Guided by Astin's I-E-O model and critical quantitative inquiry, we examined institutional environments that contributed to belongingness, especially for students from different racial groups, college generation statuses, and the intersection of both. Using multiple linear regression analyses, we analyzed data from 7,888 students and found that…

Guided by the principles of critical race theory, we sought to understand how race and racism help explain differences in White and Black students' assessments of race relations on a predominantly White college campus. The authors employed data from a campus-wide survey conducted in Spring 2013 at the University of Alabama; the sample numbered…

Leaders of higher education value student engagement because of its measured effects on student outcomes such as retention and academic success. To increase engagement, institutions implement measures such as livinglearning programs, which combine the residential experience with an academic focus (Arboleda, Wang, Shelley, & Whalen, 2003; Zhao…

Sexual orientation has been socially prominent in the national media lately, but little is known about how college creates opportunity for thinking about sexual orientation among individual students. Using data from the Diverse Learning Environments survey, administered by the Higher Education Research Institute, we compared samples of…

This study focused on the dispositions of entering first-year students, their perceptions of classroom and institutional environments, and their subsequent academic engagement. Total variance explained by variables included in the path model for academic engagement was 30%. The results of this study found evidence to support the theoretical model…

With a national sample of 700 Native American students who took the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), this study tested the ways faculty interaction and inclusion of diverse perspectives in the classroom contributed to learning for Native American students. Significant predictors of learning were quality academic advising, faculty…

Using a psychosociocultural (PSC) approach, we examined how self-beliefs, social support, and cultural fit influenced the academic persistence decisions of 115 Latina sorority members. Upper-division Latinas reported higher self-efficacy than lower-division Latinas; however, lower-division students reported higher college stress and more perceived…

Using a sample of 2,836 students from 5 different racial/ethnic groups, this study identified the ways student engagement and institutional features predict student learning. A supportive campus environment and high academic challenge predicted learning in general education, personal development, and practical competence for all racial/ethnic…

The role ideology plays in the university classroom has been debated since the publication of Buckley's "God and Man at Yale" (1951). The "Chronicle of Higher Education's" Special Report (2004) found that more than half of United States citizens polled felt that U.S. colleges and universities improperly introduce a liberal…

This study analyzed a multi-institutional and longitudinal data set to determine the impact of exposure to effective instruction on first-year persistence--defined as reenrolling for the second year of college at the same institution. Net of important confounding influences, exposure to effective instruction significantly increased the likelihood…

This study examined the contributions of campus racial climate perceptions and other college environments to overall sense of belonging among racially diverse women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors. The sample included 1,722 women from the 2004 National Study of Living-Learning Programs. Using a conceptual…

No empirical research has focused solely upon understanding the stress and coping processes of Chinese international students in the United States. This qualitative inquiry examines the individual-level variables that affect the stress-coping process of Chinese international students and how they conceptualize and adapt to their stress at an…

The purpose of this study was to examine similarities and differences in students' capacities for socially responsible leadership as well as significant predictors of its development at a higher education institution in Mexico as compared with US schools. Results revealed that Mexican students both entered and left college with significantly…

At most colleges and universities, African American and Latino students are less likely than students from other racial and ethnic backgrounds to stay enrolled in college and are, therefore, less likely to earn a college degree. "The Digest of Educational Statistics" reports the following trends: in 2006 30% of Whites age 25 and older…

To further research on individual and environmental predictors of college student adjustment, surveyed 56 first-year college students. Although individual variables (e.g., problem-solving skills) were related most strongly to adjustment, environmental variables (e.g., social support) made significant incremental contributions to predictions of…