In recent years, educational poverty (EP) has gained institutional and political attention due to its significant impact on individual development and well-being. Drawing on Sen’s capability approach, EP is conceptualized as the lack or inadequacy of educa- tional opportunities within a person’s living environment, which hinders the development of cognitive, cultural, and social capabilities.

These disparities in learning conditions disproportionately affect young people from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds and pose particular risks for adolescents, who are at a pivotal stage of personal and edu- cational growth. This study examines EP among adolescents in Naples and its province, a context marked by enduring socio-economic inequalities and territorial fragmentation that restrict access to meaningful and empowering educational opportunities.

To achieve this goal, a multidimensional framework of EP is proposed, encompassing family, school, and environmental dimensions, each reflecting distinct yet interconnected domains shap- ing young people’s educational trajectories. To assess these dimensions at the individual level, we developed a set of Likert-type indicators and collected data from a representa- tive sample of upper-secondary students aged 15–19 using a two-stage stratified sampling design based on school type, municipality, and grade level."

For the analysis, a multilevel latent class model was applied to identify student- and neighbourhood-level profiles of EP and to examine how individual factors influence the membership probability in each profile. The findings offer valuable insights for policy design, underscoring the need for interventions targeting both individual conditions and territorial inequalities.