Feeling a part of a university community is an important factor in college students' success, yet little is known about how transfer students construct a sense of community at their new institutions. Drawing from surveys and interviews of transfer students at a highly selective university, we used a multi-method approach to understand the elements…

For several decades, scholars have been exploring the factors that influence college students' persistence and retention. Several of the retention theories and models have emphasized the role of sense of purpose and degree commitment in contributing to college students' persistence. Students' sense of purpose regarding what motivates them, what…

Data on 4,016 peer leaders from 49 four-year institutions across the United States were used for this quantitative study. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the impact of different forms of compensation on the skills development, institution interaction, academic commitment, employability outcomes, and academic performance of peer…

Service learning can help students to engage in the community while applying lessons learned in their coursework. Using self-determination theory, we evaluated the relationship among self-efficacy, self-regulated motivation, and civic learning in service learning courses. Participants included 242 college students (122 females, 120 males) across…

In this study we examine the mediating roles of psychological needs satisfaction (i.e., autonomy, competence, and relatedness) and emotion regulation difficulties in the relationship between attachment insecurity (i.e., attachment anxiety and avoidance) and binge eating behavior in college students. A total sample of 820 college students…

University life can be stressful and students may struggle to adjust socially. We examined students' social achievement goals--their orientations towards their relationships with their peers--as one important factor underlying students' social and psychological adjustment in college. When investigating the direct and indirect effects of social…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between interfaith engagement and self-authored worldview commitment among 13,776 students enrolled at one of 52 institutions. Results indicated an association between formal and informal interfaith engagement and that this relationship was conditioned upon self-identified worldview.…

Involvement in health-endangering behaviors is considered a reflection of college students' psychosocial development; however, not all students participate in these activities. Emotion skills, such as the ability to interpret and manage emotions, may serve as a protective factor against risk-taking behavior among emerging adults. We compared the…

The development of college students' civic identity is understudied, but worthy of attention because of its salience to many students and higher education's commitment to fostering an engaged citizenry. Using 45,271 participants from the 2009 Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership, this study uses structural equation modeling to explore…

Considering the continuous increase of international students, the main goal of this study was to examine how international students' proactive behaviors, particularly information seeking behaviors, would impact key emotional outcomes including communication satisfaction with instructors and school-life satisfaction. For this investigation, we…

For this study we examined collaborative assessment in counseling 820 German students who were going abroad and who were exposed to the Test to Measure Intercultural Competence (TMIC). A randomized pretest-posttest control group design was used. The control group did not get any test feedback. The remaining groups received written feedback or…

The present investigation sought to determine the extent to which collegiate student-athletes are susceptible to stereotype threat and the factors that predict it. We proposed a structural equation model (SEM) by which a perceived coach's positive regard for an athlete's academic ability, athletic identity, and academic identity predicts the…

Research indicates that social influences impact college students' alcohol consumption; however, how selection processes may serve as an influential factor predicting alcohol use in this population has not been widely addressed. A model of influence and selection processes contributing to alcohol use across the transition to college was examined…

Many college administrators and researchers assert that diversity interactions are critical for preparing young adults for a diverse society, but very little research has examined the long-term impact of these experiences. This study examines a longitudinal sample of college students (n = 416) who were followed into their mid-30s. Structural…

Little is known about first generation students whose parents did not attend college and specifically their experiences surrounding educational outcomes of college. This study used structural equation modeling to investigate differences in first generation and non-first generation students using data from the Beginning Postsecondary Students…