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Collegiate bands and hazing: a study of the perceived effect of anti-hazing policies
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Collegiate bands and hazing: a study of the perceived effect of anti-hazing policies
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Content
Copyright 2022 Jacob Vogel
COLLEGIATE BANDS AND HAZING:
A STUDY OF THE PERCEIVED EFFECT OF ANTI-HAZING POLICIES
by
Jacob Vogel
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC FLORA L. THORNTON SCHOOL OF MUSIC
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS
(MUSIC TEACHING AND LEARNING)
August 2022
ii
Dedication
To my wife Jessica,
thank you for believing in me.
iii
Acknowledgments
This document has been a long time in the making, and it is through no shortage of
support from my committee, peers, and family that it has finally come to fruition. I want to firstly
thank the members of my committee; Dr. Peter Webster, Dr. Susan Helfter, and Dr. Beatriz Ilari.
Thank you, Dr. Webster, for your tirelessly insightful wit, and for bringing fun to moments that
were otherwise lacking. Dr. Helfter, you were my first professor in graduate school, and I will
forever be grateful for your guidance. Thank you, Dr. Ilari, for the late-night draft turnarounds
and patience through the process, I truly could not have succeeded without you.
To my colleagues, Emily, Elizabeth, Cynthia, and Niven. Thank you for attending the
defense, and for supporting me along the way. It meant the world that you took your time to be
present for this moment, and the memory will stay with me forever.
My family, thank you for putting up with the long process and allowing me the time and
space to accomplish this feat, I hope I represent you well in all I do.
Lastly, I want to thank my grandmother Patricia, and my great aunt Margaret. They were
best friends, and my grandmother helped my great aunt achieve her doctoral degree. While my
grandmother saw me start this process, it was my great aunt who saw me through. Thank you,
Margaret, for filling my grandmother’s shoes and pushing me along.
iv
Table of Contents
Dedication…………………………………………………………………………………………ii
Acknowledgments……………………………………………………………………………..... iii
List of Tables……………………………………………………………………………..........…vii
List of Figures.............................................................................................................................. viii
Abstract ……………………………………………………………………….....................…… ix
Chapter 1: Introduction …………………………………………………...……………………… 1
Overview ………………………………………………………………………………….1
Definitions of Hazing ……………………………...……………………………………... 3
Theoretical Framework ………………………………………………………………....... 8
Statement of the Problem…………………………………………………………………. 9
Purpose Statement, Research Questions and Limitations……………………………...…10
Purpose Statement …………………………………………………………..….. 10
Research Questions ………………...…………………………………………… 11
Limitations…………………………………………………………………….... 12
Overview of Remaining Chapters……………………………………………………….. 12
Chapter 2: Literature Review……………………………………………………………………. 14
Chapter Overview ………………………………………………………...…………….. 14
History of Hazing …………...…………………………………………………………... 15
College Hazing Incidents ……………………………………………...………………... 16
Athletics and Hazing ………………………………………………………………….… 18
Greek Life and Hazing …………………...……………………………………………... 20
Alcohol, Sexual Assault and Hazing …….......………………………………………….. 22
Marching Bands and Hazing ……………...…………………………………………….. 25
Bullying ………………………………...……………………………………………..... 31
Childhood Hazing …………………...………………………………………………….. 34
Chapter Summary ……………………………………………………………………..... 35
Chapter 3: Methods …………………………………………………………………...........…… 37
Chapter Overview …………………………………………………………...........…….. 37
Restatement of Purpose ……………………………………………………...........…….. 37
Study Design: Semi-Structured Interviews ...................................................................... 38
Researcher Positionality ................................................................................................... 39
Study Participants ............................................................................................................. 40
Ethical Approval ............................................................................................................... 41
Instrument: Semi-Structured Interviews ........................................................................... 42
Data Analysis .................................................................................................................... 44
Trustworthiness of Data .................................................................................................... 45
Chapter Summary.............................................................................................................. 45
v
Chapter 4: Findings ....................................................................................................................... 47
Chapter Overview …………………………………………………………...........…….. 47
Hazing Policies & The Role of Marching Band Directors ................................................ 48
What is your band’s hazing policy? ...................................................................... 48
Did you assist in the creation of this policy?.......................................................... 49
What is the process for your band’s hazing prevention education ........................ 50
Who is primarily responsible for the implementation of your hazing policy? ...... 50
In what ways has hazing been a problem for your organization in the past? ........ 51
Have new policies been written during your tenure? ............................................ 53
Were any students removed from the organization ............................................... 54
Have you seen a decline in recruitment or retention due to hazing activities? ...... 54
In what ways has bullying had an impact on your organization? .......................... 55
How do members of your band from other regions of the country ....................... 58
In what ways do you see the pandemic of 2020 effecting hazing or bullying ....... 58
Emergent Themes ............................................................................................................. 60
Tradition and Culture ............................................................................................ 60
Alcohol ................................................................................................................. 62
Bullying and Disciplinary Action ......................................................................... 64
Education and Implementation ............................................................................. 65
Chapter Summary ............................................................................................................. 67
Chapter 5: Analysis and Discussion of Findings ........................................................................... 68
Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 68
Discussion of Emergent Themes ....................................................................................... 68
Tradition and Culture ............................................................................................ 69
Alcohol ................................................................................................................. 70
Relation to Previous Research .......................................................................................... 72
Attitudes Toward Hazing ...................................................................................... 72
Occurrences of Hazing .......................................................................................... 72
Band Director Turnover ........................................................................................ 73
Addressing the Study Questions ....................................................................................... 75
Study Question 1 ............................................................................................................... 75
Study Question 2 ............................................................................................................... 77
Study Question 3 ............................................................................................................... 78
Study Question 4 ............................................................................................................... 79
Concluding Remarks: Neutralization and Study Findings ................................................ 80
Implications for Future Research ...................................................................................... 81
Case Studies and Focus Groups ............................................................................ 81
Tradition and Culture Surveys .............................................................................. 82
Large Scale Behavioral Study ............................................................................... 82
Implications for Music Education ..................................................................................... 83
Closing .............................................................................................................................. 83
References .................................................................................................................................... 85
vi
Weblinks ....................................................................................................................................... 96
Appendices.................................................................................................................................... 98
Appendix A – USC IRB Approval............................................................................... 98
Appendix B – Invitation Letter – Email Formatted.......................................................... 100
Appendix C – Invitation Letter – Formal......................................................................... 101
Appendix D – Information Sheet for Exempt Studies...................................................... 102
vii
List of Tables
Table1 .......................................................................................................................................... 41
viii
List of Figures
Figure 1 ........................................................................................................................................ 60
ix
Abstract
Collegiate Bands and Hazing: A Study of the
Perceived Effect of Anti-Hazing Policies
Collegiate marching bands offered a unique experience steeped in tradition and tied
deeply to the roots of the institutions in which they are housed. The success of these
organizations is mainly dependent on institutional memory, which can lead to hazing practices
among its members. This study aimed to investigate the band director’s perspectives on hazing,
the methodology for adopting and effectiveness of hazing prevention education, and the
occurrence of other harmful behaviors (i.e., alcohol abuse, sexual violence, bullying). This study
included semi-structured interviews with seven band directors from the western coastal region of
the United States. The overarching research question was aimed at identifying how hazing had
impacted their programs while also understanding the dissemination, training, implementation,
and governance of hazing prevention policies. Four emergent themes were identified: (1)
Tradition and Culture, (2) Alcohol, (3) Bullying and Disciplinary Action, and (4) Education and
Implementation, with Tradition and Culture serving as the primary emerging concept. While the
directors may perceive hazing as having a limited impact on their programs, the mention of
issues such as alcohol abuse, sexual violence, and bullying indicates a strong desire to support
and maintain a positive culture within the bands.
Keywords: hazing, marching, band, tradition, culture, alcohol
1
Chapter 1: Introduction
Overview
The beginnings of my music career were strange. In elementary school, I chose to learn
the clarinet as it was the only instrument available to me. Having never learned to play above the
break, I soon gave up on it upon entering middle school. Despite my ability to read music well
and quick proficiency on the trumpet, I was relegated to a beginning band due to my class
schedule. However, being in that band allowed me to focus on my trumpet playing truly, and
among other things, practice for the parades that the middle school marching band would be
performing. Perhaps typical for Southern California, I was thrilled at the idea of playing outdoors
while in motion, and it was that moment that drove me to continue to work in the marching arts
to this day. Once I began working with collegiate marching band members, I realized the issues
were not solely contained in music and marching maneuvers. Still, the social and behavioral
make-up of the marching band had a tremendous impact on the student experience, particularly
in activities involving hazing.
Marching bands are organizations steeped in tradition, be it school traditions, cultural
traditions, or the traditions of the band itself. As such, the students in marching bands are
motivated to build their traditions. These traditions can range from activities as innocuous as
scavenger hunts or inside jokes to activities that skirt the line of hazing such as determining who
leaves the bus first based on class standing or freshman carrying extra equipment, to activities as
egregious as sleep deprivation or physical assault. In spending so much time with marching
bands as a performer and instructor, it became clear to me that working to clearly differentiate
tradition and hazing was going to be a necessary path for my continued career.
2
Hazing, and the effect that it has on those that have experienced it, has long plagued
athletic teams, social organizations, academic fraternities, Reserve Officer Training Corps
(ROTC) units and the military. However, another type of organization that shares much of its
DNA with the aforementioned groups has come under scrutiny for its involvement in hazing, and
that is the collegiate marching band (Silveira and Hudson, 2015; Stuart, 2012). When
considering Anti-Hazing Policies and Hazing Prevention Education, there is a great discrepancy
between the understanding of hazing by students, the measures taken to prevent it, and the
policies put in place (Ruffins, 2009). Organizations such as national chapters within the Greek
system and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) can offer clear guidance and
expectations for their participants in addition to the policies set forth by the individual
institutions and municipalities, however, there is not a singular national or regional organization
that offer collegiate marching bands that level of oversight. This is occurring for several reasons;
collegiate marching bands report to varying and in some cases numerous departments within
their respective campuses and while some marching bands operate within athletic departments
and are held to the NCAA charter, just as many are housed within schools of music or under the
auspices of Student Affairs divisions. Regardless of the oversight or reporting structure,
collegiate marching bands are not immune from the struggles of hazing (Silveira and Hudson,
2015).
When determining policy or the methodology for prevention, the variation of reporting
structures is not the only complication, but collegiate band directors must consider the different
strategies between universities, and the fact that only 44 states have passed anti-hazing laws. For
example, a collegiate band director within the city of Los Angeles must first take into account
the California penal code which defines hazing as “any method of initiation or preinitiation into a
3
student organization or student body, whether or not the organization or body is officially
recognized by an educational institution, which is likely to cause serious bodily injury to any
former, current, or prospective student of any school, community college, college, university, or
other educational institution in this state. The term ‘hazing’ does not include customary athletic
events or school-sanctioned events.” (Cal. Penal Code § 245.6). Secondly, the director can
reference the policies of the two largest universities within the city, one of which has a
department dedicated to hazing prevention, and the other simply lists policies under the banner
of the dean of students. Lastly, the director can look to national trends or recommendations made
by professional organizations such as the College Band Director’s National Association for
guidance, but ultimately, the primary development and implementation of anti-hazing and hazing
prevention policies with collegiate marching bands fall onto the director’s shoulders.
Definitions of Hazing
The difficulty in creating a policy for hazing or having a clear means for punitive action
taken against those who have perpetrated hazing activities may come from the simple complexity
that is its definition. Most laws concerning the damage of one’s property or person are easily
understood and defined. For example, according to California penal code section 187 (a):
(Cal. Penal Code, Chapter 1 § 187 (a))
Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being, or a fetus, with malice aforethought
The punishment is outlined in section 190 (a):
(Cal. Penal Code, Chapter 1 § 190 (a))
Every person guilty of murder in the first degree shall be punished by death,
imprisonment in the state prison for life without the possibility of parole, or
4
imprisonment in the state prison for a term of 25 years to life. The penalty to be applied
shall be determined as provided in Sections 190.1, 190.2, 190.3, 190.4, and 190.5.
Similarly, the federal definition of murder under US code 1111 states:
(18 U.S.C. § 1111. Murder)
Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought. Every murder
perpetrated by poison, lying in wait, or any other kind of willful, deliberate, malicious,
and premeditated killing; or committed in the perpetration of, or attempt to perpetrate,
any arson, escape, murder, kidnapping, treason, espionage, sabotage, aggravated sexual
abuse or sexual abuse, child abuse, burglary, or robbery; or perpetrated as part of a
pattern or practice of assault or torture against a child or children; or perpetrated from a
premeditated design unlawfully and maliciously to effect the death of any human being
other than him who is killed, is murder in the first degree.
The definitions are clear as are the consequences. It should be said that it is difficult to
convict one of murder given the strict nature of its definition and legal consequences. While it
seems that hazing should be similarly defined, a simple look at the definitions from various states
and the federal government will show otherwise. California law defines:
(Cal. Penal Code, Chapter 9 § 245.6 (b))
“Hazing” means any method of initiation or preinitiation into a student
organization or student body, whether or not the organization or body is
officially recognized by an educational institution, which is likely to cause
serious bodily injury to any former, current, or prospective student of any school,
community college, college, university, or other educational institution in this
5
state. The term “hazing” does not include customary athletic events or school-
sanctioned events.
New York State defines hazing as having two degrees:
(N.Y.S. Penal Code § 120.16)
Hazing in the first degree - A person is guilty of hazing in the first degree when,
in the course of another person`s initiation into or affiliation with any
organization, he intentionally or recklessly engages in conduct which creates a
substantial risk of physical injury to such other person or a third person and
thereby causes such injury. Hazing in the first degree is a class A misdemeanor.
(N.Y.S. Penal Code § 120.17)
Hazing in the second degree - A person is guilty of hazing in the second degree
when, in the course of another person`s initiation or affiliation with any
organization, he intentionally or recklessly engages in conduct which creates a
substantial risk of physical injury to such other person or a third person.
The United States Government does not have a singular definition of hazing, or a federal
law prohibiting hazing and describing the consequences. However, title 10 of the U.S. Code
includes a statute on hazing for students enrolled in the naval academy, and it reads as follows:
(10 U.S. Code § 8464 - Hazing: definition; prohibition)
(a) In this chapter, the term “hazing” means any unauthorized assumption of authority by
a midshipman whereby another midshipman suffers or is exposed to any cruelty,
indignity, humiliation, hardship, or oppression, or the deprivation or abridgement of any
right.
6
(b) The Superintendent of the Naval Academy shall prescribe regulations, to be approved
by the Secretary of the Navy, to prevent hazing.
(c) Hazing is an offense that may be dealt with as an offense against good order and
discipline or as a violation of the regulations of the Naval Academy. However, no
midshipman may be dismissed for a single act of hazing except by sentence of a court-
martial.
(d) The finding and sentence of a court-martial of a midshipman for hazing shall be
reviewed in the manner prescribed for general court-martial cases.
(e) A midshipman who is sentenced to imprisonment for hazing may not be confined with
persons who have been convicted of crimes or misdemeanors.
(f) A midshipman who is dismissed from the Academy for hazing may not be reappointed
as a midshipman or be appointed as a commissioned officer in the Army, Navy, Air
Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force until two years after the graduation of the class of
which he was a member.
Lastly, the National Federation of State High School Associations
(https://www.nfhs.org/) offers the following definition of hazing:
“Hazing,” means committing an act against a student, or coercing a student into
committing an act, that creates a substantial risk of harm to a person, in order for
the student to be initiated into or affiliated with a student organization, or for any
other purpose. The term hazing includes but is not limited to: Any type of
physical brutality such as whipping, beating, striking, branding, electronic
shocking or placing a harmful substance on the body. Any type of physical
activity such as sleep deprivation, exposure to weather, confinement in a
7
restricted area, calisthenics or other activity that subjects the student to an
unreasonable risk of harm or that adversely affects the mental or physical health
or safety of the student. Any activity involving the consumption of any alcoholic
beverage, drug, tobacco product or any other food, liquid, or substance that
subjects the student to an unreasonable risk of harm or that adversely affects the
mental or physical health or safety of the student. Any activity that intimidates or
threatens the student with ostracism, that subjects a student to extreme mental
stress, embarrassment, shame or humiliation that adversely affects the mental
health or dignity of the student or discourages the student from remaining in
school. Any activity that causes or requires the student to perform a task that
involves violation of state or federal law or of school district policies or
regulations. “Student organization,” means a group, club or organization having
students as its primary members or participants. It includes grade levels, classes,
teams, activities or particular school events. A student organization does not have
to be an official school organization to come within the terms of this definition.
There are similarities between the definitions, as well as stark differences that cause
many questions to be pondered. For example, each definition mentions physical harm, or the
potential to cause physical harm, while the federal definition is the only draft to cite mental harm
or provide specific examples of activities that may be perceived as hazing. Additionally, the
definitions contain wording relating to initiations, however, the California code specifically cites
initiation into student organizations, while the New York and federal definitions cite ANY
organization as being a possible perpetrator of hazing. Lastly, the California definition cites that
school sanctioned activities cannot be defined as hazing, while the federal definition states that
8
any potential act of hazing will be interpreted as such if the activity in question violates state,
district, or school policy. The federal definition is the most complex, however, the simplicity of
the New York definition allows for a more liberal interpretation and perhaps a more covered
level of protection. The struggle for universities lies in the determination of a definition that best
suits the needs of the student body while still adhering to both state and federal laws. What is
clear is that each definition allows for some independence, on the part of the organization to
administer its own policies and create its own definitions of hazing. While these definitions are
provided by each governing body, the punishments are not clearly defined in the same way as
they had been for other crimes or infractions. Though this is not an absolute necessity, it leaves
much of the punishment process to the lowest governing body, in many cases, the university or
college itself, and in others, the marching bands (Silveira, 2015). This is not a dire situation
altogether, but it leads to a further blurring of the line between the activities that are required of
certain organizations that may be perceived as hazing (e.g., “torture” drills for football teams),
activities intended to help members grow to know each other (e.g., a scavenger hunt around
campus) and activities that are clearly intended to haze the new members (e.g., pledges not
sleeping more closely during pledge week).
Theoretical Framework
The complexity of hazing leaves no shortage a framework by which to analyze and assess
its impact. For example, Alexander (2020) assessed hazing policies, implementation, and their
perceived effectiveness through the theoretical frameworks of initiation as a rite of passage.
According to this theory, group cohesion is fostered by hazing, in that hazing is used to maintain
a group hierarchy. Massey and Massey (2017) chose to look at hazing through the theories of
groupthink cognitive dissonance. This dissertation will utilize the theoretical framework of
9
naturalization, like the study performed by Alexander and Opsal (2020). Neutralization refers to
the justification of deviance or techniques of relieving the feeling of guilt from the offenders
(Alexander and Opsal, 2020, p. 5).
The theory of neutralization was developed by Sykes and Matza (1957) at a time when
delinquents were believed to adhere to principles that were counter to common moral attitudes and
cultural norms. Sykes and Matza (1957) countered this by theorizing that offenders were fully
aware of the expected societal morality and rules but engaged in techniques to neutralize their
behaviors in contradiction to the law. The five techniques posited by Sykes and Matza (1957) were
(1) denial of responsibility, (2) denial of victim’s injury, (3) denial of the victim, (4) condemnation
of condemners, and (5) appeal to higher loyalties.
Alexander and Opsal (2020) interviewed 40 college students across participation in groups
typically involved with hazing, such as the Greek system, ROTC, sports clubs, and the marching
band to identify the function of the techniques of neutralization for the participants but also to
provide insight into the beliefs and attitudes. While Alexander and Opsal’s (2020) research was
specifically designed to tackle the theoretical framework of neutralization, this dissertation will
focus on neutralization as a framework for guiding the discussion of the findings. Since this
dissertation focuses on band director perspectives and not those of the students, it will be
impossible to discern the student’s use of neutralization. However, the band directors will likely
offer their own opinions on the student perspective, as well as their own neutralizing comments
regarding the occurrences of hazing in their organization.
Statement of the Problem
Hazing is an issue that affects numerous types of organizations on college campuses. Greek
organizations, ROTC units, and athletic teams all suffer from hazing, and what they share is a high
10
number of students with the increased possibility of social interactions (Alexander and Opsal,
2020). Collegiate marching bands are no different and are in need of thorough analysis regarding
hazing (Silveira and Hudson, 2015). As the body of research regarding hazing continues to grow
(Alexander and Opsal, 2020; Hevel, Martin, Goodman, and Pascarella, 2018; Biddix, 2017) the
focus on the hazing specifically occurring within collegiate marching bands continues to be limited
in scope. This dissertation aims to contribute to the field of research and broaden the understanding
of hazing and hazing prevention education among collegiate marching bands.
Purpose Statement, Research Questions, and Limitations
Purpose Statement
The purpose of this study is to identify the perspectives of hazing, the methodology for
adopting and effectiveness of hazing prevention education, and the occurrence of other harmful
behaviors (i.e., alcohol abuse, sexual violence, bullying) held by collegiate marching band
directors from the western, coastal region of the United States. While each state or counties within
the states have their own ideologies and socially acceptable practices, there is certainly no shortage
of shared experiences to provide a semi-unified viewpoint on hazing. The interviews will be used
to curate the policies and their implementation from these directors, from which, themes will be
identified, and practices will be compared. The information provided in these interviews should
provide clarity to the hazing issue and offer areas of improvement in development for collegiate
band directors. Additionally, the study hopes to identify the band director’s perception of other
behavioral issues that work in tandem with hazing, or on their own (i.e., bullying, sexual violence,
or alcohol abuse). The occurrence of overlapping data among the directors may allow this study
to illustrate that an existing governing body may be able to offer stronger recommendations for
university marching bands, or in the very least, offer a series of best practices.
11
A critical factor to understand is how has hazing effects or has affected the music teaching
and learning of those involved in a collegiate music ensemble. What is clear from previous studies
is the fact that many students willingly participate in hazing or fail to realize the repercussions of
the activities that they are taking part in (Silveira and Hudson, 2015). Furthermore, those leading
these programs may not be aware that hazing activities are being carried out (Carter, 2013).
The study also hopes to discover how educators can relieve the pressures of hazing and
ensure a safe learning environment, as well as learn from the experiences of Greek and Athletic
organizations. By doing so, the study hopes to problematize the risks of allowing a program to
continue with its activities or behaviors that promote or allow hazing. Lastly, the difference
between bullying and hazing as is defined by the law and in the literature will be addressed, as
well as the perceived meaning of these terms by the participants in the study. Though the two are
connected, it is important that those creating policy on one or the other is aware of their differences
and connections.
Research Questions
The overarching question guiding this research and the interview process is “Has hazing
impacted your [marching band] program and in what ways?” Beyond that, this study aims to
answer four main research questions:
1. What is the methodology used by collegiate band directors to develop and implement
policies regarding hazing prevention and education?
2. Are band directors the primary authors of their hazing prevention materials, or are these
provided by the appropriate university governing body? Additionally, how are these materials
disseminated to the students?
12
3. How do band directors on the west coast, perceive the effectiveness of the hazing prevention
work and handle instances of hazing in comparison to the current body of research which is
primarily derived from the Midwest?
4. Are there issues, other than hazing, that band directors perceive to be of greater concern or
require more attention and care, such as issues surrounding bullying, sexual violence, or alcohol
abuse?
Limitations
This study considers the limitations of focusing exclusively on the perspectives of band
directors and not on the perspectives of other stakeholders like students and is purposefully situated
on the west coast. This study focused intentionally on the administrative repercussions of policy,
training, and implementation, and as such is limited to that scope. There is no shortage of research
supporting the fact that many students willingly participate in hazing or do not realize the
repercussions of the activities that they are taking part in (Silveira and Hudson, 2015).
Furthermore, those leading these programs may not be aware that hazing activities are being
carried out (Carter, 2013). Lastly, the interview responses may likely reflect the social desirability
of the participants (Marraccini, Weyandt, & Rossi, 2015), particularly when focusing on difficult
topics such as hazing. Despite these limitations, this study hopes to show the importance of
gathering the practices of university band directors and sharing them with practitioners and
scholars alike.
Overview of Remaining Chapters
Chapter 2 of this dissertation will offer an extensive literature review on the topics of
hazing, marching bands, bullying, alcohol, and sexual violence, as well as illuminating the
intersection of these various topics, in particular their ties or impact on collegiate marching band
programs. The third chapter will describe the methodology of the study, process for participant
13
selection and data acquisition, and the framework upon which the questions and analysis are
structured. Chapter 4 will provide an in-depth description of the interview responses, the cross-
case comparisons, and the emergent themes that resulted from the interviews. Lastly, chapter 5
will offer a discussion and analysis of the emergent themes from the interviews as they pertain to
the research questions, drawing implications for future research and music educators.
14
Chapter 2: Literature Review
Chapter Overview
Hazing continues to be an issue in educational environments. It occurs in elementary
schools, middle schools, high schools, colleges, universities, and the workplace (Essex, 2014),
often accompanied by claims of bullying or resulting in tragic events such as extreme mental or
physical harm, and in some cases, death (Stuart, 2012). While many organizations are taking the
necessary steps to aid in the eradication of hazing and bullying, including the creation of hazing
and prevention committees as well as publishing information for organizations that have a
history of hazing incidents, events are still occurring every day. A simple web search of
“hazing” or “bullying” yields news articles, scholarly journals, interviews, and other media
containing the accounts of recent hazing events. Within the past few years, the marching bands
at Florida A&M (https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/ nation/2015/09/18/florida-am-settles-
family-hazing-victim/72402316/), The Ohio State University
(https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ohio-state-sexual-director-fired_n_5649531), and University of
California Davis (https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/davis/marching-band-member-
reacts-to-allegations-of-misconduct/103-63d89ad8-01a5-48db-859b-6c5dba60bfb2) have
experienced nation-wide news events concerning the hazing that has occurred within their
organization and the aftermath.
These concerns raise the following questions: How has hazing effected the music
education of collegiate music students? How has hazing effected the policies of lawmakers, and
what is the subsequent effect of those changes on music education curriculum? How can
educators relieve the pressures of hazing and ensure a safe learning environment? What can
educators learn from the experiences of Greek and Athletic organizations, ROTC units, and the
15
military, and how can that be applied to music education policy? What are the risks for allowing
a program to continue with its hazing practices? Through a thorough examination of the
literature, this review aims to define hazing, provide a history of hazing activities, draw
comparisons between hazing and bullying as well as defining the differences, and finally, discuss
the issues with hazing concerning its occurrence among the various levels of education
(including in music education), and the policies currently in place to address its governance.
History of Hazing
Understanding the definition of hazing is important, as is the context in which these
definitions are created. It was not until 1825 that a definition of hazing appears in English
dictionaries. Then, it was defined as “a sound beating, a thrashing,” not much unlike some of the
accounts of the Florida A&M students (Germano, 2015; Stuart, 2012). According to Merriam-
Webster, the definition of hazing is “the practice of playing unpleasant tricks on someone or
forcing someone to do unpleasant things” or “an initiation process involving harassment,” but
this definition was determined in 1855, over a century and a half ago. The definition of hazing
has not been updated since this time, and it is clear, from a linguistics standpoint, that the
American concept of hazing has changed, and the definition should reflect that change.
Despite the constant occurrence of hazing throughout the 20th century and into the 21st,
drastic steps have been made to combat hazing and prevent it from occurring in the future. The
most important step that has been taken is the practice of creating transparency around hazing
and the policies of hazing (Oliff, 2002). Universities have taken on a stricter stance on hazing,
and it has become standard for all universities to offer a publicly visible policy concerning
hazing and bullying. Additionally, many universities are implementing hazing and prevention
committees to aid on campus organizations in combatting hazing behavior and culture. While
16
traditionally, many campuses have implored a “take care of yourself” attitude when dealing with
hazing (Chamberlain, 2014), this mentality is changing, and a group concept of help and aid is
on the rise. Teachers are being educated about hazing and bullying and are now being given the
tools to successfully educate their students on the proper actions to take when experiencing
bullying or hazing (Essex, 2014). Additionally, measures are being taken to ensure that
university professors are not, in fact, bullying or hazing their own students, and in doing so, are
not fostering an environment where these sorts of activities are condoned, or even preferred
(Marraccini, 2015). Since alcohol has been a major contributor to hazing and bullying (Fierberg,
2012), universities have begun implementing programs to help aid in the limitation of alcoholic
intake by their students, as well as providing services like those offered for students who have
been subjected to sexual or physical violence. As the world starts to realize the prevalence and
the impact that bullying, alcohol, and sexual violence have on young people, it is promising to
see that educational institutions are putting efforts in place to help the students that are in their
care.
College Hazing Incidents
More than half of college students are involved in some form of campus hazing, and in
95% of hazing cases, students did not report that they were being hazed, and astonishingly,
coaches or directors did not report hazing events 25% of the time they were reported, and 1 in 10
students do not realize that they’re being hazed (Allan and Madden, 2008). Since 1970, there
has been at least one death, every year attributed to hazing, and 82% of these deaths involve
alcohol (Fierberg, 2012). The year of 1983 marked the first report of hazing involving sexual
assault, while these types of incidents have been steadily increasing in frequency since 1995
(Fierberg, 2012).
17
One of the most notable deaths in the history of hazing, or rather, a death that has had a
great impact, was that of Matthew Carrington of California State University – Chico. Matthew
Carrington died on Wednesday, February 2, 2005, as the result of illegal fraternity hazing.
Matthew pledged Chi Tau in the spring of 2005 (Korry, 2005). Chi Tau was not properly
sponsored through the university. In a tradition consistent with other institutions, Chi Tau
instituted a practice known as “hell week,” a three-day endeavor where the pledges were
subjected to tasks, many of which were physically draining. During the third night of this affair,
Matthew passed away from an overabundance of water in his system. He was forced to drink
exorbitant amounts of water, as well as being doused with water while performing the
aforementioned activities (Korry, 2005). As a result, Matthew’s blood was diluted, and he
passed away. While four men (students) were charged with involuntary manslaughter and
misdemeanor hazing, the hazing statute was inadequate, and the perpetrators stood the chance to
not be held responsible for Matthew’s death (Edevane, 2017). Following Matthew’s death, the
Butte County District Attorney charged four men with felony involuntary manslaughter and
misdemeanor hazing. However, the hazing statute was inadequate. There was still a slim chance
that even with the strong evidence against the Chi Tau pledge masters, the individuals
responsible for Matthew’s death could avoid any liability under the law as written in 2005. As a
result, California Senate Bill 1454 was proposed by State Senator Ted Torlakson and signed into
legislation by the Governor on September 29, 2006 (Cal. S.B. § 1454). The additions made to the
California Penal Code (Cal. Penal Code § 245.6) otherwise known as “Matt’s Law” hold all
persons involved in a hazing incident responsible for any physical damage or bodily harm taken
on by an individual being hazed. Thus, under Matt’s Law, even students who are witnesses to an
act of hazing can be held to the same level of accountability as the direct perpetrator.
18
Hazing has been a long standing in this country and will continue to be a problem until
universities and other organizations make the concerted effort to better inform and assist their
student bodies in avoiding instances of hazing and reporting those instances when they do occur.
It is apparent that there is some level of fear among students to act against hazing (McCarthy,
2015), but these students must realize that action is necessary for change (Ruffins, 2009), and
that the issue will not simply solve itself.
Athletics and Hazing
Like the university environment, athletic groups experience hazing at nearly all levels of
experience. Student-athletes in groups with an age range similar to elementary school cite
instances such as carrying the equipment for the older members or being asked to attend
practices solely designed for new members. While both are debatable instances of hazing, the
former is stated as not being hazing (Silveira and Hudson, 2015); the latter is still a debated
topic. New members require more extensive training in an athletic arena, however, requiring
such a process to determine inclusion into the team sparks controversy and toes the line of
hazing. If the students tried out based on ability, and are chosen to make the team, there is no
reason to assume that the newest members require any further training of they have received it
from an outside source, but, if the students are chosen for the team based on solely their age, then
training may be necessary if the students have never participated before. This simple example
shows how decisions are made for students at a very young age, but the process behind making
these decisions will stick with the students. A student who was required to attend an extra
practice as part of being new to a group will not be likely to see the fault in requiring new
pledges to participate in some activity simply because they are new, with no regard to the level
of importance of said activity.
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The beginnings of activities traditionally perceived as hazing start to show up in high
school-aged students, and even as early as middle school-aged students (Essex, 2014). Long
nights without sleep, “hell-weeks” and humiliation are deemed necessary for one to be included
in sports teams, in the school’s ROTC program, or music program. In South Africa, it has been
noted that hazing has taken place during the orientation of new students into secondary schools,
primarily at all-boy’s schools (Lemmer, 2013). These events, which clearly fit the bill of hazing,
continue to occur and are only recently being challenged or studied. The tradition of harming
initiations becomes normalized in the culture, and as a result, carries on throughout the education
of all students (Ruffins, 2009). As it stands, the traditional view of hazing being solely an action
taken on by boy’s groups or organizations is changing, or rather, being illuminated. In a review
of the literature written by Johnson and Holman (2009), the authors found that women’s athletic
groups have become more, socially, in line with what men’s athletic groups have been doing,
bringing in hazing and initiation practices. Additionally, this review pointed out the
marginalization of women and members of the LBGTQ community by males involved in athletic
groups. This review supports the notion that solving the hazing issue requires specific targeting
of fraternities, ROTC and athletic groups, as well as the hazing within women’s groups and the
hazing directed between genders, which has largely been ignored. Such marginalization can be
interpreted as bullying, and in many instances, it may be so, but the group mentality of an
athletic organization allows the definition to be more fulfilling when described as hazing
(Johnson and Holman, 2009).
Athletic teams benefit from staff and coaches to aid in the prevention of, and education
about hazing prevention, and the same can be said for the officers put in place with ROTC
groups. However, the research has shown that despite the oversight, hazing continues to be an
20
issue, and in the case of student-run organizations, the involvement of faculty or staff advisors
can be negligible at best (McCarthy, 2015). Fraternities and sororities (Greek organizations)
typically fall within the description of the latter and represent a large portion of the student
population that may be suffering from ongoing incidents of hazing (Hevel, Martin, Goodman,
and Pascarella, 2018).
Greek Life and Hazing
When watching films or consuming many forms of media, hazing is often depicted as
occurring within fraternities or sororities. Take, for example, films such as National Lampoon’s
Animal House (Landis, 1978), Old School (Phillips, 2003), Neighbors (Stoller, 2014), or Van
Wilder (Becker, 2002); these films continue to perpetuate the strong bond between the United
States’ Greek system of fraternities and sororities and hazing activities, particularly those tied to
physical harm and the overconsumption of alcohol (Phillips, 2003). While these films serve as a
means of entertainment, they also highlight extreme examples within the groups and are by no
means intended to be truly illustrative of the complete “Greek-Life” experience. However, the
success of these films illustrates, at least anecdotally, the widespread and marketable perception
of what goes on in these types of organizations.
While fraternities and sororities tend to be the focus of many studies regarding hazing
and other illicit behaviors, Greek life offers much regarding positive impact on the collegiate
experience of their student-members. In their recent study, Hevel, Martin, Goodman, and
Pascarella (2018) surveyed 3,170 students from 24 different 4-year institutions that were
participating in the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education (WNS). The WNS is a
longitudinal study, conducted from fall of 2006 to spring of 2012, aimed at exploring students’
overall college experiences during a four-year period. Data was collected as a pre-college pre-
21
test and using various measurement tools during the fall semesters of 2006, 2007, and 2008. The
data was analyzed using ordinary least squares regression, and the researchers found that Greek
affiliation affected growth in “five socially responsible leadership values: consciousness of self,
collaboration, common purpose, citizenship and change,” (p. 166) illustrating the benefits
present to members and the work completed within the organizations. Similarly, Walker, Nathan,
and Hussey (2014) found that Greek membership can have a positive impact on “involvement in
and satisfaction with campus social life and predicts higher graduation rates and degree
persistence” (p. 218). Walker, Nathan and Hussey (2014) drew from data acquired from the
Campus Life and Learning (CLL) project, which followed two cohorts of students (classes of
2005 and 2006) entering studies at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. Of the 3,254
students available between the cohorts, the researchers were able to use the data from 1,180
participants. The students were administered a pre-college survey, as well as surveyed during the
Spring semesters of their 1
st
, 2
nd
, and 4
th
years. The aim of the study was to identify key
contributing factors that would entice students to join a Greek organization, as well as to identify
how membership is associated with various collegiate experiences and outcomes. These studies
offer great insight into the power of these organizations to aid in the improvement of their
membership, but also illustrate telling details as well. When assessing the findings across these
multiple studies, it can be illustrated that positive outcomes demonstrate greater success among
white students from private or more elite institutions (Walker, Martin, Hussey, 2014; Hevel,
Martin, Goodman, Pascarella, 2018). While this dissertation does not aim to tackle the issues
surrounding race and privileged upbringing and the impact that may have on hazing, these facts
frame the discussion regarding the true measure of success afforded by fraternity or sorority
membership.
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The circumstances surrounding Greek membership and hazing are linked to a wide swath
of illicit behaviors that neither improve the academic impact of the collegiate experience or offer
variation to the social climate of the institution. Hazing in the Greek system generally stems from
normative culture developed over time, typically deemed as tradition (Alexander & Opsal, 2020;
Biddix, 2017; Hevel Martin, Goodman, Pascarella, 2018). The common cultural characteristics
as demonstrated across multiple studies typically include the manipulation of power over
individuals (Hevel Martin, goodman, Pascarella, 2018; Alvarez, 2015; Cimino, 2018; Walker,
Martin, Hussey, 2014; Biddix, 2017; Rosenberg & Mosca, 2016), the perpetuation of
detrimentally masculine normative behavior (McCready, 2019) and the over-consumption of
alcohol (Biddix, 2017; Fierberg, 2012). Overwhelmingly, these cultural elements have
contributed to instances of sexual harassment/assault, physical and mental duress and hazing. It
is impossible to discern that these issues solely plague Greek organizations, in fact, given the
research available on the prevalence of hazing in ROTC units, athletic teams and marching
bands, it is more apt to assume that these issues exist in all these groups in varying levels on
intensity. As such, in pursuing further information about hazing in marching bands, the data
available about the Greek system should serve as an information lens through which to view the
data being procured.
Alcohol, Sexual Assault and Hazing
A simple title search of articles regarding hazing will supply no shortage of those
associated with alcohol and alcohol consumption. O’Brien et. al. (2017) looked at a sample of
2048 student athletes (“sportspeople”) enrolled at UK universities and found that “higher levels
of masculinity and alcohol consumption in men and women were associated with an increased
probability of alcohol-related aggression and anti-social [behavior] (p. 341). A meta-analysis
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carried out by Scott-Sheldon et.al. (2016) reviewed the literature from 1987-2014 yielded
“somewhat paradoxical findings (p. 681). The meta-analysis, specifically targeting studies aimed
at providing alcohol education and interventions to Greek organizations and the efficacy of said
trainings, combed through electronic databases and the reference sections of related articles to
identify 345 potential records of which, 15 met the criteria for inclusion (Scott-Sheldon, et. al.,
2016, p. 672). The study found that interventions addressing alcohol-related expectancies had the
highest efficacy of reducing the quantity of alcohol consumed, however, it also found that
intervention attempts to educate students on managing their drinking may have been ineffective
because of the student’s perception of alcohol assisting in their social or sexual endeavors (Scott-
Sheldon, et. al., 2016, p. 681). Another example of the writing available regarding alcohol that is
specifically tied to hazing comes from Fierberg (2012). This article written for The Chronicle of
Higher Education offers a scathing review of various Greek organizations, most notably the lack
of oversight offered by universities in regard to alcohol use and hazing. Based on their review of
the literature, Fierberg (2012) posited that:
Hazing will not end until universities and fraternities accept responsibility for resolving
the problem by taking these recommended steps—and taking them immediately to
prevent further senseless injury and death. (p. 3)
It comes as no surprise that the overconsumption and abuse of alcohol continues to
plague college campuses in the U.S. According to the National Institute on Alcohol abuse and
Alcoholism (NIAAA, 2021), roughly 9% of college students meet the criteria for Alcohol Use
Disorder, about 1 in 4 students suffer academic consequences due to drinking, 1,519 college
students die from alcohol-related injuries, roughly 696,000 students are assaulted by another
student who has been drinking, and there is a long-standing finding that 1 in 5 college women
24
experience sexual assault during their time in college (Muehlenhard, Peterson, Humphreys, and
Jozkowski, 2017). However, the NIAAA further notes that further data are needed to have a
clearer estimate of assaults related to alcohol or other substance abuse among college students. In
addition to these staggering statistics, alcohol has been directly tied to hazing in numerous
studies (Silveira, 2015; Alvarez, 2015) and is inextricably linked to the activity through multiple
types of organizations. The deduction would be to tackle the issue of alcohol on college
campuses in conjunction with hazing, however, Scott-Sheldon et. al. (2016) found in their meta-
analysis that “extant alcohol interventions show limited efficacy” (p. 670) leading one to assume
that, though the issues are connected, hazing and alcohol abuse must be approached
simultaneously, though differently (Alvarez, 2015).
As hazing is often connected to alcohol, so are sexual assault and harassment. Over the
past 20 or so years, sexual assault/harassment has become more prevalent and violent among
students in primary and secondary school (Stein, 2003; McMaster, Connolly, Pepler & Craig,
2002) and has been linked to hazing rituals in athletic organizations (DeMartini, 2016).
McMaster et.al. (2002) administered a modified version of the American Association of
University Women’s (AAUW) Sexual Assault Survey to 1,213, 6-8 grade students in a large
Canadian city. The study indicated a high rate of sexual assault among 6-8 grade students and
poses the need that interventions “need to be in place prior to high school…rather than after the
patterns have stabilized.” (p. 104) The researchers also noted that sexual harassment behaviors
increase as students age and can be shown to be correlative to pubertal development (McMaster
et.al., 2002).
Stein (2005) provides a thorough review of sexual assault violence among young people
using “ethnographic data, narratives acquired from lawsuits and reports in media (p. 33). Among
25
the examples provided, Stein spends a good amount of time discussing the intersection of hazing
a sexual violence, as well as the fact that “’bullying’ is often used…to describe these sexually
violent incidents” (p. 33). Most notably, Stein discusses two incidents of hazing among
American high school students that garnered national attention in 2003. The first involved Girls
from Glenbrook North High School in the suburbs of Chicago, an incident where senior girls
ritualistically hazed and assaulted junior girls while groups of boys attended the event as on-
lookers, acting as “cheerleaders” and consuming alcohol. Another example describes the forced
sodomy of younger teammates by varsity members of the Mepham High School of Long Island,
New York football team (pp. 41-42). While Stein intended to illustrate the gendered disparity in
the treatment of these stories by the media, undoubtedly the accounts illustrate a connection
between sexual assault and violence and ritualistic hazing.
The link between sexual assault/harassment and hazing can also be traced through
various studies and cases surrounding Title IX legislation (Brodsky, 2017; Anderson, 2016;
Johnson & Holman, 2009) at the collegiate level, although the connection between these and the
marching band activity is not as clear-cut (Anonymous, 2008). Hazing and Sexual Assault are
national issues that are present in many social organizations, and marching bands are no
exception, however, it is unclear how deep these issues may run on a macro level, or if they can
be traced to isolated incidents among certain marching organizations.
Marching Bands and Hazing
Participating in the marching arts can be one of the most thrilling experiences for
musicians of all ages. Music education through marching band typically begins as a specialized
course in secondary education, or for many, as part of their college experience (Abril, 2012). The
students prepare parade performances in the ceremonial, military tradition (Abril, 2012) as well
26
as longer, stage-like performances to be performed during the halftime break of American
Football Games. While both types of performances can be pursued as exhibitive or competitive,
many marching arts programs pursue the competitive route, attending local, regional, or national
competitions such as the Bands of America Championships (https://marching.musicforall.org/).
Despite the strong ties to American Football which takes place during the Fall semester,
organizations such as Winter Guard International (WGI) (https://wgi.org/) have offered an
indoor, Winter and Spring semester performance opportunity for Color Guard and Percussionist
members of marching programs, and have recently incorporated winds and brass categories,
allowing for a full academic year of marching arts participation. Beyond the academic year, the
summer months allow for organizations such as Drum Corps International (DCI)
(https://www.dci.org/) to continue offering performance opportunities in the marching arts at a
highly competitive level.
Collegiate marching bands are most often tied to athletic teams and institutional events,
and their performances are primarily exhibitive, but filled with tradition, excitement, and
pageantry. Websites such as collegemarching.com celebrate the differences and performances of
these ensembles. The annual Rose Parade in Pasadena offers an international audience to the
lucky college (and high school) marching bands participating (https://tournamentofroses.com/).
Whether the performances are competitive or for exhibition, tied to an athletic event or a concert
performance, or down the packed streets of Colorado Boulevard on a New Year’s morning,
marching bands provide a unique and varied experience for its participants.
With such a wide array of performance opportunities, it is no wonder the benefits of
marching arts organizations are studied and written about. Cumberledge’s (2017) review of the
literature found three primary benefits of for students participating in collegiate marching bands:
27
Student Education, Social Interaction, and Student Health (pp. 45-46). Beyond music, the
educational benefits of collegiate marching bands extend to students by offering “lessons in
cooperation, leadership, responsibility and mental discipline” (Cumberledge, 2017, p. 45). There
is seemingly a benefit through cross-curricular lessons, particularly the mathematics present in
the design and implementation of the drills marched by the members during a halftime
performance (Gall, 1974). Social interaction is credited with providing members a “band family”
that feels like a home and a means of self-expression (Cumberledge, 2017, p. 46). The health
benefits of participation are shown to vary between the sections of the band (Sharp, Wadsworth,
and Pascoe, 2007), the type of marching arts organization they are a member of (Edwards, 2008),
and the rigor of the rehearsal or performance (Pascoe, Smith, Strecker, and Good, 2005),
however, the overall benefits to health are shown to be generally positive for members of
marching arts organizations.
Another account drawn from a study of a NCAA Division II collegiate marching band
illustrated that “music participation is thus more than simply an entertaining activity but a means
by which a host of musical, academic, and social functions are served” (Matthews, 2017, p. 180).
In this mixed methods study, 57 marching band members of a Division II marching band were
asked to participate in either a focus group (n=53), or a focus group and a quantitative survey
(n=40) (Matthew, 2017). The focus groups were carried out at the same time of year that the
surveys were distributed (beginning, middle and end of Fall season) and the results were
analyzed through separate means and blended as a part of the interpretation and discussion
(Matthews, 2017). The quantitative results indicated a positive correlation between group
cohesion and perceived efficacy of the organization, suggesting a downward concavity of the
28
beliefs of the members that returns to its original level at the close of the season (Matthews,
2017). The qualitative focus groups allowed for the emergence of five themes;
(1) connections, their pride in band and its connectedness to their school and beyond; (2)
family, how the band represents a family environment; (3) acceptance, belonging to the
group; (4) music, the role of music in their lives; and (5) time, the temporal beliefs of the
group throughout the season. (p. 190)
These themes support the concepts posed by Cumberledge (2017) and indicate a strong benefit
for students participating in collegiate marching bands.
However, both Cumberledge and Matthews (2017) made time to discuss the potential
detriments to participating in collegiate marching bands, including the difficulties of time
management (Cumberledge, 2017, p. 47), endorsing authoritarianism and meritocracy
(Matthews, 2017, p. 180), and in conjunction with the intention of this dissertation, hazing
(Cumberledge, 2017, p. 47 and Matthews, 2017, p. 180). According to Cumberledge (2017)
extreme occurrences of hazing are uncommon among college bands, but carefully crafted
antihazing policies are critical for the successful prevention of such occurrences. Matthews
(2017) also discussed the increased scrutiny being faced by collegiate marching bands in regard
to hazing, and proposes that band directors offer a mid-season session on antihazing policies and
hazing prevention (p. 197).
Cumberledge (2017) and Matthews (2017) cited the research completed by Silveira and
Hudson (2015) as one of the preeminent studies regarding hazing and marching bands.
Following the “best-practices” approach of the American Association for Public Opinion
Research (AAPOR) regarding samples with incomplete population coverage, Silveira and
Hudson (2015) utilized a multistage cluster sampling approach to recruit study participants.
29
Utilizing the contacts available to them through membership in the College Band Directors
National Association (CBDNA), they were able to curate a sample of 1,215 college students to
successfully complete their questionnaire. The participants represented faculty or staff-led
marching band members from 116 NCAA Division I schools across 30 states. The majority of
the participants were not music majors (78.4%); only 8.6% of the study population were
pursuing a minor in music. The four-part questionnaire was distributed to the participants
electronically and was anticipated to require approximately 10 minutes of the respondent’s time.
Section I assessed the occurrence and frequency of 23 hazing behaviors, identifying 4 behaviors
with more than a 10% response rate. These behaviors included being asked to sing or chant by
oneself in a situation not related to a performance, being yelled at (through cursing or swearing),
being asked to associate with certain people and not others, and depriving oneself of sleep.
The second section aimed to identify the reporting behaviors of those that observed
hazing. It was found that only 8% of respondents reported hazing incidents perpetrated on
another member of the band, and an even smaller fraction of participants (5.6%) reposted hazing
incidents carried out on themselves. The most common reason for participants choosing not to
report hazing incidents was fear of losing the respect of their friends. The third section of the
questionnaire was designed to investigate participants’ attitudes towards hazing and revealed that
this population yielded results that were contradictory to previous research, primarily that the
overall view of hazing was detrimental (p. 20). The fourth and final section of the measurement
inquired about the participants’ learning of their institutional hazing policies, as well as how
often and by whom they were reminded. The participants most frequently cited marching band
orientation as the source of information, with an annual follow-up provided by the band director
(Silveira and Hudson, 2015, p. 18). In a broader perspective, Silveira and Hudson found that
30
nearly 30% of respondents reported being a part of a hazing incident in a college marching band,
and 60% of those students cited that their teachers knew about the hazing. Furthermore, the
study showed that a number of participants felt pressure to not report the incidents for fear of
some sort of repercussion. As the researchers commented, while athletic teams and
sorority/fraternities have received the most attention regarding hazing, “there also has been
increased attention in bands, specifically marching bands” (Silveira and Hudson, 2015, p. 9).
Considering the recent events occurring at the Ohio State University and Florida A&M, this is an
issue that is persisting in collegiate programs and needs to be researched to help remedy the
situation. The students at these institutions were required by their student leaders to participate
in non-sanctioned activities that were sexual in nature, violent, or of little to no importance on
the successful implementation of the program and were perceived by the participants to be
necessary for inclusion into the program or as a form of initiation. While these events have
sparked discussion and drastic changes in policy and administration at these institutions, little is
visible regarding other marching bands taking similar, if not preliminary actions to solve any
issues that they may experience in hazing.
If these two schools are experiencing hazing, countless other schools must be
experiencing something similar as well. The circumstances of allowing these types of behaviors
and mentalities to occur are notable, and it would be wise for any band director or administrator
to take action to ensure that their programs are free from hazing and bullying. The amount of
research in hazing, though not as vast as other teaching and learning issues, all points in the same
direction, and has resulted in the creation of state and federal policy that effects all programs, and
can lead to the dismantling of a program, or the replacement of the leadership within that
program. As was seen with the Ohio State case, the Director was relieved of duty because of his
31
lack of action regarding solving the hazing problem of his program. All directors of high-profile
programs should have their ear to the ground and be incredibly involved in their program, from
both a directorial and social perspective. A vast amount of good work can be undone because of
a lack of action, or ignorance of the truth behind a situation.
A music program, or any organization, cannot exist to its fullest potential if hazing and
other non-functional activities are allowed to occur. There are problems in many universities
(Carter, 2013) and many institutions, but those pertaining to education must remain vigilant in
providing a safe and democratic environment for their students and participants.
Bullying
It is important when discussing hazing, that one also takes the time to look over the
history and issues involved with bullying. While bullying and hazing are closely related, it
should be noted that the two are not mutually exclusive (Silveira and Hudson, 2015). There are
often levels of consent when hazing activities are carried out. This consent does not indicate that
the action is not in fact hazing, it merely states the concept that most individuals are actively
participating in some activity when they are being hazed, as opposed to bullying, in which
individuals are under duress caused by another individual, without the specifics of active
participation (Silveira and Hudson, 2015). The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines bullying as
the “abuse and mistreatment of someone vulnerable by someone stronger, more powerful, etc.”
(https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bullying) As one can see, the definition is far
separated from the definition of hazing, but one connection remains clear: the negative treatment
of one person by another.
As the understanding of bullying has changed over the centuries, so has the types of
activities that have been attributed to bullying. There has been much discussion, over time,
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about the effects of bullying as well as methodology for dealing with bullying in various
environments. Children who are bullied are often required to confront their bullies with little or
no guidance, the result of which is increased difficulty in dealing with bullies in the future
(Craig, 2012). Additionally, bullied students may exhibit systems consistent with Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and may take action to harm themselves or others (Idsoe,
2012; Cooper, 2012). Bullying is often associated with elementary school children, yet it is a
problem that both persists and flourishes beyond elementary school and into the workplace of
grown adults. While physical bullying persists, instances of sexual assault are occurring at all
ages (Stein, 2005), and bullying is now extending its reach beyond the school yard or workplace,
and into the digital arena of social media and chat-room forums (Juvonen, 2008; Chappell, 2006;
Craig, 2007). As bullying expands its presence, action is taken to study and advise groups on
effective means to deter bullying, or cope with the ramifications of bullying (Goryl, 2013).
However, the direct nature with which bullying takes place makes it an easier problem to
overcome when juxtaposed over the group mentality of hazing and hazing policies.
Rawlings (2017) conducted a study as part of a 2-year clinical trial funded by the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention to examine the effect of middle school music ensemble
participation on the relationship between school connections, peer victimization, and bullying
perpetration. Students (N=470) agreed to participate in the study with 178 students enrolled in a
school-based music ensemble, and 292 students not enrolled (Rawlings, 2017, p. 57). The
measures used in the study were the University of Illinois Aggression Scales, used to determine
the number of instances participants engaged in or were the victims of bullying behavior over the
past 30 days, and the Internet Harassment Scale, an assessment of the frequency of cyber
aggression) (Rawlings, 2017, p. 58). Following the administration of the measure in September
33
of 2014 and analysis using structural equation modeling (SEM), Rawlings found that the overall
population experienced low levels of bullying, and students enrolled in a music ensemble were
less likely to be chronic bullying perpetrators.
Elpus and Carter (2016) used data from the 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, and 2013 datasets of
the School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) to
analyze the prevalence of school victimization through physical, verbal, and relational
aggression among middle and high school students participating in performing arts activities as
compared to their peers involved in other school functions. The data sets from each year were
analyzed individually as well as pooled across all five sets with a total participation of 24,419
students (Elpus and Carter, 2016, p. 327). A logistic regression analysis of the data revealed
that:
music and theatre students face a significantly greater risk than their non-arts peers of
reporting being the victims of bullying behaviors. Specifically, female music and theatre
students faced a 41% greater risk of being bullied, and male music and theatre students
faced a 69% greater risk of being bullied than their peers who were not involved in
school music ensembles or theatre programs. (p. 335)
As shown in these two works, bullying is as much a cause for concern as hazing for
students participating in music programs. Though they may not be the perpetrators of bullying
behavior (Rawlings, 2017), music students are seemingly at a higher risk for victimization based
on the national findings of Elpus and Carter, (2016). Motivation for these activities plays a major
role in their identification, with hazing being strongly tied to initiative processes and bullying so
closely related to trauma. However, though bullying and hazing may draw their rationale from
differing motivations, the similar driving force behind them both is the exhibition of the power of
34
one individual over another. While it is important to understand how bullying can occur during
incidents of hazing, it is only a small portion of the problem, and in some cases, may not be an
issue altogether. Attempts made at solving the bullying issue may aid in the reduction of hazing
incidents, but the research has not been done to directly comment on that occurrence.
Anecdotally, one can infer that this is taking place, but more research must be done to determine
if, in fact, efforts made towards quelling bullying have any impact on hazing prevention.
Childhood Hazing
As mentioned previously, hazing occurs at all ages, even though it is most prevalent, in
university or college environments. One cannot ignore the possibility of hazing in elementary
schools while making such a large effort to solve bullying, among other problems (Gilroy, 2013).
Younger students do not have the same tendency to form student groups or unions within the
greater group of the student body, a side-effect of such a lack of organization is a limitation of
hazing. Menesini and Salmivalli (2017) conducted a study using survey data from western
countries and to a lesser extent, lower-income countries, and while they were specifically
intending to assess bullying, the findings paint an important picture of the classroom
environment for young students. Young students spend the majority of their academic efforts
with a single teacher, who become solely responsible for implementing and carrying out the
education of antibullying policies (Menesini and Salmivalli, 2017). Additionally, these teachers
may omit elements of a program (by accident or choice) which can then inhibit its ultimate
success (Menesini and Salmivalli, 2017). Again, though not specifically mentioning hazing, the
importance of a teacher’s methodology appears to be integral to the success of behavioral
trainings and policies. However, these younger students are not immune from forming groups
that require a certain level of initiation. The most common arenas for such activities are
playground politics and athletic groups or teams.
35
The microcosm of a playground is not devoid of the same struggles as everyday politics,
but it does feature some of the common occurrences of hazing and bullying. Students have
mentioned having been forced by a group of students to eat dirt or perform some other similar
form of embarrassment to become a part of a smaller subset of the elementary school classroom
(Lemmer, 2013). Astonishingly, there is an increase in sexual harassment among children in
early adolescence. This can be partly attributed to an overabundance of information through the
internet, or an over-sexualized culture (McMaster, 2002). These types of events not only occur
in the United States but are common in other parts of the world, including the UK and South
Africa (Lemmer, 2013; Germano, 2015). Often times, hazing activities that occur at this young
age are perceived as “harmless horseplay”, or as an extension of bullying, however, the group
mentality of the initiation type process is clearly a hazing type of activity. By not solving this
issue early on, there is a tendency to allow these types of activities to persist through secondary
school and into universities, where the frequency and severity of hazing will occur.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter the subjects of marching band, hazing, and bullying were reviewed
through an extensive study of the existing literature. The intention of this chapter was to
investigate the intersection of the subject matter and offer insight to their connections and need
for further study.
Marching bands offer a fun experience for its members and are prevalent across the world
in many different fashions, from the ceremonial to the entertaining (Abril, 2012). Many have
touted the benefits to the participants of marching arts organizations (Cumberledge, 2017;
Matthews, 2017; Sharp, Wadsworth, and Pascoe, 2007) and there is no doubt that the continued
success of WGI, Bands of America, and Drum Corp. International indicate a healthy
36
environment for the marching arts community. However, the literature shows that arts students
are subject to bullying (Elpus and Carter, 2016) while college and high school students
participating in large organizations (Greek Life, Athletics, etc.) can find themselves experiencing
or being plagued by hazing (Hevel Martin, Goodman, Pascarella, 2018; Alvarez, 2015; Cimino,
2018; Walker, Martin, Hussey, 2014; Biddix, 2017; Rosenberg & Mosca, 2016). Ultimately,
participants in collegiate marching bands meet all of the above criteria and are prone to hazing,
and as a result, bullying and sexual violence (Silveira and Hudson, 2015).
There is substantial research in each individual subject, but the specific occurrences of
hazing within collegiate marching bands is an understudied area, but it is an important one.
Many collegiate band members consider the marching band to be its own “family”
(Cumberledge, 2017), a place where self-expression and differences are celebrated, and the work
performed by Silveira and Hudson (2015) is a fundamental cornerstone of the research on this
topic. This dissertation hopes to build upon the work of Silveira and Hudson (2015), but with a
focus on the band directors themselves. The perceptions, struggles, and insight that the band
directors have to offer can work in conjunction with the existing literature to create discourse for
teacher education, institutional policies, and individual procedures.
37
Chapter 3: Methods
Chapter Overview
In this chapter, the researcher outlines the process through which the study was designed
and implemented. The study was conducted utilizing semi-structured interviews, drawing on
techniques often used in multiple-case studies. The case study, in particular, the multiple-case
study is the design of choice (Milles, Durepos, and Wiebe, 2010) to best express the perceptions
of the participants. As such, utilizing case study techniques was integral to the purpose of this
study to provide the participants’ voices as the means to best discuss the subject matter and offer
in-depth views that other study designs may not have yielded (Creswell, 2013).
Restatement of Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the perceptions of collegiate marching band
directors from the western region of the United States, particularly the coastal states, on hazing
policies. While each state or counties within the states have their own ideologies and socially
acceptable practices, there is certainly no shortage of shared experiences to provide a semi-
unified viewpoint of hazing. The interviews were used to learn from and curate the policies and
their implementation from these directors, from which, themes will be identified, and practices
will be compared. The information provided in these interviews bring clarity to the hazing issue
and offered areas of improvement in development for collegiate band directors. Convergent
findings from interviews with band directors were thought to illustrate that an existing governing
body may be able to offer stronger recommendations for university marching bands, or in the
very least, offer a series of best practices for band director implementation.
38
Study Design: Semi-Structured Interviews
The following research study was designed using semi-structured interviews, drawing
inspiration from multiple-case studies. Semi-structured interviews allow the researcher to ask
questions drawn from a predetermined framework, but the implementation and follow-up of the
questioning can change with the flow of the interview. Additionally, multiple-case studies can be
described as;
a research methodology in which several instrumental, bounded cases are examined using
multiple data collection methods. This research methodology is more powerful than
single-case designs as it provides more extensive descriptions and explanations of the
phenomenon or issue. Cross-case examination is employed to develop an in-depth
understanding of a phenomenon or issue that may yield increased generalizability. (Mills,
Durepos, and Wiebe, 2010, p. 583)
Rather than focus on a singular marching band or director to offer an in-depth analysis of
a singular phenomenon through a case-study, the researcher expanded upon the techniques used
by Stake (1995) to both look within and across the cases presented by the participants. This study
examined the policies, the implementation of said policies, and the issues surrounding hazing
within collegiate marching band programs of a similar region of the United States. As such, and
due to the shared governing bodies of athletic organizations, conferences, and university
systems, it stands to reason those experiences and policies surrounding hazing will have
numerous commonalities. Additionally, the semi-structured interviews allowed the researcher to
address the differences or inconsistencies across the multiple-cases, providing a broader depth of
information to be drawn from the research (Shaw, 2014).
39
Researcher Positionality
The researcher brings hands-on experience to this study. The researcher is a director of a
collegiate marching band and could very well be a participant. As this is the case, it should be
made clear that the researcher’s band and institution were not included in the study, however,
this direct experience and interaction naturally brought certain perspectives into the interviews.
Every effort was made to avoid those biases and comparisons directly; The researcher focused on
the responses and information provided by the study participants. In their current position, the
prevention of and education surrounding hazing is one of the primary job duties of the researcher
and they hope the study will yield a best-practices-strategy that will be a successful implement
for themselves and others.
The epistemological position of the researcher is that of a constructionist view, as
described by Egbert and Sanden (2019);
Belief in a constructionist epistemology results in the rejection of the notion of objective
Truth. Knowledge for each individual is viewed as a construction based on the
individual’s experience (p. 22).
While subject-based perception and the objectivity of state legislation are integral to the
research carried out by this study, the understanding of the knowledge constructed by the
participants in the form of policies and implementation are what is sought after. Additionally,
hazing can only exist through social interaction, and the subcategory of social constructionism
acknowledges that fact and brings human experience to the table (Egbert & Sanden, 2019). The
researcher hopes that this lens will offer variable truths that band directors will be able to use to
guide their decisions around hazing.
40
Study Participants
Participants have been identified as the directors or primary faculty members of
collegiate marching bands from the western region of the United States, primarily the coastal
states. The Western-coastal region was chosen due to the limited amount of focused study on
hazing in music groups in this part of the country, as well as the ease of access to participants by
the author. Those included needed to have been in their current position for at least a full year
prior to the time of the interview, have worked with bands of 125 members or more, and will be
a part of institutions with NCAA Division I athletic programs. Though not required, the bands
led by the participants included marching or scatter-type field maneuvers (e.g., stands/bleacher-
only pep-bands were not included) as part of their performance practice, typically travel to at
least one away game during a football season, and have a trained group of elected or nominated
student leaders (i.e. Section Leaders, Drum Majors, Band Presidents, etc.). An illustrative look at
participant demographics can be seen in Table 1.
41
Table 1
Respondent Demographics
Respondents 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Age 47 59 48 35 37 42 51
Terminal Degree DMA PhD MM MA DMA DMA DMA
Position Start Year 2008 1994 2016 2016 2018 2014 2014
Position Type Faculty,
Non-Tenure
Non-
Tenured,
Professional
Appointment
Tenured
Faculty
Faculty,
Non-Tenure
Staff and
Faculty,
Non-Tenure
Tenured
Faculty
Tenured
Faculty
Reporting Department School of
Music
School of
Music,
Athletic
Department
School
of
Music
School of
Visual and
Performing
Art
Student
Musical
Activities
School
of Music
School of
Music
Band Membership 150 240 250 225 200 245 242
Note: All respondents were male.
Study participants were recruited via email through professional organizations and
athletic conference band director’s groups. They were asked to volunteer for no compensation
and instead were offered a copy of the dissertation upon its completion. The final sample of this
study consisted of seven respondents, as depicted in table 1.
Ethical Approval
All study protocols were approved by the University of Southern California’s (USC)
Institutional Review Board (IRB). The review process was thorough to ensure the protection of
the rights of the study participants. The study was determined exempt from 45 CFR 46 according
to §46.104(d) as category 2 and the researcher was notified of approval on July 15, 2021
(Appendix A). Respondents were contacted individually via email which contained an invitation
42
to participate in the body of the message, as well as an attached formal invitation on University
Letterhead and the IRB Information Sheet for Exempt Research (Appendices B, C, and D).
Instrument: Semi-Structured Interviews
The semi-structured interview was the primary tool used for data acquisition. The semi-
structured interview can be defined as “a qualitative data collection strategy in which the
researcher asks informants a series of predetermined but open-ended questions.” (Given, 2008, p.
810). According to Given (2008) semi-structured interviews allow the researcher to have more
control over the direction of an interview when compared to unstructured interviews, however,
there is no fixed range of responses to each question that can be found in structured interviews or
questionnaires. This instrument allowed the participant to carry more agency through the
process, while providing space for the researcher to be more flexible with the interviews as the
time allows (Alexander, 2020). Each interview was allotted a total of 60 minutes of time, which
was used either to completion of the questions and follow-up, or the termination of the allotted
timeframe. The interviews were carried out using “Zoom” video conferencing software which
was also used to audio record and transcribe the responses. The transcriptions have been edited
and compared to the recordings to ensure accuracy. To assist in maintaining participant’s
anonymity, the recordings did not include video, and were erased following the
transcription/editing process. Identifying information such as participant names, institutions,
mascots, slogans, or any other organization specific language stated in the responses had been
redacted. Additionally, any other individuals, institutions or organizations named by the
participants have been given the same editorial treatment as to not seem slanderous. Each
interview began with an in-depth explanation of the project and the process by which the
43
information would be edited and stored, and time was provided for questioning. Once the
participants were ready to begin, the interviews were guided by the following questions:
• What is your band’s hazing policy?
• Did you assist in the creation of this policy, or have a good amount of input in its
drafting?
o Alternatively, was this policy provided to your ensemble buy another governing
body?
• What is the process for your band’s hazing prevention education?
o Is this carried out by your organization or through another university department?
• Who is primarily responsible for the implementation of your hazing policy?
o Student leaders? Yourself? Student judiciary counsel? Dean of students?
• In what ways has hazing been a problem for your organization in the past?
• Have new policies been written during your tenure?
• Were any students removed from the organization or the band placed on a probation?
o In what ways was the band impacted by these actions carried out by the students?
• Have you seen a decline in recruitment or retention due to hazing activities?
• In what ways has bullying had an impact on your organization?
o Does it appear that the two (hazing and bullying) are intertwined?
o Do you see a greater occurrence of one over the other?
• How do members of your band from other regions of the country exhibit varying
behavior regarding hazing?
• In what ways do you see the pandemic of 2020 effecting hazing or bullying within your
band? Will this lead to a changed environment, moving forward?
44
Follow-up questions were determined based on the responses of the participants and the
knowledge base of the researcher, as is typical of semi-structured interviews (Given, 2008).
Following the completion of the formal interviews, each participant was given the open-ended
opportunity to provide any additional information or clarification based on their previous
responses, after which point, the recording was halted and the research on that participant was
concluded. The participants were thanked for their time and effort and indicated their availability
for follow-up questions via email.
Data Analysis
As noted, the interviews were carried out digitally, using Zoom video conferencing
software. Audio recording and transcribing features are native to the platform and were utilized.
During the interviews, the researcher was very free and conversational, and framed the camera in
a way where typed note taking was nearly imperceivable. Notes taken during the interview were
primarily used to guide follow-up questions or capture a greater picture of the intent of a
comment. It was the view of the researcher that the participants needed as inviting environment
as possible to ensure the participants felt comfortable discussing the subject and to reinforce the
intentions and validity of the research.
Following the interviews, the transcriptions were reviewed for accuracy through multiple
listenings of the audio recordings. Each recording was reviewed in its entirety at least three times
with subsequent listenings targeting specific passages to review attitudinal interpretation. During
the final full-listening session for each interview, the researcher took notes and highlighted
passages for further reading or that could be used for quotations. It was during this process that
key-terms and themes were first beginning to be identified and would inform the coding
procedure moving forward.
45
The transcriptions were uploaded into ATLAS.TI to begin the coding process. The
transcriptions were combed, and the word-counts were assessed multiple times, with the coding
being carried out twice, initially to identify the key-terms and concepts, and secondarily to
identify the emergent themes. Initial coding of the key-terms and concepts revealed a
preponderance of the words; tradition, culture, alcohol, drinking, and handbook. These terms
helped guide the researcher to the corresponding passages, where the intent of the responses was
assessed, and the themes were identified. This second stage of the coding process allowed the
researcher to better understand the depth with which topics were discussed in comparison to the
occurrences of the key-terms. The emergent themes were identified as the topics most deeply
presented by the respondents, as well as the areas most-often returned to by the respondents
when answering later questions. Emergent themes were analyzed in light of the central
phenomenon (Creswell, 2017) of hazing policies in the marching band.
Trustworthiness of Data
Following the uploading and coding of the interviews through ATLAS.TI, the findings
were triangulated through the analysis of the individual interviews, the cross-analysis of the
multiple cases, and the existing literature on the subject matter (Given, 2008). Additionally,
emergent themes brought on through tangential conversation were compared to the answers to
the interview questions and the literature. Member checking was also employed.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter the researcher discussed the qualitative methodologies and approach for
conducting the study. The recruitment, solicitation, and interviewing process was outlined along
with the demographic information of the participating band directors. The constructionist
approach to the semi-structured inquiry was described to illustrate to the reader the interview
46
tactics of the researcher and the benefit of conversational flexibility. Through a cross-case
analysis of the interviews, the researcher was able to draw appropriate and reliable conclusions.
47
Chapter 4: Findings
Chapter Overview
This chapter outlines the findings that emerged from the semi-structured interviews. The
respondents were candid and forthcoming when answering the questions posed by the researcher.
The general perception was that hazing is an issue not many of the respondents needed to deal
with and did not reflect a substantial element of their organizations. Overwhelmingly, the
respondents indicated that disciplinary action was taken most often over matters of bullying,
alcohol, or prohibited behavior, and never in regard to formal hazing incidents. While there were
varied opinions and tactics to the education and implementation of hazing prevention education,
each respondent indicated the presence of an organizational handbook or manual that illustrates
the policies and at times, philosophy of the program they oversee. The respondents consistently
demonstrated intense care and compassion towards their students, and while it is not clear in the
written transcripts, it certainly was clear during the interview process.
Interview findings are reported under two guiding sub-sets, responses to the interview
questions and emergent themes. The first sub-set was organized utilizing the interview questions,
with each section drawing its heading from the corresponding question or follow-up. The second
sub-section drew from the themes that emerged from the interviews, namely, (1) Tradition and
Culture, (2) Alcohol, (3) Bullying and Disciplinary Action, and (4) Education and
Implementation. The researcher posits that organizing the results in this fashion allows for a
clearer understanding across the interviews.
Additionally, due to the small number of respondents (N = 7) and the limitation of
participation by the region, the researcher has chosen to speak of the respondents generally and
48
to not use a coding system or pseudonyms. This was done to protect the identities and retain
anonymity among the participants.
Hazing Policies & The Role of Marching Band Directors
What is your band’s hazing policy?
Despite the regional similarity and the presence of varying-yet-similar governing bodies,
the participants in the study offered seven unique perspectives regarding the implementation and
crafting their standing anti-hazing policies. The policies themselves can be broken down into two
categories, limited and definitive. However, before discussing the differences, it should be noted
that each study participant indicated that a portion of their policy came from their respective
university or state’s verbiage on the issue and the hazing policy was included in their student
handbook or manual.
Three of the hazing polices could be described as “limited,” utilizing brevity in their
authorship and implementation, as indicated by one participant:
We have a hazing policy and …we don't do it under any circumstances and anything that
is remotely considered hazing, is considered hazing, and we don't do it. (participant
response)
Another study participant reported a short policy that “predated anything that the
university necessarily articulated” and when compared to the current university efforts, contained
“probably less legalese.” These limited policies tend to involve a relative long-standing with the
current organization or are “ported over” from a previous position. The respondents utilizing
limited-type policies reported no incidents of hazing in recent history and commented on the
ability to loosely or broadly interpret the definition of hazing acts to have stronger
implementation over the organization.
49
The remaining participants (n = 4) utilized a more “definitive” approach when choosing
or creating a hazing policy. Generally, these policies curate verbiage from pre-existing university
policies, state laws, classroom codes of conduct, hazingprevention.org, or athletic oversight
groups. These participants reported the need for further detail to enable the student members of
the marching bands to do their own assessment of potential acts of hazing.
Did you assist in the creation of this policy, or have a good amount of input in its drafting?
Alternatively, was this policy provided to your ensemble buy another governing body?
Most of the participants (n = 5) reported having a hand in the creation or adaptation of
their marching band’s hazing policy, while the remaining respondents stated that the university
itself provided the hazing policy, in one case as part of the university’s overall stance on hazing,
and in the other as part of code-of-conduct for in-classroom behavior. There was variation in the
participants’ approach when providing a hazing-policy specific to the band, and it should be
noted that the two respondents who reported having complete ownership of the policy also
utilized a “limited-type approach” (i.e., providing a broadly generalized policy that allows for
varying interpretation by the director for implementation and disciplinary action). The three
remaining participants stated that they crafted their policies through the curation of multiple
sources, or by bringing in a policy that they had constructed in a previous post. Regardless of the
source of policy authorship, there was an overwhelming sense of universality in these policies, as
was noted by one respondent:
As with a lot of our policies we do take it from the university, or…when I say the
university, I mean either the campus or the system, …some of this stuff may or may not
be universal, or maybe the same, but just worded differently. (participant response)
50
What is the process for your band’s hazing prevention education? Is this carried out by your
organization or through another university department?
The hazing prevention education reported by the participants shared striking similarities
in its implementation. In addition to being listed in each organization’s handbook or manual, the
training itself was carried out by the band directors themselves, some of which requiring a signed
acknowledgement of training completion. Five study participants reported working with the
student leaders separately, prior to the full band training, with two of these involving the leaders
in the upkeep of the policy. In the case of one respondent, they:
have an annual leadership retreat and every year we carve a portion out of the retreat
with the section leaders and my undergraduate staff and grad assistants, and we take [the
handbook] section by section and ask, ‘is there anything in this that needs to be updated?
(participant response)
This collaborative process undoubtedly fosters a sense of ownership and investment in
the band’s policies and their implementation. While hazing is not a topic that outside sources
were brought in for student training, topics such as health-and-wellness, sexual harassment-
assault and alcohol abuse were noted as including campus partners or outside resources.
Who is primarily responsible for the implementation of your hazing policy?
Interviewees indicated that education and “conversations” were important when
discussing their hazing policies. In particular, the engagement of the student leaders in separate
discussions was present in four of the respondent’s discussions, and in the case of one
respondent, the student leaders were required to take a special course in order to be eligible for a
band leadership position. While none of the respondents indicated that student leaders, or even
grad/teaching assistants were singularly responsible for punitive measures, it was made clear that
all students, and in particular student leaders, were responsible for notifying the band director
51
when hazing was occurring. Regarding punitive measures, there were some variations on how
hazing incidents were handled by the band directors, in particular, how to engage university
resources rather than handling the incidents internally. The participants who chose to strictly rely
on university resources and departments tended to cite the overwhelming need of time and
energy to handle these punitive measures. As noted by one band director:
You know, it’s gotten, to the point where…the job has become so damn big that trying to
be the judge, jury, executioner, bail-bondsman, jailer, sheriff, the guy who builds the
prison, and everything in between it's just impossible, so you know I have just gotten into
the habit that anytime something like this happens it's not just me that's in the
conversation. It's, you know, we're talking to the dean of students office, we're talking to
Title IX… (participant response)
Admittedly, all study participants reported that hazing had not been an issue in recent
history, other than being tied to other areas of disciplinary action (e.g., full-section laps for
accountability, hotel room parties), however, they all indicated that current hazing incidents
would be handled punitively by the university entities set in pace for student conduct. Two of the
respondents indicated that their most recent hazing issues resulting in punitive action were
handled internally but had occurred some time ago. Currently incidents of hazing would need to
be reported to the “university.” It should also be noted that these two respondents described a
notable lack of hazing in their organizations, and attribute this to the lack of information
regarding reporting practices.
In what ways has hazing been a problem for your organization in the past?
This particular question elicited various responses from the study participants,
particularly due to the general lack of institutional memory and experience within their
52
organizations. Five of the respondents had been in their current positions for less than 10 years (4
years being the shortest tenure) while the remaining participants had been in their position for 13
and 27 years at the time of the interviews. The participants with the shorter tenures could
generally report on activities carried out that they had “heard about” or were “informed about”
by their predecessor. Overwhelmingly, the shorter-tenured participants discussed the overhaul or
development of hazing-prevention policies and education as part of the impetus of their time
with the institution. As one respondent discussed regarding previous incidents of hazing:
Previously, in the organization I haven’t heard many specifics, I know that one year there
was about half of a section that was dismissed for something, I don't even remember what
it was, for. As I recall, it was favored by the band the band was overall understanding and
appreciative of the fact that these members were dismissed…it may have been for
bullying, it may have been for something else completely, might have been for alcohol…
(participant response)
The respondents with the longer tenures had slightly different experiences, citing the
need to develop anti-hazing policies and put them down into a handbook, most often taking time
to assess “traditions” and remove the hazing elements from them or dismantle the traditions
completely. As stated by one respondent, “if you can explain to me why that tradition exists, then
I’m good,” implying that typically, hazing traditions (or non-hazing traditions) would continue
with a complete lack of institutional knowledge as to why they exist.
“Tradition” was the term often associated by the students to hazing activities, causing
conflict between the band directors and their students when hazing needed to be addressed, but
the consideration of tradition was paramount to the student definition:
53
There was a long-standing tradition of the freshman getting up in front of their section
and…singing the fight song by themselves, and this was while students in their section
were either singing the lyrics really loudly, or singing other songs out loud, but purposely
trying to just mess them up, and students had to go back and re-sing it until they sang it
correctly. Initially, I never viewed that tradition myself as being hazing, but, as I started
reading what other bands, the changes they were having to make in their traditions and I
just didn't want to get to the point where a freshman member would come to me and say,
“I feel this is hazing, I'm trying to sing this song, and there are people you know
screaming out loud or screaming in my face, or sing another song purposefully and trying
to screw me up. (participant response)
Have new policies been written during your tenure?
As mentioned previously, five of the respondents were relatively new to their positions.
As such, many of them benefitted from inheriting hazing policies that were in place or
capitalizing on the work done by their respective institutions to develop such policies. The
largest difference between the respondents came in the definition and implementation of their
anti-hazing policies, more specifically, the level of detail they chose to include by way of
examples of prohibited behavior. Generally, the band directors kept to a broader, all-
encompassing definition, allowing for a wider interpretation by the band director when
considering punitive action. As stated by multiple study participants:
If you think you're being hazed, then you are being hazed…(participant response)
We've had our own, you know, probably less legalese hazing policy that was in place for
us, and then the university wanted some very specific language in all of our handbooks
and student organizations as well, (participant response)
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It purposely was a broad sweeping statement… (participant response)
Regardless of the creation of the policies, each study participant cited leadership training
or an extensive review of the policies as part of the education surrounding hazing. Additionally,
a signature on an acknowledgement form was typically included at the conclusion of the training
or “handbook” review.
Were any students removed from the organization or the band placed on a probation? In what
ways was the band impacted by these actions carried out by the students?
None of the respondents cited the removal or complete dismissal of a student due to
behaviors surrounding hazing. However, a student was removed from their leadership position
(while still being able to participate in the band) in one marching band, and another director
mentioned that a tangential music fraternity was put on probation, but it was not tied directly to
the marching band activity. The most commonly cited reasons for dismissal were related to
attendance issues or alcohol usage.
Have you seen a decline in recruitment or retention due to hazing activities?
Two band directors discussed recent issues with recruitment or retention, however the
impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was brought up as a strong concern for current recruitment
numbers. While hazing was not mentioned specifically, the respondents did offer some
reflections of previous issues surrounding recruitment and retention, which certainly could be
exacerbated should hazing become a prevalent concern within the organization. The two
elements that were shown to have impact on recruiting were director turnover and administrative
interference. Regarding the former, as indicated by one study participant:
To be fair, there was a revolving door before I got here. So, [Predecessor #2] was here
years prior he was…very much a pied piper…but the problem was there was a lot of
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students that weren't necessarily trained…the university was not happy with what it
looked and sounded like…so they did an interim thing for a year…they did another
search, he was here one year, he left, another interim… (participant response)
While this participant was specifically discussing recruitment, many of the others (either
directly or indirectly) cited the importance of a consistent director to impact culture and the
overall quality of the program. Regarding administrative interference, one study participant cited
the dismantling of the marching band overall, and the rebuilding that needed to take place in the
years to follow:
I mean our band was the same as most bands were in the 70s and 80s sure, and then in
1991 the university, for budgetary reasons said we don't want to have a marching band at
all anymore. That lasted exactly two games…but what that meant was stuff got rebuilt
from the ground up, I mean there were 30 people in the band by the end of that season,
they were like, ‘Oh, we will have a pep band again’ …so there was a clean breaking point
where a lot of that stuff didn't persist…(participant response)
Similarly, this question was brought up regarding recruitment and retention, but the
respondent went on to address the benefit of having a clean slate when discussing culture and
hazing prevention.
In what ways has bullying had an impact on your organization? Does it appear that the two
(hazing and bullying) are intertwined? Do you see a greater occurrence of one over the other?
Generally, the interviews have yielded a good amount of information regarding hazing
policies and prevention education, but overwhelmingly the work done by the band directors has
fostered environments where hazing did not seem to be a particular issue of concern. However,
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when bullying was discussed, and cyber-bullying, nearly each participant had a recent encounter
with bullying occurring between their students.
Bullying encounters in person, or what one would consider when hearing the term (i.e.,
physical harm, derogatory speech, actions with ill-intent) were very rarely cited. In fact, typically
“in-person” bullying was perceived as such due to a misunderstanding of leadership roles, or
difficulty in communicating criticism in peer-to-peer instruction. As one band director put it:
holding somebody to account is not [bullying]” and in developing a servant leadership
model, the respondents would encourage their leaders to work with and engage their
peers through service, rather than “taking the employer/employee mentality. (participant
response)
In listening to the respondents, there was a strong feeling of being “beyond bullying”
when assessing student behavior between one another, particularly in-person during the activity.
Although in-person bullying was not cited extensively by the respondents, cyberbullying
was mentioned by three study participants. The commonality between their accounts had to do
with “public” (i.e. to the band community) threads or channels, a lack of administrative oversight
(student or professional), a lack of definition to the purpose of the forum or channel, and for two
of the institutions, the cyber-bullying was tied to national issues surrounding the racial discourse
surrounding the Black Lives Matter Movement during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the
presidential election of 2020. The study participants mentioned that the cyber-bullying, or
conflicting digital discourse, was directed toward band members with opinions or beliefs that
were contrary to those most shared by the majority of the population. As stated by one director:
Going kind of from the election side of things, I think, I certainly got some kids that are
pretty vocal about their political beliefs they tend to lean more on the democratic, to
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borderline socialist side that they're a little bit more, you know, easy, they're a little bit
more apt to sound off about those things. I'm quite sure I have a very, silent, ‘Trumpian’
side. (participant response)
Or, as cited by another respondent, digital conflict occurred as a result of a student’s race
or ethnicity:
There was some racial stuff that happened and then that was kind of rearing its ugly head
through snapchat, but that was through the summer that some of that was happening.
(participant response)
Another example that resulted in conflict across the internet was described by one
participant regarding a forum that was used as a means for band students to ask questions about
the program, but soon became an avenue for directing bullying towards students who answered
questions too often, receiving public comments akin to “I would love to get an answer from not
this person.”
In all cases of cited cyber-bullying, the band directors stepped in to offer oversight and
guidance, and in the case of the question forum, dismantled the page completely from the
platform. While each director acted swiftly, there was no mention of discussions or education
following the cyber-bullying incidents. In the case of politics national issues, it is possible that
the respondents did not feel comfortable holding the discussions, or that they had the necessary
expertise. In the case of the question forum, there was no mention of a method put in place to
take the place of the forum and still offer that Q&A service to the students. Ultimately, the
bullying was discovered and stopped to protect the students involved, but the repercussions of
what had been said, or the follow-up in terms of further education was not discussed and
warrants further discussion.
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How do members of your band from other regions of the country exhibit varying behavior
regarding hazing?
The study participants did not generally have a strong reaction to this question. The most
prevalent response was the idea that the marching band activity attracts a particular type of
student, and regardless of the location of their upbringing: “they just come in and they just
assimilate to what we do” (participant response).
The location and nature of certain institutions did not illicit a large number of out of
region students, but a few differences were cited in those institutions that had a larger number of
students coming in from various places, however, hazing was not one of them.
The use of alcohol will be discussed in future portions of this dissertation, but the attitude
and use of alcohol was cited as being quite varied among students from various parts of the
country or world, and in some cases, areas of a particular state. Despite the fact that some of the
campuses are “dry” and the students are informed of this prior to admission, the difference in
opinion and use is quite apparent among the students:
Interestingly, alcohol, yes, by region but it's not an out of state and state thing, it's an east-
west state regional thing. We find that the students from the east side tend to be the
students who will put themselves in a situation where I have to have a talk with them,
whereas like students from the west side are all kind of the same. (participant response)
In what ways do you see the pandemic of 2020 effecting hazing or bullying within your band?
Will this lead to a changed environment, moving forward?
The respondents offered generally positive answers to this question, but typically hazing
or bullying was not brought up. As offered by one respondent:
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My sense is that there's just going to be a sense of relief and appreciation for what it is
that we do. Like, “god, I missed that!” (participant response)
The consensus among the respondents seemed to indicate a focus on the rebuilding or rekindling
of what was lost during the pandemic time. Though not explicitly said, there was a feeling that
the ability to return to the classroom and make music as a group would surpass all other feelings
or needs to haze within the programs. Additionally, given the unpredictable nature of the
pandemic in general, it is likely that the positive responses were a mechanism for remaining
optimistic in a time of great pessimism and fear.
In the next section, four themes that emerged from participants’ responses are presented.
These themes are (1) Tradition and Culture, (2) Alcohol, (3) Bullying and Disciplinary Action,
and (4) Education and Implementation. The themes were derived from the most often discussed
topics of conversation and determined by the word counts and occurrences indicated by
ATLAS.TI. While these themes represent the most discussed topics, the two that encapsulated
the longest stretches of interview time were Tradition and Culture and Alcohol, with Tradition
and Culture serving as the primary theme based on participant sentiment. Ultimately, the
interviews reflected that tradition and the culture of the organization could provide the
opportunity for hazing to take place, as well as serve to alleviate hazing from the program.
Emergent themes, their associations, and the links with the central phenomenon are presented in
figure 1.
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Figure 1
Emergent Themes
Tradition and Culture
Overwhelmingly, the culture of each band program, and the traditions carried on by those
cultures were cited as the primary source of success when referring to the lack of hazing or ease
of hazing prevention. Therefore, the primary theme through which all others passed was
Tradition and Culture. The study participants were afforded the opportunity to make great
cultural changes to their programs early in their career. Given the nature of collegiate marching
band programs and their strong ties to the traditions of their respective universities, it comes as
no surprise that occurrences of hazing or illicit behavior are described or branded as traditions in
the eyes of the students. There were comments from the respondents on assessment and
discussion surrounding the continuation or removal of traditions within the band program. As
recounted by one band director:
there were traditions within each of the sections and so, section leaders would pass on
this tradition and these certain, I don't want to call them forms of initiation because they
weren't really viewed by the students as initiation, a rite of passage, it was just a
Central Phenomenon:
Hazing in Collegiate
Marching Band
Alcohol
Bullying and
Disciplinary
Action
Education and
Implementation
Tradition and Culture
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something that they would do it the first sax party of the year or something like that, that
had to do with that particular section, so there wasn't a lot of pushback and until someone
would bring it to my attention that, “hey I feel like I’ve been hazed,” then all of a sudden
I’m meeting with the section is I’m finding out okay, what is it about this tradition that
you felt what was not hazing and by definition of what's in our handbook. (participant
response)
Traditions centered around social interactions with the lack of director or administrative
oversight were the most likely to come under scrutiny, as were they the most likely to involve
illicit or undesirable behaviors. Additionally, the participants mentioned multiple times that
traditions connected to rites-of-passage would often lead to hazing or detrimental behavior:
Tradition was thrown around and now it's just become kind of a sideswipe at a rite of
passage … (participant response)
It comes from the tradition; ‘well we've always done it this way’ or this rite of passage
thing. (participant response)
They didn't think they were going to haze they were doing traditions… (participant
response)
These “traditions” were exclusively carried out by student leaders or older members, and
generally did not cause any reported physical or mental harm or duress. The participants
described a process of assessing the traditions and ensuring the overall health and well-being of
the band program was taken into account, and that the behaviors were within university or band
policy.
Along with discussions of tradition, the respondents spent time describing the importance
of the culture of the band itself, especially when considering the impact of the program overall
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on the students involved. Due to the increased amount of time the students typically spend
together in rehearsals and performance, there was an understanding that members of the group
would grow strong bonds with one-another, as well as exhibit a microcosm of culture when
compared to other folks across the universities. As one participant put it, “you’re the average of
the five people you hang out with the most,” and these students spend a lot of time together.
While cultural philosophy or policies were discussed with the full bands during orientations, the
directors relied heavily on their student leaders (and older members) to be the conservators of the
philosophy of the band. As one participant indicated:
You can get your core group of, of students to buy in and understand kind of your
philosophy because you're right [Interviewer] you can't, like, I can't have the
conversations [that] happen [in] leadership class on the field… (participant response)
The seeming benefit of utilizing the efforts of the student leaders indicates an overall
buy-in or investment into the culture of the program buy the very students involved at its highest
level. Ultimately, the students are the ones donning the uniform, marching the steps, and
performing the music, therefore the respondents indicate the need for the students to feel
motivated to succeed, and involved in the success of the program.
Alcohol
In discussing hazing and the issues it poses to a band program, the conversations were
always geared towards behavioral expectations and the management of students within those
parameters. As most of the directors have cited little to no efforts in quelling long-standing
hazing traditions, the behavioral issue that came up most frequently was the use, overuse, and
abuse of alcohol by the members of the marching bands. Nearly every example of disciplinary
action was accompanied by the use of alcohol, and each respondent found their way to spending
substantial time discussing alcohol related policies regardless of the previous line of questioning.
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The policies/tactics of the respondents broke down into two categories, those that have a firm
“no-drinking” stance in some capacity, and those that allow those that are of age to consume
alcohol. Each director indicated a “non-drinking” in uniform policy, and level of determination
for students showing up to home games under the influence. There was a general sentiment that
the performances of gameday are similar to a work environment, and the students are expected to
reflect that.
When discussing the institutions that has a hard-lined stance on alcohol, the policies were
generally tied to a larger university policy or to travel. One study participant came from a ‘dry”
institution, and indicated that alcohol was not to be consumed on university grounds, and the
same policy carries out while travelling with the organization:
Members are permitted to legally buy and consume, provided that the purchasing and
drinking takes place at a licensed alcohol vending establishment. Alcohol is not to be
brought away from these places or purchased at general stores, grocery stores, liquor
stores, gas stations, etc. For an illustrative but non-exclusive example on an off night
during a trip, members are permitted to have alcohol while dining out at a restaurant but
are not allowed to buy alcohol from a grocery store and consume it elsewhere. I think the
way we do it is, if someone else is serving you the alcohol then it's okay. (participant
response)
Another respondent, not from a “dry” institution, required that no alcohol be consumed
while travelling with the band:
We are unique in that we have a firm line, there is no drinking, drugs, anything on any
trip, ever, whether you're of age or not, it's just not allowed. (participant response)
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While not stated as the explicit motivation for deciding to do so, both directors indicated
that these hard-lined policies allowed for an ease of mind while travelling, ensuring that issues
surrounding drinking are subject to the full measure of the disciplinary process.
The remaining five directors who allowed drinking on trips stated that members needed
to be of age and drinking responsibly, and one respondent mentioned that “sport” drinking (i.e.,
drinking games) was prohibited. Three participants cited that their students received training
from university officials regarding alcohol consumption and, one indicated that this training was
carried out semesterly. The definition or action of “responsible’ drinking was not determined or
described by any of the respondents, other than the off-hand mention of “being able to handle
one-self.” There was an expectation (among the respondents that allow drinking) that the
students partaking in the consumption of alcohol must meet the legal requirements to do so and
must come with a predetermined knowledge of responsible drinking practices. Three respondents
reported that drinking had been a problem with the organization at the beginning of their tenure
and that a substantial amount of time was spent changing the culture surrounding drinking.
Bullying and Disciplinary Action
While this dissertation intended to focus on hazing and hazing prevention policies, the
questions on bullying yielded greater responses and accounts. The respondents did not describe
major incidents of hazing having occurred within the past 2-3 years, but bullying was cited on
several occasions during the interviews. This likely has to do with the fact that hazing activities
are typically ritualistic and tied to greater traditions or rites of passage and are carried out by
individuals in higher positions of “power” (student leaders or older members), which by its very
nature, reduces the possibility for occurrence and the pool of students who could potentially
perpetrate such an act. On the other hand, bullying or the ill-treatment of another person can be
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carried out between any pairing or group of individuals against another, and does not need to be
tied to an existing (or perceived) power dynamic.
Disciplinary action was not indicated to have been taken against students regarding
incidents of hazing but bullying (or in other cases the mistreatment of others) was certainly
described as being recent grounds for dismissal. Additionally, all participants reported working
through or in collaboration with the disciplinary systems put in place at each of their institutions.
These resources were cited as offering the “expertise” to handle such situations:
The job has become so damn big that trying to be the judge, jury, executioner, bail-
bondsman, jailer, sheriff, the guy who builds the prison, and everything in between…it's
just impossible, so you know I have just gotten into the habit that anytime something like
this happens, it's not just me that's in the conversation. You know we're talking to the
dean of students office; we're talking to Title IX… (participant response)
Education and Implementation
Band directors mentioned the presence of a band handbook or manual; a document
providing the necessary information for members to successfully navigate the band program, as
well as a definitive source of policies. These handbooks were accompanied with an orientation of
the band members prior to the beginning of each new season. These orientations served as an
opportunity to review the policies put in place by the directors as well as address anything that is
new or additive to the accompanying document. However, hazing was not addressed in these
orientations in the same manner among the respondents. As a subject within the larger
orientation, hazing appeared to be treated as a larger, more serious topic or as simply another
portion of the overall presentation, and in some cases, not even involved in the specific
orientation presented by the band itself. Regarding the former, one participant mentioned that
hazing prevention becomes a true moment of reflection during the orientation:
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It didn't seem like there was a lot of issues here with it was very much. Like, it's in the
handbook I go over during orientation, it's one of the more serious moments during
orientation. It's like, ‘this is what I expect,’ ‘do we have an understanding?’ You know
what I mean, like I laid out straightforward like, it’s a right to be around here, and that
right can very easily be taken away if you're if you're creating a culture of, like, not what
we're looking for… (participant response)
While this moment of reflection and deeper conversation shows the educational process
of this institution, it also indicates the ownership of the topic by the respondent. Another
participant relied on the work of campus partners in the university-wide orientation process, and
uses those materials as a starting point to then elaborate on at a later date:
Everybody has ‘anti-hazing’ that gets pushed on campus to all the clubs, and I think in
orientation they talk about student code of conduct is where a lot of that’s addressed. But
I think it has to be reinforced beyond that initial meeting because, I mean, kids heads are
swimming and they're trying to figure everything out… (participant response)
These two approaches to the dissemination of the policies, and the follow-up to the
information are prevalent among the group of band directors. Most notable, the presence of
follow-up instruction, or extended education, on the topics of hazing or leadership was only seen
in one response. However, this was not a question directly pursed by the interviewer and only
elaborated on if it were to be brought up by the respondent. Regardless, the participants were
asked about their hazing prevention education methodology, and while it is possible that the
other directors engaged in extended education with the full complement of the band or the
student leaders of their organizations, it can be deduced that the topic of hazing may not be
covered, or if it is, not to an extent that would allow them to mention it during the interview. For
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all of the participants (with the exception of one) hazing prevention education is carried out prior
to the Fall semester (i.e., football season) as part of a larger orientation process.
Chapter Summary
This chapter focused on the reporting of the responses provided by the participants to the
interview questions and the emergent themes drawn from these conversations. The researcher
found many cross-case comparisons among the responses, and the emergent themes were the
most often occurring among the participants. Overwhelmingly, the respondents indicated very
few incidents of hazing, but very thorough hazing prevention and leadership development
programs. The following chapter will offer an analysis of the findings, as well as discussions and
implications for future research and music educators.
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Chapter 5: Discussion of Findings & Conclusion
Introduction
The purpose of this study was to interview collegiate marching band directors on the
issue of hazing and their perception of the presence of hazing in their program, the training and
policies put in place, and the perceived issues that arise from hazing occurring in the band
program. Additionally, the study intended to identify the band director’s perception of other
behavioral issues that work in tandem with hazing, or on their own (i.e., bullying, sexual
violence, or alcohol abuse). This chapter offers an analysis and discussion of study findings in
light of the literature from chapter 1, as well as answers to the research questions.,
recommendations for further research and practice.
Interestingly, some of the answers to the interview questions were straightforward to the
extent of nearly offering no grounds for further discussion. For example, the inherent question to
this dissertation is, “has hazing impacted your program and in what ways?” and the answers from
the respondents were along the lines of, “no.”, “not in the past 5-years”, “not during my time
with the program.”, or “…before I arrived, but I put a stop to it.” The underlying sentiment that
hazing is an antiquated practice and “has no place…” in the marching bands of the current day is
an indication of the work and care put forth by these band directors to protect the health and
well-being of their students. To better understand the path to the band director’s success, the
conclusions of the research questions will be discussed fully.
Discussion of Emergent Themes
The open-ended nature of the line of inquiry for the interviews offered a great
opportunity for the researcher to gauge the most critical elements of the marching band programs
as perceived by their directors. The candid nature of the conversations proved to be an enriching
experience, and the themes that emerged came so naturally and effortlessly. When identifying
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the themes that arose from the interviews, the two areas that occupied the most airtime in
conversation were Alcohol and Tradition and Culture. Education and Implementation was
consistent among the respondents, and the discussions were brief and straightforward. Since
marching bands are highly regimented, procedural groups, these methodologies appear to be
rolled into the overall procedures of a season and are therefore not of a grand concern for the
band directors. Additionally, the unknown nature of athletic outcomes and bowl season planning
required the directors to have as many standardized practices as possible to allow for the needed
flexibility in other areas. Much of the same can be said regarding the theme of Bullying and
Disciplinary action. The reliance on routine procedure is apparent and seemingly necessary to
focus attention on other areas of the program.
Tradition and Culture
For every mention of alcohol or behavioral issues, there were mentions of Tradition and
Culture. College marching bands are steeped in university tradition and are most likely to be the
conservators of those traditions as part of their mission of the institutions. These can be traditions
tied to the college football experience, or to the university at large, but ultimately, most of these
traditions involve the marching bands. Since these organizations find themselves tied to so many
traditions, it stands to reason that the members of these groups would develop their own
traditions to be passed down year after year. The literature has shown that these traditions can be
as innocuous as specific types of high-fives within an instrument section to as egregious as
sexually assaulting and raping new female members of a section (Gregory and Jacob, 2018).
While none of the study participants indicated traditions occurring even remotely close to the
latter discussed, they did discuss the importance of fostering communication surrounding
tradition, and the impact it can have on the band culture.
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A common talking point among the participants was assessing the origins of marching
band traditions with the students carrying them out. There was a feeling that spending the time to
understand the traditions and investigate their development that the directors could not only
strengthen the bond with their members but could address the problematic traditions and make
changes or omit them altogether. The process described illustrated to the students the need to
understand and justify traditions as a means to prevent more egregious activities such as hazing
from becoming passively accepted traditions of the band. This open forum for communication
between the students and staff provided a means for “but in” which was cited by a few of the
respondents to be integral to the health of the overall band culture. The members of these
organizations spend countless hours together in a joint experience, developing relationships and
bonds at every turn. The band becomes a “family” and a continual support system for its
members (Cumberledge, 2017).
While the answers posited by the study participants for the interview questions seemed
justifiably simplistic and straight-forward, the discussion around alcohol and tradition and
culture provided a plethora of information for this study. These behaviors and activities are tied
to institutional hazing, and the discourse surrounding their broader impact on the band programs
has been insightful to the understanding of the impact of hazing prevention education and
policies
Alcohol
Alcohol was a massive topic among the participants’ responses. Not a single, pre-
determined interview question referenced alcohol in any capacity, yet each interview found its
way to discussing alcohol either through the efforts of the interviewer, the mention of the topic
by the band directors, or the natural course of the conversation regarding college student
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behavior. The sentiment of the study participants towards drinking, or their own participation in
drinking was not directly inquired upon, however, many of the respondents mentioned having
consumed alcohol in the past or confirmed some form of drinking. Overall, the interviews
showed that the participants did not desire to always require abstinence from their members, but
rather and general understanding that alcohol is a part of the adult experience and college is a
great time to experiment and discover one’s full adult self.
With the propensity of college bands to travel to away football games, and the
opportunities afforded to college students during the free time away from the obligations of their
studies, it is understandable that the majority of time spent discussing alcohol was also done so
in conjunction with trips. While each band director took a slightly different stance regarding
alcohol policies while travelling, the overwhelming sense of perceived responsibility was clear
among the band directors. Although the students are generally legally adults and held to account
for their own decisions and behaviors, great effort is put into describing and addressing
undesired behaviors and their outcomes regarding alcohol while travelling. The directors
exhibited a strong desire to keep everyone safe and healthy, with slight mentions regarding
performance ability the following day.
The discussion of alcohol developed into a discussion of the overall college experience.
While the student’s ability to perform to the best of their ability on the day of a game was
mentioned, the primary focus was on the events and occurrences “off the field.” There was a
propensity to discuss the happenings at these informal, social gatherings, rather than focus on
outcomes or potential for punitive measures. This is a strong indicator of trust of the students by
the respondents and is reflective of a familial bond between the students and staff, all of which
are important for a healthy band program (Cumberledge, 2017).
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Relation to previous research
Silveira and Hudson (2015) provided a strong piece of research that could function as
guiding principles for those investigating the impact of hazing on collegiate marching bands.
Their work illustrates the presence of hazing within collegiate marching bands, and when
compared to the literature on hazing in college environments at large, it is clear that this is an
area of research worth continuing to pursue. The perceptions of the respondents were generally
consistent with the existing literature.
Attitudes Toward Hazing
The participants in the current study reported negative attitudes toward hazing practices
throughout their interviews. These perceptions are consistent with modern takes on hazing
practices and recommendations found among the various pieces of literature. The most egregious
examples of lack of director oversight or care can be found in the works of Gregory and Jacob
(2018) and Silveira and Hudson (2015), illustrating a more antiquated attitude toward hazing that
can be found in many organizations currently, but certainly can be seen in the accounts of hazing
in the past. The attitudes reflected by the respondents indicate either a direct knowledge of these
studies, or at the very least an understanding of and experience in the history of collegiate
marching bands. According to the accounts of the participants, the students and directors of these
marching bands have zero tolerance for hazing and the problems that it causes, and that attitude
has a diminishing effect on the occurrences of hazing
Occurrences of Hazing
Silveira and Hudson (2015) have indicated that 30% of students involved in collegiate
marching bands experience some type of hazing incident, with the band directors being aware of
60% of those incidents. These figures are by no means staggering, but signal the student cited
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presence of hazing at some level. participants in this study did not cite a single occurrence of
hazing within their organizations within the last few years, which nearly seems unbelievable.
However, the sample size of this dissertation is small in comparison to the Silveira and Hudson
study, and the statistical possibility of either hazing not occurring or the band director’s not being
aware of the incidents seem plausible. Another plausible explanation could be tied to the issues
the band director’s cited dealing with, and a disparity of perception at the events. band directors
in this study indicated the need to intervene on issues regarding alcohol use, bullying, or sexual
assault, and their methodology was tied directly to the perception of these behavioral issues.
However, the students may have willingly or unwillingly participated in hazing activities that
resulted in the aforementioned behaviors and coincided with the point the band directors needed
to be involved. The current study set out to focus solely on band director perceptions, and
therefore does not address the differences between student and staff perception.
Band Director Turnover
The literature indicates that hazing is an issue that is most often perpetrated in
organizations with long-standing traditions of hazing and limited oversight (Chamberlain, 2014).
Additionally, these organizations typically experience little to no staff or faculty involvement in
the leadership development of the students, and if they do feature staff or faculty members, these
folks are in these positions for quite some time with a low rate of turnover (Alexander & Opsal,
2020). There are very few collegiate marching bands that are purely student run without the
presence of a consistent advisor, akin to a registered student organization. Generally, college
marching bands have a band director at the helm of the ensemble, and in many cases, acting as
the primary administrator. Given the lengthy tenure of some university band directors, it stands
to reason that a long-standing director may find themselves in a situation where hazing is
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occurring deep within the organization due to the long formed institutional memory of the
organization. As one band director posited in their interview:
I think hazing is 100% an institutional memory problem…no good person would sit
down and say, ‘how can we haze…so and so, they really need to make sure they earn
being here… (participant response)
In this study, 5 of the 7 band directors had been with their institutions for 7 years or fewer
(at the time of these interviews) and had inherited little to no materials in the way of handbooks,
policies, or training implements. This “clean slate” gave the directors the opportunity to
complete a full overhaul of the program, including their approach to behavioral issues and hazing
prevention. Additionally, the study participants with the shorter tenures discussed the student
personnel turnover at their time of being hired, which certainly plays into the forgetting of
institutional habits. What should also be noted is the exceptional work done by the two band
directors with the longest standing tenures at their institutions. Given the nature of hazing and its
ability to thrive in longer-standing organizations, these two respondents exhibited a strong, no-
nonsense attitude toward hazing and discussed very few issues with student behavior.
This observation was truly the most surprising among all that was discussed in the
interviews. Not surprising in that the literature supported the notion that band director turnover
would have a seemingly positive effect (reference), but surprising in the number of respondents
that were fairly recent hires and the overall consensus that hazing was not an issue for them.
Ultimately, it is the position of the researcher that this finding does support the literature in the
fact that it offers a direct example of the lack of institutional memory and the perceived effect it
has on hazing in collegiate marching bands (reference).
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Addressing the Study Questions
To remind the reader, the research questions that guided this study and were posed in Chapter
were:
1. What is the methodology used by collegiate band directors to develop and implement
policies regarding hazing prevention and education?
2. Are band directors the primary authors of their hazing prevention materials, or are these
provided by the appropriate university governing body? Additionally, how are these materials
disseminated to the students?
3. How do band directors on the west coast, perceive the effectiveness of the hazing prevention
work and handle instances of hazing in comparison to the current body of research which is
primarily derived from the Midwest?
4. Are there issues, other than hazing, that band directors perceive to be of greater concern or
require more attention and care, such as issues surrounding bullying, sexual violence, or alcohol
abuse?
Overall, the respondents offered perspectives of their bands where behavioral issues,
especially hazing, were not institutional problems with their organizations, but the subject matter
of isolated incidents. The respondents did indicate that training and consistent work with the
student leaders was helpful in continuing the positive culture of care.
Study Question 1: What is the methodology used by collegiate band directors to develop and
implement policies regarding hazing prevention and education?
The band directors who participated in this study most commonly utilized the university
resources at hand to develop policies for hazing and hazing prevention. These policies were drawn
from athletic departments, student judiciary or conduct departments, or university-wide hazing-
prevention initiatives. In the case of one director, the marching band had anti-hazing policies in
76
place prior to a broader university initiative, at which point, university language and policies were
adopted by the existing materials. The policies put in place were seemingly reflective in nature,
addressing behavioral issues that had arisen in the past, but were quelled at the onset of new
leadership. There was no indication that any of the study participants performed a review of the
literature, but rather relied heavily on personal experience or university guidance when
determining the best policies to employ. Though not asked by the researcher, some study
participants discussed the time-commitment required of their position and the specificity of the
work, which is likely a contributing factor in adapting hazing prevention materials rather than
creating them through individual research.
The education and implementation of these policies were carried out during marching band
orientations or handbook (manual) review sessions. These sessions provide the directors the
opportunity to cover the full range of band policies including those associated with behavioral
expectations and consequences. Often, these sessions provide the only “sit-down” opportunity for
the band directors to address the full cohort of marching band members in an indoor, controlled,
and quiet environment before the nature of the activity restricts their operations to the outdoors
and the ongoing hustle of gameday preparations. In addition to the handbook review, many of the
respondents indicated that their institutions provided hazing prevention education and resources
during the overall orientation process or through other means prior to the student’s matriculation
to campus.
Participating band directors also indicated that trainings and on-going meetings with the
student leaders provided opportunities to address behavioral issues, and given the institutional
nature of hazing, the perception was that these sessions were an excellent source of hazing
prevention efforts. The duration and frequency of these sessions varied, but most notably, one
77
respondent indicated that their institution offered a course on student leadership, specifically
targeted to the members of the marching band program. The course was not only mandatory for
those holding student leadership positions within the marching band but was open for any member
to enroll should they desire to pursue leadership roles. Though not designed in this way, the culture
of the organization had moved to a point where enrollment in the course became an indicator of
intent to pursue leadership for students among their peers. While the course did contain sessions
on hazing, the overall benefit of consistent leadership development was perceived to be very
successful by the respondent carrying it out.
Overall, there was a reliance on pre-existing policies and methodologies, as well as a
reliance on institutional departments and their hazing prevention efforts, however, the marching
band orientation had proven to be the singular source of policy dissemination for the respondents.
Study Question 2: Are band directors the primary authors of their hazing prevention
materials, or are these provided by the appropriate university governing body? Additionally,
how are these materials disseminated to the students?
Band directors were typically not the primary authors of their hazing prevention materials.
Policies were drawn from university resources, with the singular exception of one respondent
whose policies had been in place prior to a university-wide campaign. However, the same
respondent ultimately ensured that the marching band’s policy was in-step with the university’s,
ensuring a consistency for the students. The dissemination of these policies was done through
university-wide education modules, as well as being unanimously included in the marching band’s
handbooks. Each participant indicated that the policies were continuously available through
multiple means throughout the year.
78
Study Question 3: How do band directors on the west coast, perceive the effectiveness of the
hazing prevention work and handle instances of hazing in comparison to the current body
of research which is primarily derived from the Midwest?
Band directors who took part in this study were all in agreement that hazing was a non-
issue for their organizations. While they did not comment on the quality of their own hazing
prevention policies, education, or implementation, each participant indicated that the efforts they
had put in place were working for their organizations. However, as indicated by the research,
incidents of hazing are often associated with other abhorrent behaviors such as bullying, sexual
violence, or alcohol abuse (O’Brien et. al., 2017, Scott-Sheldon et.al., 2016, Muehlenhard,
Peterson, Humphreys, and Jozkowski, 2017). Though the respondents indicated no need for
disciplinary action related to hazing, they mentioned that punitive measures needed to be carried
out because of students exhibiting the aforementioned abhorrent behaviors. The respondents also
indicated that the accounts involving sexual violence were forwarded to the appropriate
university department and relied on university and legal protocol to ensure the students were
taken care of. Similarly, accounts involving bullying or alcohol abuse were handled in a variety
of methods.
In nearly all cases, the students exhibiting these behaviors were met with consequences
issued by the band directors in the form of suspensions from the program, impact on grade, or
removal from a leadership position. The overall consensus was to handle the majority of these
types of incidents internally, however, there were some mentions of pushing these through to
university judiciary or conduct boards. The inconsistency in this process seems more closely tied
to university procedures and policies, rather than the perceived efficacy of either path by the
respondents. Regarding the handling of disciplinary action surrounding hazing, the respondents
79
were split on their methodology, although the cited accounts of disciplinary action regarding
hazing were purely procedural as the respondents did not provide or indicate the need for
punitive measures as a result of hazing in recent years. The two tactics offered were to handle the
issues internally, gauging the penalty on the nature of the hazing, and using the institutional
resources in place to handle the punitive action. It should be noted that, regardless of tactic, each
respondent indicated that there would be an immediate, band-centric consequence to any
validated account of hazing, which could then be compounded with the institutional action. The
lack of clarity for disciplinary measures surrounding hazing can most likely be attributed to the
lack of recent episodes and the preponderance of thorough policies. However, given the few
accounts of the other behaviors carried out by members of the respondents’ bands, it is possible
that the student’s behaviors have shifted focus from the more organized methodology of hazing
to an informal, individual focus.
Study Question 4: Are there issues, other than hazing, that band directors perceive to be of
greater concern or require more attention and care, such as issues surrounding bullying,
sexual violence, or alcohol abuse?
Band directors interviewed for this study described recent examples of behavioral issues
in the areas of alcohol, bullying, and sexual violence. The issues that garnered the longest
conversations and further elaboration by the interviewer involved the use, overuse, and abuse of
alcohol. Policies regarding alcohol while travelling and on gamedays were discussed extensively
with each respondent and has proven to be the behavioral concern that utilizes the most
administrative time from each respondent. There were not measures in place to determine the
perceived weight of these issues as they compare to one another, but alcohol was discussed most
frequently and to the deepest extent, while sexual violence was mentioned very little, but with a
80
much more serious tone and need for university aid. Bullying, primarily cyber-bullying was
mentioned by two of the participants, with the ultimate hope being that in-person elements will
help relieve these bullying behaviors following the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. While not
explicitly stated by any of the respondents, the nature of the interviews has shown that their
perception of the need for work on these issues is of greater concern than hazing.
Concluding Remarks: Neutralization and Study Findings
When beginning this study, the researcher approached the work through a theoretical
framework of neutralization. The research of Alexander and Opsal (2020) utilized the same
framing and found that neutralization could be used to describe the accounts of students and their
experiences surrounding hazing. While this study did not inquire from current students, the
participants did not shay away from offering a ‘student voice” or indicating their perceptions of
the student’s feelings. As one respondent mentioned, their perception of the student’s attitudes is
that they’re “beyond hazing” or “over bullying”, but these statements were accompanied with the
sentiment of “if they think they’re being hazed, then they are.” When this account is
accompanied with little to no reported incidents of hazing, it’s possible to conclude that it is not
an issue to be overly concerned with. However, when assessing these statements through the lens
of neutralization, the reported student account may be an understatement of the occurrence. By
allowing the students to provide the measure of hazing, the freedom to neutralize the impact of
those activities increases for them. Therefore, it seems likely that hazing activities may be
occurring, but are not being reported due to the neutralization of the students.
Additionally, given the lack of reporting or propensity of hazing among the bands, it
stands to reason that the directors may be minimizing the effects of hazing through
neutralization. This could be due to several factors, such as students not “feeling” hazed and
81
therefore not reporting it, firm stances on discipline creating difficulty accessing the director, or
students simply quitting the program without providing information as to why. This study did not
aim to assess the neutralization of hazing and its outcomes but interpreting the interviews
through that lens allows for expanded commentary on the results. Ultimately, the reports and
accounts of the participants were positive, and the discussions left no reason for the researcher to
question their validity. However, continued work in leadership development and training is key
for the ongoing success of these directors and their programs.
Implications for Future Research
The issues that arise due to nefarious behavior among college students is subject matter
that is going to need to be studied, presumably, until the end of time. As culture shifts, opinions
change, and new students continue to enroll, institutions of higher education will need to
continue to study and assess the needs of its ever-changing populations. Silveira and Hudson
(2015) had struck upon the idea of hazing in collegiate marching bands and indicated to the
research community that this is an issue worth diving deeper into. This study illustrates that band
directors may not be dealing with hazing directly, but bullying, sexual violence, and alcohol are
issues that demand attention of even the most attentive director. The researcher offers three
suggestions for those interested in continued research in the field.
Case Studies and Focus Groups
A common theme among each of the recommendations is the study of perceptions of
hazing and its effects by the students and the staff. As such, the researcher suggests that
collegiate marching bands perform case studies within their programs (or across partner schools),
interviewing the students and staff separately, and following-up with focus groups to address the
inconsistencies. It has been documented on multiple occasions that students and staff provide
82
varying insight to a phenomenon, but there is a lack of research putting the data sets together.
Additionally, the researcher suggests these studies can focus on any of the topics discussed in
this dissertation (hazing, bullying, sexual violence, alcohol) as the need is ever present, and could
offer life-saving insight. These studies can be carried out through partnerships between band
directors and researchers in music education and related areas, to maintain objectivity.
Tradition and Culture Surveys
In this suggestion, the researcher posits that students may, in-fact, be perpetrating or the
victims of hazing behaviors and not realize that they are. Collegiate marching bands would
benefit from a survey of common traditions and cultural occurrences within the field. There is a
possibility that the similarity of the activity across the country would likely elicit similar results.
Additionally, it would benefit the survey to include responses from members of Drum Corps
International, as many of them, particularly those in the higher caliber organizations, are of
college age. This type of survey would help to identify common behaviors and understanding the
trajectory through which organizations could arrive to hazing.
Large Scale Behavioral Study
This is the largest recommendation, and one that could perhaps be achieved through pre-
existing nationwide datasets. To glean a full understanding of the impact of hazing and the other
behavioral issues the researcher recommends a large-scale survey to illicit responses in all areas
from a nation-wide pool of collegiate marching band members, staff, and recent alumni. This
type of investigation would offer the most comprehensive cross-section of information, and
depending on the analytical approach, the results could indicate which issues require the most
attention for prevention and advocacy efforts.
83
Implications for Music Education
The recommendation from the researcher for music educators is two-fold. Initially, the
researcher suggests that music educators seek out the professionals or campus partners that work
in areas discussed in this dissertation and strive to be continually present in the leadership
development and training of their students. It is easy for marching band directors to get caught
up in the logistics of the position, and focus much of their attention on the job, when the students
require care and focus beyond a typical college classroom.
Secondly, when assessing the interviews through the framework of neutralization, it is
possible that music educators, as well as students, may play a role in the neutralization of hazing.
As discussed in chapter 1, the neutralization of hazing by those participating is a common
occurrence, and can account for the continued, institutional issues surrounding hazing and its
effect on the student population. While none of the respondents cited recent incidents of hazing,
national representative data indicates the prevalence of hazing among college students
(reference). Given the constraints of this study, there is no way to know if there was a conflict
between the band director’s perceptions and the actual occurrences of hazing. However, music
educators should be aware that by remaining passive, or not fully aware of the occurrences
within their program that they themselves may neutralize their own perception of what is
happening, and not offer the level of oversight that is necessary, despite the fact that they’re not
direct participants in the hazing activities.
Closing
In closing, this dissertation has represented a journey for me that has been difficult,
eventful, and ultimately enriching. Marching band has been a part of my life longer than it
hasn’t, and I care deeply for it. Having is an issue that can seem harmless or entertaining but has
84
the ability to taint one’s memory of an organization and forever tarnish their memory of the
marching arts. It is my hope that continued work in this field will yield progress moving forward
and can impact the lives of marching band members forever.
85
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Weblinks
ABC10 – Former UC Davis Marching Band member describes hazing, misconduct
https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/davis/marching-band-member-reacts-to-
allegations-of-misconduct/103-63d89ad8-01a5-48db-859b-6c5dba60bfb2
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clarity-schools-support-survivors-and-due-process-rights-all
Drum Corps International
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Hazing prevention
https://hazingprevention.org/
Huff Post – Here Are The Dirty, Sexual Things Ohio State's Band Did That Got The Director
Fired https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ohio-state-sexual-director-fired_n_5649531
National Institute on alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/time-for-parents-
discuss-risks-college-drinking
NY Times – FAMU President Resigns
https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/12/us/florida-am-president-resigns.html
Pasadena Tournament of Roses
https://tournamentofroses.com/
Robert Champion – Parents Foundation
97
https://www.beingachampion.org/contact
UN Guiding Principles
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https://www.ungpreporting.org/resources/the-ungps/
USA Today – FAMU Settlement
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/09/18/florida-am-settles-family-
hazing-victim/72402316/
USA Today – FAMU final three Convicted
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/04/24/florida-drum-major-manslaughter-
convictions/26330843/
98
Appendix A – USC IRB Approval
99
100
Appendix B – Invitation Letter – Email Formatted
Good afternoon Colleague,
I hope you are preparing for a thrilling Fall semester and are just as excited as I am to be setting foot
in football stadiums once again! I'm reaching out today to request your assistance in the completion
of my doctoral dissertation.
On behalf of the University of Southern California’s Flora L. Thornton School of Music I would
like to invite you to participate in our exciting new study titled, “Collegiate Bands and Hazing: A
Case Study of the Perceived Effect of Anti-Hazing Policies”. This study is a component of the
doctoral dissertation of USC student, Jacob Vogel, who is conducting this research under the
supervision of faculty member Beatriz Ilari at USC.
I want to learn more about the various anti-hazing policies and hazing-prevention education
surrounding the marching band activity. To seek this clarity, I am inviting you to participate in this
study to offer your unique perspective and experience in these areas. My goal is to curate a
knowledgebase of best practices that can be shared and implemented within our organizations for
the betterment of the collegiate marching activity.
You are being contacted because you are the director of a large marching band (with 125 or more
members) from the western region of the United States and will be a part of institutions with NCAA
Division I or II athletic programs. You will be asked to participate in semi-structured interviews that
will be carried out via the “Zoom” telecommunication platform and will last between 60-90 minutes.
The interviews will be recorded and transcribed digitally, however, once the transcriptions have been
edited for accuracy and all identifying information has been removed, the recordings will be erased.
Participation in the study is purely voluntary, and the full dissertation will be provided to you once it
is complete. If you are unable to participate, but still would like to provide information, you may
recommend an associate or assistant director and I will contact them separately.
Attached to this message is the study information sheet which provides more detailed information.
If you have any further questions, or would like to recommend another recruit, please contact the
Principal Investigator (Jacob Vogel) at jacobvog@usc.edu or (760)887-8746.
Thank you for your time and consideration. Your individual insight into the activity can help guide
the future for all collegiate marching programs.
Thanks!
Jake
101
Appendix C – Invitation Letter – Formal
102
Appendix D – Information Sheet for Exempt Studies
103
Abstract (if available)
Abstract
Collegiate marching bands offered a unique experience steeped in tradition and tied deeply to the roots of the institutions in which they are housed. The success of these organizations is mainly dependent on institutional memory, which can lead to hazing practices among its members. This study aimed to investigate the band director’s perspectives on hazing, the methodology for adopting and effectiveness of hazing prevention education, and the occurrence of other harmful behaviors (i.e., alcohol abuse, sexual violence, bullying). This study included semi-structured interviews with seven band directors from the western coastal region of the United States. The overarching research question was aimed at identifying how hazing had impacted their programs while also understanding the dissemination, training, implementation, and governance of hazing prevention policies. Four emergent themes were identified: (1) Tradition and Culture, (2) Alcohol, (3) Bullying and Disciplinary Action, and (4) Education and Implementation, with Tradition and Culture serving as the primary emerging concept. While the directors may perceive hazing as having a limited impact on their programs, the mention of issues such as alcohol abuse, sexual violence, and bullying indicates a strong desire to support and maintain a positive culture within the bands.
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Vogel, Jacob Arthur Craig
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Core Title
Collegiate bands and hazing: a study of the perceived effect of anti-hazing policies
School
Thornton School of Music
Degree
Doctor of Musical Arts
Degree Program
Music Teaching and Learning
Degree Conferral Date
2022-08
Publication Date
07/22/2022
Defense Date
04/15/2022
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