The Effects of Sorority Recruitment on Self-Esteem

Mental health issues among college students are of increasing concern to administrators (Kitzrow, 2003). Self-esteem is a concept central to mental health (Kittleson, 1989) and can be linked to the social situations found in college settings, especially those that deal with rejection (Caunt, 2003; Eisenberger & Lieberman, 2004; Steffenhagen & Burns, 1987). Sorority recruitment is a process that can include rejection (National Panhellenic Conference, n.d.) and, thus, may negatively affect self-esteem. The purpose of this study was to determine how the sorority recruitment experience affects the self-esteem of participants. First, we explored whether self-esteem differed between two groups of potential members (PMs): those who completed recruitment (persistent PMs) and those who withdrew from the recruitment process (withdrawn PMs). Second, we examined how self-esteem differed at the start and the end of recruitment within these groups of PMs. Results revealed significant differences between groups and suggested a relationship between recruitment and self-esteem

Do Parents Matter? Errin J. Jeffes

Higher education in America has attempted to define the relationships it has with both students and parents for many years. While some argue that the philosophy of in loco parentis has seemingly disappeared, others suggest that its return is imminent on American college campuses. One example of this return is the trend among campuses towards notifying parents when students are involved in judicial matters. Recent changes in federal privacy laws have clarified the right of colleges and universities to notify parents when their son or daughter is involved in a violation of the university alcohol policy. There is an assumption that parents will intervene with their students and help the university promote a more responsible use of alcohol. Many colleges are debating the value of such notifications, but little is known as to whether or not the inclusion of parents in university discipline affects the decisions college students make about their alcohol consumption. The present study used qualitative and quantitative means to address this gap in literature. Students whose parents were notified of their alcohol violation were interviewed in the qualitative component of the study. The interviews explored the relationships between students and parents before entering college, immediately after enrolling in college, and after parental notification. Students were then assigned positions within three categories of parenting styles (General Relationships, Level of Parental Involvement, and Parental Attitudes Toward Alcohol) for the three time periods explored in this study. The quantitative component explored students' experience with alcohol during the same three time periods. Students completed a pencil and paper survey about their drinking behaviors and were assigned to categor..

Executive Directors At Research And Doctoral I

The purpose of this descriptive study was to develop and validate a list of the skills and knowledge that will be necessary for the career preparation of college union executive directors who will be hired in Research and Doctoral I universities in the next decade, (2000 to 2010). The research design recognizes job congruencies and shared competencies between hospitality general managers and college union directors. In designing this study, three separate but interrelated research methods were employed. Those methods were: (a) A series of focused interviews with experts in the college union field; (b) A review of existing data, including job advertisements for union director positions; results from the Association of College Unions International data bank; literature from the college union field; and literature from the hospitality industry, related to general managers' competencies; and (c) An original questionnaire that was designed using the data gathered from the first two techniques. The questionnaire was administered by mail to the research population, college union directors at Research I, Research II, and Doctoral I universities. Ratings on the 86 competencies from the survey were tabulated, measures of central tendency were computed and characteristics were ranked in order of importance to answer the research questions. Results indicated agreement among directors regarding the necessary knowledge and abilities for career preparation of union directors. No significant differences existed between responses from Student Affairs iii and Business/Auxiliary Affairs, or between male and female respondents. Significant differences were found between responses from directors at commuter and residential universities. Findings from this study will provide guidance for ..