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100
Developing purpose, the fifth of Chickering & Reisser’s vectors, was also
found in participant responses. One participant stated that being elected to a
leadership position within her sorority house made her “realize[d] how much I enjoy
helping the house and helping my best friends.” Another participant described how
mentoring 8th grade girls through a student service organization helped her develop a
sense of purpose in relation to her identity. The participant stated “I can see myself
dedicating my time (now and beyond college) to equal education for inner-city /poor
youth.” After participating in campus community service organization, another stated
that she “will always look to do community service.”
Last but not least, the developing integrity vector involves the developing and
internalizing personal values and beliefs. Several participants described experiences
where personal values and beliefs were solidified. One such participant stated that as
a result of a major leadership role she “developed authority, integrity, and a personal
code of ethics.” Another participant in a sorority leadership position described
having to make a difficult decision involving other sisters in the house. She states
that she “leaned to stand up for what’s ethical and hope everyone else accepted it.
I’ve become a stronger leader as a result.”
Limitations of the Study
Several limitations of this study warrant note. One concerns the selection of
participants. Only those sorority members affiliated with the National Panhellenic
Conference (NPC) were recruited. However, NPC membership nationally remains
predominantly Caucasian and represents 26 historically Caucasian sororities. It is
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 108 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 100 Developing purpose, the fifth of Chickering & Reisser’s vectors, was also found in participant responses. One participant stated that being elected to a leadership position within her sorority house made her “realize[d] how much I enjoy helping the house and helping my best friends.” Another participant described how mentoring 8th grade girls through a student service organization helped her develop a sense of purpose in relation to her identity. The participant stated “I can see myself dedicating my time (now and beyond college) to equal education for inner-city /poor youth.” After participating in campus community service organization, another stated that she “will always look to do community service.” Last but not least, the developing integrity vector involves the developing and internalizing personal values and beliefs. Several participants described experiences where personal values and beliefs were solidified. One such participant stated that as a result of a major leadership role she “developed authority, integrity, and a personal code of ethics.” Another participant in a sorority leadership position described having to make a difficult decision involving other sisters in the house. She states that she “leaned to stand up for what’s ethical and hope everyone else accepted it. I’ve become a stronger leader as a result.” Limitations of the Study Several limitations of this study warrant note. One concerns the selection of participants. Only those sorority members affiliated with the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) were recruited. However, NPC membership nationally remains predominantly Caucasian and represents 26 historically Caucasian sororities. It is |
