, S., Bhattacharjee, P., Heise, L., Isac, S., Howard-Merrill, L., Javalkar, P., Cislaghi, B., Thalinja, R., Collumbien, M., & Moses, S. (2018). Education, poverty and “purity” in the context of adolescent girls’ secondary school retention and dropout: A qualitative study from Karnataka, southern India. PloS One, 13(9), e0202470. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0202470
56. Ranjan, L. K., Gupta, P. R., & Gujar, N. M. (2021). Self-esteem and wellbeing among tribal and non-tribal adolescent girls. International Journal of Research in Medical Sciences, 9(9), 2723–2727. https://doi.org/10.18203/2320-6012.ijrms20213414
57. Robinson, S. (2006). Victimization of Obese Adolescents. The Journal of School Nursing, 22(4), 201–206. https://doi.org/10.1177/10598405050220040301
58. Rojewski, J. W. (1995). Impact of at-risk behavior on the occupational aspirations and expectations of male and female adolescents in rural settings. Journal of Career Development, 22(1), 33–48. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02247894
59. Routledge, P. (2001). “Selling the rain”, resisting the sale: Resistant identities and the conflict over tourism in Goa. Social & Cultural Geography, 2 (2), 221–240. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649360120047823
60. Sabharwal, N. S., & Sonalkar, W. (2015). Dalit Women in India: At the Crossroads of Gender, Class, and Caste. Global Justice : Theory Practice Rhetoric, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.21248/gjn.8.1.54
61. Saeed Ali, T., Karmaliani, R., Mcfarlane, J., Khuwaja, H. M. A., Somani, Y., Chirwa, E. D., & Jewkes, R. (2017). Attitude towards gender roles and violence against women and girls (VAWG): baseline findings from an RCT of 1752 youths in Pakistan. Global Health Action, 10(1), 1342454. https://doi.org/10.1080/16549716.2017.1342454
62. Sarkar, S., Chakravorty, B., & Lyonette, C. (2020). Social identity and aspiration—Double jeopardy or intersectionality? Evidence from rural India. IZA Institute of Labor Economics Discussion Paper No. 724.
63. Sarwer, S., Tariq, A., & Abid, M. N. (2024). Impact of Teacher Empathy and Motivation on Student Academic Achievement: Mediated by Sense of School Belongingness. Journal of Higher Education and Development Studies (JHEDS), 4(1), 264–281. https://doi.org/10.59219/jheds.04.01.64
64. Scheepers, D., & Ellemers, N. (2019). Social identity theory. In K. Sassenberg & M. Vliek (Eds.), Social Psychology in Action (pp. 37–50). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-13788-5_3
65. Schwartz, S. J., Weisskirch, R. S., & Zamboanga, B. L. (2008). Broadening the Study of the Self: Integrating the Study of Personal Identity and Cultural Identity. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2(2), 635–651. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2008.00077.x
66. Sengupta, S., & Guchhait, S. K. (2021). Inequality in Contemporary India: Does Caste Still Matter? Journal of Developing Societies, 37(1), 57–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/0169796x21998387
67. Sharaf, A. Y., Walsh, E., & Thompson, E. A. (2009). Protective Effects of Self‐Esteem and Family Support on Suicide Risk Behaviors among At‐Risk Adolescents. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing, 22(3), 160–168. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6171.2009.00194.x
68. Shea, H., Baldwin, D., Schroer, J. E., Rousmaniere, K., Ironstrack, G., & Mosley-Howard, G. S. (2019). Cultural revitalization as a restorative process to combat racial and cultural trauma and promote living well. Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology, 25(4), 553–565. https://doi.org/10.1037/cdp0000250
69. Shields, S. A. (2008). Gender: An Intersectionality Perspective. Sex Roles, 59(5–6), 301–311. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-008-9501-8
70. Shukla, K. D., Kuril, S., & Chand, V. S. (2020). Does negative teacher behavior influence student self-efficacy and mastery goal orientation? Learning and Motivation, 71, 101653. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lmot.2020.101653
71. Sukumar, N. (2022). Caste Discrimination and Exclusion in Indian Universities. routledge india. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003095293
72. Timmermans, A. C., & Rubie-Davies, C. M. (2018). Do teachers differ in the level of expectations or in the extent to which they differentiate in expectations? Relations between teacher-level expectations, teacher background and beliefs, and subsequent student performance. Educational Research and Evaluation, 24(3–5), 241–263. https://doi.org/10.1080/13803611.2018.1550837
73. Usborne, E., & Taylor, D. M. (2010). The role of cultural identity clarity for self-concept clarity, self-esteem, and subjective well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 36(7), 883–897. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167210372215
74. Usma Wilches, J. A., Ortiz Medina, J. M., & Gutiérrez, C. (2018). Indigenous Students Learning English in Higher Education: What Are the Challenges? Íkala, Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura, 23(2), 229–254. https://doi.org/10.17533/udea.ikala.v23n02a03
75. Verkuyten, M., & Thijs, J. (2006). Ethnic discrimination and global self-worth in early adolescents: The mediating role of ethnic self-esteem. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 30(2), 107–116. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025406063573
76. Wakefield, W. D., & Hudley, C. (2007). Ethnic and Racial Identity and Adolescent Well-Being. Theory Into Practice, 46(2), 147–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/00405840701233099
77. Wildhagen, T. (2009). Why Does Cultural Capital Matter for High School Academic Performance? An Empirical Assessment of Teacher-Selection and Self-Selection Mechanisms as Explanations of the Cultural Capital Effect. The Sociological Quarterly, 50(1), 173–200. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1533-8525.2008.01137.x
78. Xie, F., & Derakhshan, A. (2021). A Conceptual Review of Positive Teacher Interpersonal Communication Behaviors in the Instructional Context. Frontiers in Psychology, 12(912352). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.708490
79. Xu, B. (2024). Mediating role of academic self-efficacy and academic emotions in the relationship between teacher support and academic achievement. Scientific Reports, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-75768-5
80. Yabang, W., Manning, E. E., Mate, K. E., Endacott, S. K., & Cameron, G. J. M. (2025). Indigenous student engagement in science: a case study addressing the lack of diversity and equity in biomedical science and pharmacy research for Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander people. Immunology and Cell Biology, 103(3), 256–264. https://doi.org/10.1111/imcb.70007