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24
sororities, as well as fraternities, reported higher levels of PSC than non-member
students (Lounsbury & Deneui, 1995).
In summary, Astin’s student involvement theory is implemented within most
Greek organizations at university campuses. Research reveals that there are both
negative and positive factors associated with Greek membership. Greek
organizations provide for a psychological sense of community and have been linked
to promoting self-confidence, assertiveness, leadership, and interpersonal skills as
well as higher levels of social orientation. As stated earlier, the negative influences
of Greek affiliation have been extensively researched and reviewed. Hazing, alcohol
and substance abuse, as well as gender violence, academic dishonesty and eating
disorders have been associated with Greek affiliation. In response to many of these
issues, the North American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) and the National
Panhellenic Conference (NPC) established a research partnership with the Center for
Advanced Social Research at the University of Missouri-Columbia to research the
effects of Greek affiliation on student’s college experiences, as well as other lifetime
experiences.
Differences within the Greek system
This study focuses on the students’ perceptions of impacts of college on the
identity development of sorority women. Unfortunately, many of the research
studies on sorority women involved research that combined both sorority women and
fraternity men as one subculture. It is important, however, to make a distinction
between the development of men and women within Greek organizations. As
Object Description
| Title | Student perspectives on identity development: describing the experiences sorority members perceive influenced their identity |
| Author | Sarkissian, Vergene |
| Author email | vergenes@usc.edu; sarkv@hotmail.com |
| Degree | Doctor of Education |
| Document type | Dissertation |
| Degree program | Education |
| School | Rossier School of Education |
| Date defended/completed | 2008-05-13 |
| Date submitted | 2008 |
| Restricted until | Restricted until 2 Oct. 2009. |
| Date published | 2009-10-02 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Goodyear, Rodney K. |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Malloy, Courtney Espalin, Charles A. |
| Abstract | This qualitative study examined the college related sources of impact that sorority member students perceived affected their identity development. A variant of Flanagan's (1954) Critical Incident Technique was used to ask sorority members (n=70) to describe one or two critical incidents that they believed had affected their sense of self, and then to rate the immediate positivity of the incident, as well its eventual effect on their sense of self. Three doctoral students reviewed the 100 obtained incident reports, from which they developed 14 themes: Participating in rush an/or joining a sorority; Being elected or serving in a sorority leadership position; Dealing with crisis; Receiving the support of sisters with in the sorority network; Being elected or serving in a leadership position in a campus related organization; Learning about myself as a result of a romantic relationship; Making an important, independent decision for myself; Making a commitment to community service and outreach; Sorority affiliated judgment or rejection; Having an experience of failure; Making the transition from home to college; Studying abroad; Receiving personal or career guidance from others; Engaging in a selfless act of compassion. The findings of this study provide valuable insight and knowledge to the potential benefits of sorority affiliation in regards to college women's identity development. The findings also support previous research on women's identity development and suggest gender specific developmental pathways. In congruence with student development research and theory, experiences related to student involvement, relationship, autonomy and crisis were prevalent in the participant responses. The limitations of the study, recommendations for future research and implications for higher education practice are also presented. |
| Keyword | identity development; women's identity development; sorority membership; sorority network; student inolvement; leadership; relationships; mentorship; social capital; crisis; autonomy; study abroad |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Provenance | Digitized by the University of Southern California |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m1619 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Rights | Sarkissian, Vergene |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Filename | etd-Sarkissian-2435 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume14/etd-Sarkissian-2435.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 32 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 24 sororities, as well as fraternities, reported higher levels of PSC than non-member students (Lounsbury & Deneui, 1995). In summary, Astin’s student involvement theory is implemented within most Greek organizations at university campuses. Research reveals that there are both negative and positive factors associated with Greek membership. Greek organizations provide for a psychological sense of community and have been linked to promoting self-confidence, assertiveness, leadership, and interpersonal skills as well as higher levels of social orientation. As stated earlier, the negative influences of Greek affiliation have been extensively researched and reviewed. Hazing, alcohol and substance abuse, as well as gender violence, academic dishonesty and eating disorders have been associated with Greek affiliation. In response to many of these issues, the North American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) and the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) established a research partnership with the Center for Advanced Social Research at the University of Missouri-Columbia to research the effects of Greek affiliation on student’s college experiences, as well as other lifetime experiences. Differences within the Greek system This study focuses on the students’ perceptions of impacts of college on the identity development of sorority women. Unfortunately, many of the research studies on sorority women involved research that combined both sorority women and fraternity men as one subculture. It is important, however, to make a distinction between the development of men and women within Greek organizations. As |
