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37
colleges are at a stark disadvantage when compared to men because the climate is
less conducive to women. Evidence of a chilly climate for women has been
documented in other research studies as well (Janz & Pyke, 2000; Pascarella, Whitt,
Edison, Nora, Hagedorn, Yeager & Terenzini, 1997; Whitt, Edison, Pascarella, Nora,
Terenzini, 1999). The effects of a chilly climate on women may include undermining
their self-confidence as well as negatively effecting career aspirations (Hall &
Sandler, 1982). In addition, Astin (1993) found that at coeducational colleges, female
students were underrepresented in leadership positions in campus organizations.
Hall & Sandler (1982) asserted that the coeducational college environment
proves restrictive for women. They posit that student affairs professionals do not take
into consideration the differing developmental pathways of male and female college
students and suggested that college was primarily created to meet the needs of men
and thus may not have fostered feelings of belongingness nor comfort for women.
Female students may feel frustrated when asked to conform to a university setting
that is partial to the development of autonomy. Consequently, the inherent design of
college environments may have led to a “chilly climate” that neglects or undermines
a women’s developmental need for connectedness and relationships while promoting
an environment that fosters autonomy, a vector more aligned with the development
of males.
Women’s colleges. In stark contrast to the chilly climate found in
coeducational colleges, research on single-sex colleges reveals significantly positive
outcomes for women. Astin (1977) studied over 200,000 students at 300 colleges,
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 45 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 37 colleges are at a stark disadvantage when compared to men because the climate is less conducive to women. Evidence of a chilly climate for women has been documented in other research studies as well (Janz & Pyke, 2000; Pascarella, Whitt, Edison, Nora, Hagedorn, Yeager & Terenzini, 1997; Whitt, Edison, Pascarella, Nora, Terenzini, 1999). The effects of a chilly climate on women may include undermining their self-confidence as well as negatively effecting career aspirations (Hall & Sandler, 1982). In addition, Astin (1993) found that at coeducational colleges, female students were underrepresented in leadership positions in campus organizations. Hall & Sandler (1982) asserted that the coeducational college environment proves restrictive for women. They posit that student affairs professionals do not take into consideration the differing developmental pathways of male and female college students and suggested that college was primarily created to meet the needs of men and thus may not have fostered feelings of belongingness nor comfort for women. Female students may feel frustrated when asked to conform to a university setting that is partial to the development of autonomy. Consequently, the inherent design of college environments may have led to a “chilly climate” that neglects or undermines a women’s developmental need for connectedness and relationships while promoting an environment that fosters autonomy, a vector more aligned with the development of males. Women’s colleges. In stark contrast to the chilly climate found in coeducational colleges, research on single-sex colleges reveals significantly positive outcomes for women. Astin (1977) studied over 200,000 students at 300 colleges, |
