STUDENTS’ INTENT TO PERSIST IN COLLEGE: MODERATING THE NEGATIVE
EFFECTS OF INSTRUCTORS’ MISBEHAVIORS WITH STUDENT-TO-STUDENT
CONNECTEDNESS AND FAMILY SUPPORT
by
Meagan Bryand Sovine, MA
DISSERTATION
Presented to the Faculty of
The University of Houston-Clear Lake
In Partial Fulfillment
Of the Requirements
For the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION
THE UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON-CLEAR LAKE
DECEMBER, 2015
STUDENTS’ INTENT TO PERSIST IN COLLEGE: MODERATING THE NEGATIVE
EFFECTS OF INSTRUCTORS’ MISBEHAVIORS WITH STUDENT-TO-STUDENT
CONNECTEDNESS AND FAMILY SUPPORT
by
Meagan Bryand Sovine
APPROVED BY
__________________________________________
Gary Schumacher, PhD, Chair
__________________________________________
Amy Orange, PhD, Committee Member
__________________________________________
Renée Lastrapes, PhD, Committee Member
__________________________________________
Kelly Moore, EdD, Committee Member
RECEIVED BY THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION:
Lawrence T. Kajs, EdD, Associate Dean
__________________________________________
Mark D. Shermis, PhD, Dean
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
There have been a few prominent people in my life who have helped me persist
throughout my own academic endeavors. My mother, my husband, and my committee
members have greatly influenced my will to obtain my doctoral degree at the University
of Houston-Clear Lake. It was necessary to recognize each of these individuals to show
gratitude for their contributions and support.
To my mother Nilda, you have given me support from the start of my life. I thank
you for not only giving me a voice but showing me how to use that voice. You instilled
in me that no matter how little we had, there was so much we can do through the grace of
God. You never placed bounds to the educational advancements that I wanted such as
studying abroad in high school, even though we had little to no money. It is because of
you that I am able to help fellow at-risk college students to achieve their dreams of
obtaining a college degree. You showed me that no dream is too big, as long as I was
educated I could achieve that dream. Thank you for creating me into a dreamer and even
more a believer. I love you.
To my husband Andrew, we have been through many obstacles during the past
few years but through it all you have been supportive of my dreams and wishes. I am so
thankful that when faced with adversity, we prevailed and our love continues to flourish.
You are the one I come home to talk about what new additions I added to this paper,
course concepts that interested me, and issues concerning my students. You are my
guide, my rock, the little voice of reason in my head, and my best friend. I took a few
turns in my academic and professional careers but you always supported my decisions
without question. Thank you for always believing in me. I love you.
To my committee members, Dr. Schumacher, Dr. Orange, Dr. Lastrapes, and Dr.
Moore, I am so grateful for all of your mentorship throughout my doctoral academic
career. Dr. Schumacher, my dissertation chair, thank you for allowing me academic
freedom to pursue my personal research interests. You gave me the freedom to be
autonomous in my thoughts but so supportive with helping me achieve my research plan.
Dr. Orange, thank you for teaching me qualitative research methods which I was able to
incorporate in this paper. I was a disbeliever of qualitative methods but you showed me
the value of this form of data and I am so thankful that you did. Dr. Lastrapes, thank you
for joining my committee during a fast transition to UHCL for you. You did not have to
take me under your wing when you did and for that I am very grateful for your kindness
and willingness. Dr. Moore, thank you for helping me find my participants and I greatly
appreciate your encouragement to help me persist. You have been so instrumental in
helping me understand the dissertation process and data collection procedures and I am
so appreciative for your support. Thank you dissertation committee for helping me
persist in college.
ABSTRACT
STUDENTS’ INTENT TO PERSIST IN COLLEGE: MODERATING THE NEGATIVE
EFFECTS OF INSTRUCTORS’ MISBEHAVIORS WITH STUDENT-TO-STUDENT
CONNECTEDNESS AND FAMILY SUPPORT
Meagan Bryand Sovine, M. A.
University of Houston-Clear Lake, 2015
Dissertation Chair:
Dr. Gary Schumacher
Past literature demonstrates the grave impact college instructors have on student retention
and persistence. The present study utilized Ajzen’s (1985) theory of planned behavior
(TPB) to describe college students’ intent to persist until graduation. Two hundred and
ninety-seven undergraduate students responded to a survey which assessed student-tostudent connectedness, family support, instructors’ misbehaviors, and students’ intent to
persist in college. Additionally, 12 participants that responded to the survey also
participated in a face to-face-interview. Data was collected over three months from two
Hispanic-serving institutions in the South-Central region of the United States.
Instructors’ misbehaviors were inversely associated with intent to persist; whereas
student-to-student connectedness and family support were positively associated with
intent to persist. Furthermore, student-to-student connectedness and family support did
not moderate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on attitudes about
persistence, as family support and student-to-student connectedness were not statistically
significant predictors of students’ intent to persist in college. Hierarchical multiple
regression analysis did detect two dimensions of instructors’ misbehaviors which were
statistically significant predictors of students’ intent to persist in college. The model
accounted for 19.80% of the total variance in students’ intent to persist. Further
examination of the qualitative data showed a holistic picture as to why instructors, family
support, and student-to-student connectedness were important factors in the college
persistence process. Theoretical and pedagogical implications of these findings were
discussed.
vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Acknowledgment………………………………………………………………….…...…iii
Abstract………………………………………………………………………………...…vi
List of Tables………………………………………………...…………………………xiii
Chapter
I.
Page
INTRODUCTION……………….……………….……………………….………1
Purpose of the Study……………….…………………………..........…….4
Statement of the Problem…………………………………..…….…..……4
Theoretical Framework………………………………………………..…..4
Research Questions……………………………….…………………...…..7
Definitions…………………………………………………..…………......7
II.
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE…………………………………………..…...9
Instructors’ Misbehaviors……………………………..…...……....…...…9
Family Support…………………………….……………………….……14
Student-to-Student Connectedness…...…….……………………....……17
Students’ Intent to Persist as Planned Behavior………………...….....…20
Summary…………………………………………………………………26
III.
METHODOLOGY…………………………………………………………..…..27
Population and Sample…………………………………………………..30
Participant Selection……………………………………………………..34
Operational Definitions…………………………………………………..35
Phase I Quantitative………………………………………………...……36
Reliability and Validity…………………………………………..36
Instrumentation…………………………………………………..40
Instructors’ Misbehaviors………………………………..40
Family Support…………………………………………..41
Student-to-Student Connectedness………………………41
Students’ Intent to Persist………………………………..42
Data Collection…………………………………………………..42
Data Analysis Procedures………………………….…………….43
Phase II Qualitative………………………………………………………44
Data Collection…………………………………………………..44
Data Analysis…………………………………………………….47
Qualitative Validity……………………………………………....48
Research Permission and Ethical Considerations………………..49
Limitations……………………………………………………….50
Role of the Researcher…………………………………………...51
IV.
RESULTS………………………………………………………………………..52
Introduction……………………………………………………………....52
Research Question 1…………………………………………….……….52
Types of Instructors’ Misbehaviors……………………………...53
viii
Not Caring………………………………………………..53
Putdowns………………………………………………....55
Rudeness…………………………………………………58
Lack of Guidance………………………………………..59
Calling Students Out……………………………………..61
Nonverbal Communication………………………………62
Lecture Style……………………………………………..63
Class Structure…………………………………………...64
Verbal Communication…………………………………..66
Interpersonal Attention…………………………………..67
Research Question 2…………………………………………….…….…69
Persistence Factors……………………………………………….70
Family…………………………………………………....70
Self-Goals……………………………………………..…73
Instructors’ Misbehaviors and Persistence………………………75
Interest……………………………………………………75
Learning……………………………………...…………..75
Negative Feelings……………………………….………..77
Attrition…………………………………………………..78
Censor Behaviors………………………………………...79
Family Support and Persistence………………………………….80
Modeling……………………………………………...….80
Achieving Dreams………………………….……………81
ix
Motivation………………………………………………..83
Time Investment…………………………………………84
First Generation………………………………………….85
Student-to-Student Connectedness and Persistence……………...86
Motivation………………………………………………..87
Healthy Competition……………………………………..88
Research Question 3……………………………………………………..90
Types of Family Support………………………………………...92
Guidance…………………………………………………93
Just Be There……………………………………………..94
Emotional Support……………………………………….95
Encouragement…………………………………………..96
Financial………………………………………………….98
School Work……………………………………………100
Life Decisions…………………………………………..102
Research Question 4……………………………………………………104
Types of Student-to-Student Connectedness…………………...104
Familiarity………………………………………………107
Group Work………………………………………….…108
Communication…………………………………………110
Disclosure………………………………………………111
Friendship………………………………………………112
Moral Support………………………………………..…113
x
Homophily……………………………………………...115
V.
SUMMARY, IMPLICATIONS, AND CONCLUSIONS………………..….....117
Summary of Findings…………………………………………………...117
Research Question 1……………………………………………119
Types of Instructors’ Misbehaviors…………………….119
Research Question 2……………………………………………121
Persistence Factors……………………………………...121
Instructors’ Misbehaviors and Persistence……………...122
Family Support and Persistence………………………...123
Student-to-Student Connectedness and Persistence…….124
Research Question 3……………………………………………125
Types of Family Support………………………….……125
Research Question 4……………………………………………127
Types of Student-to-Student Connectedness…………...127
Implications……………………………………………………………..129
Implications for Theory……………………………..………….129
Implications for Research………………………………..……..130
Implications for Practice……………………………….……….132
Conclusions……………………………………………………………..134
REFERENCES………………………………………………………………………....135
APPENDIX A..…………………………………………………………………………152
APPENDIX B..…………………………………………………………………………154
APPENDIX C..…………………………………………………………………………156
xi
APPENDIX D..…………………………………………………………………………158
APPENDIX E..…………………………………………………………………………160
APPENDIX F..…………………………………………………………………………162
APPENDIX G..…………………………………………………………………………165
APPENDIX H..…………………………………………………………………………168
APPENDIX I..……………………………………………………………………….…173
RÉSUMÉ
xii
LIST OF TABLES
Table
Page
1
Participants’ Grade Level and Enrollment Status………………………………..32
2
Participants’ Race………………………………………………………………..32
3
Participants’ Siblings, Birthplace, and First Generation…………………………33
4
Participants’ Financial Assistance……………………………………………….33
5
Convergent Validity……………………………………………..……………….37
6
Cronbach’s Alpha Scores for Each Instrument Used in the Pilot Survey………..39
7
Descriptive Statistics and Pearson’s Product-Moment Correlations…………….70
8
Model 1 Summary of Hierarchical Multiple Linear Regression Analysis for
Students’ Intent to Persist in College………………………………………….....91
9
Model 2 Summary of Hierarchical Multiple Linear Regression Analysis for
Students’ Intent to Persist in College………………………………………….....92
10
Model 3 Summary of Hierarchical Multiple Linear Regression Analysis for
Students’ Intent to Persist in College…………………………………………...105
11
Model 4 Summary of Hierarchical Multiple Linear Regression Analysis for
Students’ Intent to Persist in College…………………………………………...106
12
Codebook of Students’ Responses……………………………………...………177
xiii
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
Student retention rates for public two and four year institutions are at an all-time
low (ACT, 2013). Although the American economy has endured many hardships in the
past decade, including a high unemployment rate, decrease in the stock market, and a
decline in the housing market, literature has shown financial hardships have taken a turn
for the better (Robinson, 2013). During the economic decline of the 21st century,
funding for academic education was cut leaving many students no other option than to
drop out of college. Research suggests other variables account for the high college
attrition rates in the United States (Tinto, 1985; 1987). Scholars have afforded time and
effort to examine additional causes of attrition and have found many factors that affect
student persistence (Nora & Cabrera 1996; Tinto, 1975; 1985; 1987). Such factors that
influence student persistence include family support and student-to-student
connectedness. Additionally, research shows instructors play a pivotal role in student
persistence (Wheeless, Witt, Maresh, Bryand, & Schrodt, 2011). What has been
minimally explored is what instructors do in the classroom (i.e. instructors’
.misbehaviors) that negatively impacts college students’ persistence. Thus it was
possible that student-to-student connectedness and family support would be positively
2
associated to persistence. Inversely, the negative behaviors instructors exhibited in the
classroom might have hindered student persistence.
Kearney, Plax, Hays, and Ivey (1991) posited instructors’ behaviors in the college
classroom are not always perceived by students as positive behaviors. The scholars
identified three dimensions of instructor misbehaviors – indolence, offensiveness, and
incompetence that obstruct perceptions of affect for the instructor, teacher credibility,
ratings of instruction (Banfield, Richmond, & McCroskey, 2006; Roach, 1997), and
instructor immediacy (Kelsey, Kearney, Plax, Allen, & Ritter, 2004). Indolence referred
to lazy behaviors such as arriving to class late or dismissing class too early.
Offensiveness included statements made by instructors that made students feel insulted
like calling students names or telling inappropriate jokes. Incompetence meant that
instructors did not have a lot of knowledge in their content area or portrayed not having
knowledge in a specified content area to students.
Goodboy and Meyers (2015) reexamined student reports of types of instructors’
misbehaviors and found consistent support for Kearney et al.’s (1991) three dimensions
of instructors’ misbehaviors but titled their three dimensions of instructors’ misbehaviors
articulation, lectures, and antagonism. In relation to the present study, articulation,
antagonism, and lectures were used as umbrella terms to classify many instructors’
misbehaviors. For example, an instructor who speaks in a monotone voice may be
perceived by students as highly misbehaved in regards to the instructor’s lecture style. It
is feasible that this instructor may be rated low in the instructor’s lecture style but high in
the instructor’s antagonism. As such, the three dimensions of teachers’ misbehaviors
allow teachers to score high or low in one or more areas. Some scholars have adopted the
3
concept of teacher misbehaviors as a one-dimensional construct (Kelsey et al., 2004); yet
this study has adopted the original multidimensional framework as described by Kearney
et al. (1991) and Goodboy and Meyers (2015). What has still yet to be discovered is how
instructors’ misbehaviors affect students’ overall perceptions about graduating and
persisting.
Although attrition rates are at an all-time high (U. S. Department of Education,
2009), there are precautionary actions instructors can take to alleviate this issue. For
example, recent findings indicated that instructor enthusiasm, immediacy, homophily,
and credibility were positively associated with students’ intent to persist in school
(Wheeless et al., 2011). These important findings lend support for scholars to further
explore the impact instructors’ behaviors, or for the purpose of the present study,
misbehaviors, had on student persistence.
Literature concerning college retention illustrates students who feel connected to
their university and fellow classmates are likely to achieve their degree (Allen, Robbins,
Casillas, & Oh, 2008). Sidelinger, Bolen, Frisby, and McMullen (2011) found studentto-student connectedness did not mediate the relationships between instructor
misbehaviors and affective learning. In other words, students are likely to have positive
learning outcomes when they feel connected to other students, even when instructors
misbehave. Similarly, it was feasible that student-to-student connectedness would
mitigate the negative effects of instructor misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in
college. In addition to student-to-student connectedness, it was feasible that students who
are supported by their family members would persist in college.
Another factor shown to affect student persistence in college is family support.
4
Family support is especially important to Latino college students, as Latinos in general
are a collectivist culture (Torres & Solberg, 2001). Ratelle, Larose, Guay, and Senécal
(2005) examined the role of parental involvement in college students pursuing a science
degree and found parental support had a positive impact on student achievement but not
persistence. Although this finding contradicts Tinto’s (1997) student integration model
and Nora and Cabrera’s (1996) student adjustment model, it lends support that the
relationships between family support and student persistence must be further examined.
Purpose of the Study
The goal of this mixed methods, non-experimental research was to examine the
relationships among instructor misbehaviors, family support, student-to-student
connectedness, and students’ intent to persist in college. To investigate this proposition,
this research examined whether instructors’ misbehaviors did, in fact, negatively
influence students’ intent to persist, and then examined the roles of student-to-student
connectedness and family support as possible moderators of those negative effects.
Statement of the Problem
There is a need to increase retention and graduation rates in American colleges.
College instructors, fellow classmates, and family members play important roles in
helping or hindering students’ intent to persist. Thus, this study sought to examine the
relationships between students’ intent to persist in college to instructors’ misbehaviors,
student-to-student connectedness, and family support.
Theoretical Framework
Costs of higher education continue to increase and are currently at an all-time
high, which presents the issue of student persistence as a pertinent dilemma for educators
5
and administration (St. John, Paulsen, & Carter, 2005). In addition to the availability of
financial assistance, the successful completion of an academic program depends on many
factors, including basic study skills (Bliss & Sandiford, 2004; Boudreau & Kromrey,
1994), positive learning environments (Hurtado, Milem, Clayton-Pederson, & Allen,
1998; Tinto, 1975), learning communities and student orientations (Boudreau &
Kromrey, 1994), effective advising and mentoring programs (Myers, 2003), and
collaborative work between student, peers, and faculty (Bauer & Bennett, 2003). The
frequency and quality of interaction with faculty both in and out of the classroom clearly
enhances persistence (Clark, Keith, & Walker, 2001; Pascarella & Terenzini, 1979;
Terenzini & Pascarella, 1980). Positive teacher-student interactions are particularly
important for ethnic minority students (Hunter, Laursen, & Seymour, 2007; McDaniel &
Graham, 2010). Collectively, research indicates that students are more likely to persist in
environments where there is positive contact with faculty and meaningful engagement in
student activities.
Persisting in academic programs begins with internal attitudes (e.g., motivation
and intent to graduate) that lead to proactive behaviors (e.g., passing courses, reenrolling, completing program requirements). The conceptual and practical connection
between intent to persist and actual follow-through may be explained by the theory of
planned behavior (TPB) (Ajzen, 1985; Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980). The TPB perspective
posits that the intention to behave in a certain way is shaped by an individual’s attitudes,
significant others’ attitudes, and how difficult it would be to carry out the behavior
(Eagly & Chaiken, 1993). Attitudes refer to the positive or negative feelings towards a
specific behavior. Significant others’ attitudes, also known as subjective norms, are the
6
social pressure of whether to engage or not engage in a specific behavior. Perceived
behavioral control, or how difficult it would be to carry out the behavior refers to an
individual’s view of how well he/she can execute a specific behavior (Ajzen, 1985). For
example, if a female student has positive feelings towards persisting in college, sees that
her peers are graduating, and believes that she has the resources to graduate, then that
student most likely has strong intentions of persisting in college. TPB also posits
intentions precede actual behavior; thus, intentions to persist in college should lead to
actual persistence (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980). Sheppard, Hartwick, and Warshaw (1988)
found that the strongest persuasive influences were attitudes of self and others. In a
meta-analysis of health-related research, scholars found that an individual’s intentions
were, in fact, the most significant predictor of demonstrated behavior (Godin & Kok,
1996).
Researchers have found consistent support for the tenets of TPB in the context of
online interaction (Bagozzi, Dholakia, & Mookerjee, 2006), willingness to communicate
(Brann & Sutton, 2009), interpersonal conflict (Roberto, Meyer, & Boster, 2001), and
course enrollment (Christophel & Gorham, 1995; Frymier, 1994). In relation to this
study, the TPB perspective suggests that the likelihood of students continuing in their
academic program until graduation could be predicted by their current and ongoing
intentions to do so. This notion was supported by recent research indicating that
instructor credibility, nonverbal immediacy, homophily, and enthusiasm were positively
associated with students’ intent to persist (Wheeless et al., 2011). In the present study,
the planned behavior perspective was applied to examine whether the presence of
instructors’ misbehaviors negatively affected students’ intent to persist, and whether
7
positive student behaviors could override such negative effects.
Questions and Hypotheses
The current study addressed the following research questions and hypotheses:
1.) What types of instructors’ misbehaviors do students witness in the college
classroom?
2.) What is the relationship between college students’ intent to persist, student-tostudent connectedness, family support, and instructors’ misbehaviors?
College students’ intent to persist is positively related to student-tostudent connectedness and family support, whereas college students’
intent to persist is negatively related to instructors’ misbehaviors.
3.) In what ways does family support moderate the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college?
Family support enhances students’ likelihood of persisting in college by
mitigating the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors.
4.) In what ways does student-to-student connectedness moderate the negative
effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college?
Student-to-student connectedness enhances students’ likelihood of
persisting in college by mitigating the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors.
Definitions
Based on the ideas of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1985), Intent to Persist referred
to students’ objective to obtain a college degree (Wheeless et. al, 2011).
Student-to-Student Connectedness was defined as students’ positive feelings about
8
belonging to their peers in the college classroom (Sidelinger & Booth-Butterfield, 2010).
Family support was conceptualized as backing up a student’s academic goals by
the student’s kin such as mother, brother, father, sister, aunt, uncle, or cousin (Procidano
& Heller, 1983).
Instructors’ misbehaviors referred to
…those teacher behaviors that interfere with instruction and thus, learning.
Repeatedly letting students out of class early, failing to keep office hours,
returning papers late, providing nonspecific evaluations on homework
assignments, making the test too hard (or too easy), or delivering humorless,
monotonous lectures all interfere with our ability to teach effectively and thus,
can all be classified as teacher misbehaviors…these and other teacher
misbehaviors can influence the way students think and act (Kearney et al., 1991,
p. 309).
For the purpose of this research, instructors’ misbehaviors focused on chosen
communicative behaviors rather than innate characteristics that have been viewed as
misbehaviors (Gill, 1994).
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
The review of the literature concentrated on the constructs related to the current
research. This review of literature focused on instructors’ misbehaviors, college
students’ perceptions of family support, student-to-student connectedness, and intent to
persist. These variables were essential to consider when discussing college persistence as
it related to what instructors and students do to enhance or hinder the likelihood of
students obtaining a college degree. Accordingly, it was necessary to first begin the
discussion by covering past literature regarding instructors’ misbehaviors.
Instructors’ Misbehaviors
Instructors’ misbehaviors are "those teacher behaviors that interfere with
instruction and thus, learning” (Kearney et al., 1991, p. 309). These behaviors can
include letting students out of class early, not keeping office hours, returning papers late,
making the test too hard (or too easy), and delivering inappropriate humor. Kearney et al.
(1991) found teacher misbehaviors were divided into three dimensions: indolence,
offensiveness, and incompetence. Indolence referred to instructors who fail to show up
to class on time, and fail to provide sufficient excuses for their absence. Offensiveness
involved an instructor being cruel or mean to students which can include
10
name calling and humiliation. Incompetence entailed instructors not meeting the basic
teaching skills such as assigning too much work and rushing through lectures.
While Kearney et al. (1991) offered an initial investigation of teacher
misbehaviors in the college classroom as well as an instrument to assess teacher
misbehaviors, recent efforts have been afforded to revisiting the scholars’ findings.
Goodboy and Myers (2015) conducted a three phase study that examined students’
perceptions of instructors’ misbehaviors in today’s college classroom which led the
scholars to create an instrument to assess instructors’ misbehaviors. In phase one, the
scholars replicated the procedures of Kearney et al. (1991) and administered an openended survey to undergraduate college students which asked respondents to list instructor
misbehaviors.
The researchers found strong support for Kearney et al.’s (1991) initial 27
categories, but also found there were additional misbehaviors which were seen as more
important to students and as a result, the researchers re-conceptualized the three
dimensions. The final instrument was comprised of 16 items which assessed the
following instructors’ misbehaviors – belittles students, yells at students when they ask
for help, argues with students during class, tells students their opinions are wrong,
criticizes students’ responses to instructor comments or questions, screams or yells at
students, discriminates against certain students, tells students their opinions are wrong
because his/her opinion is right, lectures in a dry manner, goes over the material so
quickly it is difficult to take notes, gives boring lectures, teaches in a confusing manner,
lectures in a monotone voice, speaks English poorly, has a strong accent, and has
problems with pronunciation or articulation. These misbehaviors were categorized into
11
one of three types of teacher misbehaviors which were antagonism, lectures, and
articulation. The implications of Goodboy and Meyer’s (2015) Instructor Misbehaviors
Scale were grave for the present research.
This instrument offered a more current perspective to the negative behaviors
instructors enact in the college classroom in comparison to Kearney et al.’s (1991) initial
investigation. Past literature has solely focused on teacher misbehaviors through Kearney
et al.’s (1991) perspectives, which is what the present research continued to discuss in
this review of literature; however Goodboy and Meyer’s (2015) instrument lends promise
to better assess today’s college instructors’ misbehaviors.
Scholars have found that instructors’ misbehaviors are negatively related to
teacher credibility (Banfield et al., 2006), perceived immediacy (Thweatt & McCroskey,
1996; 1998), cognitive learning (Goodboy & Bolkan, 2009), motives for communicating
with instructors (Goodboy, Myers, & Bolkan, 2010), and motivation in the college
classroom (Gorham & Christophel, 1992; Gorham & Millette, 1997). Hutchens and
Hayes (2014) explored the relationship between instructors’ misbehaviors on Facebook to
perceived teacher credibility and showed that, in general, misbehavior on Facebook did
not greatly impact students’ perceptions of instructor’s behaviors. However, Hutchens
and Hayes urged college teachers to be cautious with what college teachers disclose on
Facebook because students indicated there were boundaries which could be crossed
(Petronio, 2002). Boice (1996) found college students rated highly misbehaved
instructors lower on end-of-the-semester evaluations than instructors who did not
misbehave.
Findings from one study demonstrated instructors’ misbehaviors negatively
12
impacted students’ perceptions of liking the instructor (Banfield et al., 2006). One such
perception is teachers’ credibility which teachers who are older are perceived as more
credible than teachers who are younger in age (Semlak & Pearson, 2008). Additionally,
students are not inclined to discuss instructors’ misbehaviors directly with the teacher for
fear of losing face (Goodboy et al., 2010). Although there is a strong link between
instructors’ misbehaviors to negative learning outcomes, one piece of literature suggests
students may perceive teachers’ traits such as a vocal accent as a form of misbehavior
(Gill, 1994). It was imperative to distinguish chosen behaviors over innate
characteristics, as it was easier to observe and correct a chosen behavior, whereas born
traits were harder to eradicate.
Additionally, recent research indicates although teachers misbehave in the
classroom, there are interventions which can help alleviate the negative effects of
instructors’ misbehaviors. For instance, Claus, Booth-Butterfield, and Chory (2012)
found perceived interpersonal attractiveness, use of humor, and relational closeness
reduced students’ negative behaviors in the classroom when instructors misbehaved.
Moreover, the scholars hypothesized use of humor, relational closeness, and interpersonal
attractiveness would serve as a mediator between instructors’ misbehaviors and antisocial
behavioral alternation techniques but found no statistical support for this claim. The
scholars argued a feasible reason not finding these constructs as mediators was that the
role prosocial communicative behaviors played was more powerful than anticipated. It
was plausible that positive student behaviors linked to the instructor acted as moderators
between instructors’ misbehaviors and students’ learning outcomes. Specific to this
research, student-to-student connectedness and family support was agued to have a larger
13
impact on students’ intent to persist in college than instructors’ misbehaviors and as a
result student-to-student connectedness and family support would mitigate the negative
effects of instructors’ misbehaviors completely.
From a consumer perspective, students are often dissatisfied with teachers’
instruction and their learning experiences (Goodboy, 2011a; McMillen & Cheney, 1996).
This dissatisfaction can lead to negative student reactions such as resistance (Burroughs,
Kearney, & Plax, 1989), challenge behaviors (Simonds, 1997), and nagging behaviors
(Dunleavy, et al., 2008). Resistance entails students not engaging in class activities.
Challenge behaviors refer to students questioning the instructor over coursework or
content. For example a student might question the teacher, “Where did you get this fact
from?” Nagging behaviors involve students complaining about the instructor behind the
instructor’s back. Thus, it was possible that because instructors’ misbehaviors caused
negative student reactions (Goodboy, 2011a; Goodboy, 20011b), students would not
intend to persist in college.
Goodboy and Bolkan (2009) illustrated strong support regarding the direct and
indirect effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ communication behaviors and
traditional learning outcomes. The scholars surveyed undergraduate college students to
study if teachers misbehaved in the college classroom, were students negatively directly
and indirectly impacted by their satisfaction with the instructor’s communication,
likelihood to participate in class discussions, resistant to learning, had low cognitive and
affective learning, and low state motivation. Simply put, Goodboy and Bolkan (2009)
demonstrated that instructors play a pivotal role in college students’ success or rather
instructors can impede learning experiences for college students. Accordingly, it was
14
likely that because instructors’ misbehaviors negatively impacted student learning
outcomes, this study would produce similar findings in regards to instructors’
misbehaviors negatively impacting students’ intent to persist in college.
There is a great deal of time spent in the media focusing on extreme teacher
misbehaviors such as sexual assault or physically harming students; yet everyday some
teachers misbehave on a smaller scale. It was imperative to hone in on these mundane
misbehaviors, as instructors’ misbehaviors could be a detriment to students’ achievement
and even perhaps their persistence in college. Moreover, a substantial amount of
scholarship has focused on positive instructor behaviors (Sanders & Wiseman, 1990;
Schrodt, et al., 2009; Shu-Fang & Aust, 2008); yet scant literature concentrates on the
negative instructor behaviors and their impact on students’ persistence. In addition to the
literature concerning instructors’ misbehaviors, it was imperative to discuss family
support.
Family Support
Family support refers to the kin who provide encouraging advice or guidance over
academic and social matters to their college student (Procidano & Heller, 1983).
Although students ultimately earn their degree on their own, family support has shown to
enhance the likelihood of students persisting in college (Tinto, 1975). As a result,
students turn to mom, dad, sister, brother, cousin, uncle, aunt, grandmother, or
grandfather for emotional and social backing. Parental support is especially important to
students as many undergraduates attend college based on their parents’ background
(Tinto, 1975). Scholars have noted the important role that parents exclusively play in
aiding their student to obtain a college degree such as offering stories over past
15
experiences and giving encouraging words over persistence (McCarron & Inkelas, 2006;
Ratelle et al., 2005).
Most noteworthy are the attributes which parents’ backgrounds contribute to
students’ collegiate success (Tinto, 1975). Social status attributes and value and
expectation climates are all factors that comprise parental characteristics as described by
Tinto’s (1975) model of departure. In other words, students enter the college
environment with attitudes based on their upbringing. Although Tinto initially raised the
argument over college attrition and the role families play, scholars constantly revisit his
theory and framework, as it has held strong and true over the past few decades (Braxton,
Milem, & Sullivan, 2000; Cabrera, Castaneda, Nora, & Hengstler, 1992; Pascarella &
Terenzini, 1979). Moreover, college persistence and retention remains a prevalent issue
among higher education institutions and will continue to be an obstacle with tuition rates
at an all-time high (St. John et al., 2005).
In addition to Tinto’s (1975) contributions to literature concerning family support,
fellow scholars have provided evidence that family support leads to positive learning
outcomes, which lends support that this area should be further examined. Klinefelter
(1990) explored the impact family support had on women who reentered college.
Findings from the scholar’s research indicated family support was necessary for women
who reenter college to achieve their college degree. Most of the participants that
persisted reported strong ratings of family support. On the other hand, there was a small
number of the participants who dropped out of college a second time and reported low
ratings of family support. Family support is especially important to minority college
students such as Latinos (Torres & Solberg, 2001) and Native Americans (Smith, Hill, &
16
Jackson, 2003). Family support has been positively linked to students’ grade point
averages (Cheng, Ickes, & Verhofstadt, 2012), interaction (Barnett, 2004), and overall
academic achievement (Buchmann & DiPrete, 2006; Mortensen, 2006). Furthermore,
family support tends to be more important to females than males (Buchmann & DiPrete,
2006; Cheng et al., 2012).
There has been a great concern in the literature regarding family support as it
pertains to minorities’ persistence in college. For instance, Hilton and Felder (2014)
found that family is especially important to minority students attending historically Black
colleges and universities. Barbatis (2010) interviewed minority students over their
perceptions of why they persisted in college. The data showed that there were four main
reasons why these students persisted, which were precollege attributes, external college
support/community influences, social involvement, and academic integration. Precollege
attributes were conceptualized as qualities that students bring with them before they start
college. One such precollege attribute was family support. Similar to this research,
Awad (2014) conducted a mixed methods study, using both interviews and surveys, and
found that students persisted in learning college-level foreign languages because of the
support their peers, instructors, and family members gave students.
Recent research shows that both family members and student support play a
pivotal role in students’ goal of graduating. Moreover, it appears that family members
have a stronger influence over peers in regards to students’ intentions to persist in college
(Strom & Savage, 2014). Thus, family members should be cognizant about the impact
they have on their kin’s intent to persist in college. Specifically, it is likely that in this
research family support would have a strong impact on students’ intent to persist that
17
instructors’ misbehaviors would not completely hinder students’ likelihood of achieving a
college degree.
The aforementioned positive outcomes of family support showed that family
support would potentially be positively related to students’ intent to persist in college.
Additionally, if the relationship of family support to students’ intent to persist in college
was highly positive in strength, it was possible that family support could offset the
negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college.
Although the literature regarding family support was important to the current research,
literature concerning student-to-student connectedness was also important.
Student-to-Student Connectedness
Student connectedness has been a concern for instructors and administrators in
higher education as it is a predictor of retention (Tinto, 1997). Past literature focuses on
faculty and institutional efforts that are created to help students feel connected with the
course material, the classroom, and the overall institution (Battistich, Solomon, Kim,
Watson, & Schaps, 1995; Schaps & Lewis, 1997). Recent efforts have been afforded to
examine student-to-student connectedness (Frisby & Martin, 2010; Glaser & Bingham,
2008). Student-to-student connectedness is defined as students having a feeling of
camaraderie with their classmates (Dwyer et al., 2004). When students feel connected to
their peers, bonding and relationships flourish. From this perspective, the classroom
climate must be safe and inviting so that students feel free to express their ideas and
contribute discussion (Frisby & Martin, 2010). Gerdes and Mallinckrodt (1994)
performed a longitudinal study and found college students dropped out due to emotional
and social factors rather than academic factors. Thus, it was likely that college students
18
would persist when they felt connected to their peers.
Both faculty and students report high levels of student compliance when students
feel connected to their peers (Sidelinger, Bolen, Frisby, & McMullen, 2012). In other
words, students who feel comfortable and close to their peers in the classroom are more
likely to be attentive to instructors and comply with instructors’ requests such as
participating in class discussions. Furthermore, the powerful impact student-to-student
connectedness has on students outcomes has been examined by LaBelle and Johnson
(2014) who found students are more likely to dissent about their instructors when they
feel connected to their peers. The researchers’ findings illustrated that student-to-student
connectedness can lead to both positive and negative outcomes in the college classroom.
Frisby and Martin (2010) noted connectedness comes from both the instructor and
students and student-to-student connectedness had positive relationships with affect for
the course content and cognitive learning. When students feel not only connected to their
peers but also to the overall educational institution, students are more likely to persist and
obtain a college degree (Wilson & Gore, 2013). Student-to-student connectedness has
also been positively related to teacher confirmation (Sidelinger & Booth-Butterfield,
2010) and perceived rapport with instructors and classmates (Frisby & Martin, 2010).
Students define “connected” behaviors from their peers as friendly, honesty, and
supportive (Glasser & Bingham, 2008).
The literature concerning student-to-student connectedness has also focused on
specific cultural findings. For example, Jdaitawi (2015) examined Saudi Arabia
undergraduate students’ perceptions over the relationships between social connectedness,
self-efficacy, self-control, and self-regulation. The researcher found positive
19
relationships existed among all of the variables and students connectedness and the
overall institution predicted self-regulation but not self-efficacy.
Dennis, Phinney, and Chuateco (2005) conducted a longitudinal study over the
impact of motivation, peer support, and parental support on students’ grade point
averages and adjustment to college. Findings suggested lack of both peer and parental
support negatively impacted students’ grades and adjustment to college. Thus, this study
showed that both parents and peers have great responsibility to positively support their
kin and peers so that students will have positive learning outcomes, no matter students’
ethnic background. Solorzano, Ceja, and Yosso (2000) conducted focus groups
comprised of African American college students and found that disconnection or
putdowns from other students hinders African American students’ likelihood of persisting
in college.
Literature also shows first generation students have the need to be connected to
their peers in order to persist in college. For instance, Garcia (2010) argued that first
generation students especially need special attention in- and out-of-college in order to
persist and one such way to support first generation students is through co-curricular
involvement. Co-curricular involvement provides opportunities for college students to
obtain relationships with their peers and thus be connected. What is consistent is that no
matter the background of students, feeling connected to classmates is imperative for
students to persist in their academic programs.
This evidence illustrates student-to-student connectedness has positive learning
outcomes on college students. Similarly, it was possible that student-to-student
connectedness had a positive relationship to students’ intent to persist in college. If the
20
relationship of student-to-student connectedness to students’ intent to persist in college
was highly positive in strength, it was conceivable that student-to-student connectedness
would mitigate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to
persist in college. In addition to the literature concerning student-to-student
connectedness, the literature on students’ intent to persist was also imperative to review.
Students’ Intent to Persist as Planned Behavior
College persistence, attrition, and retention have long been a concern of
educational leadership scholars. Multiple theories have been offered to explain factors
that contribute to persistence (Spady, 1970; Tinto, 1975). For example, Tinto’s (1975)
theory of student integration postulates students persist in college based on their goal
commitment and the institution’s commitment. Factors that affect goal and institution
commitment include faculty support, student qualifications and attributes, academic
integration, family attributes, debt, family events, and social integration. Academic
integration involves grades, identification of being a student, association with academic
norms, and enjoyment of course subjects. Social integration entails how many friends
students have, communication with faculty, and enjoyment of being a part of the
institution.
Bean (1980) extended Tinto’s line of work by contributing an alternative theory
of student attrition. Like Tinto, Bean (1980) was concerned with the many factors that
affected student attrition thus leading Bean to create a causal model of student attrition.
Overall, Bean’s findings showed that students were more likely to drop out if they were
not committed to the particular institution, did not have a history of high academic
performance, did not believe that an education would benefit them in the workplace, did
21
not understand the academic and social rules of college, and did not participate in
extracurricular activities. Bean and Vesper (1990) posited intentions to persist should be
assessed early on as to catch potential loss of college students. The scholars
demonstrated organizational, personal, and environmental variables contribute to college
students’ intent to persist. Cabrera et al. (1992) tested both models and found strong
support for both theories. It was urged that scholars should consider the conditions and
criterion of student persistence when deciding which one to use. Although Tinto (1975)
and Bean (1980) offer validated theories for examining college persistence, an alternative
framework was utilized in the current research.
It would take a lot of time and attention to detail to assess college students’
persistence, as obtaining a degree is the only true measure of this construct. One
alternative to tracking college persistence is the intention to persist. Internal attitudes
drive persistence which leads to proactive behaviors like re-enrolling or completing
program requirements. Ajzen (1985) best describes this phenomenon of intention leading
to actual persistence with his TPB. The TPB perspective argues intentions to execute a
specific behavior will lead to actual execution of a specific behavior. Thus, intentions
precede actual behavior and past literature has demonstrated strong support for the
postulates of this theory (Albarracin, Johnson, Fishbein, & Muellerleile, 2001; Armitage
& Talibudeen, 2010; Brann & Sutton, 2009; Cha, Kim, & Patrick, 2008; Collins,
Witkiewitz, & Larimer, 2011; Harvey, et al., 2009).
TPB argues that individual’s attitudes, other’s attitudes, and the availability of
resources to perform that behavior shapes a person’s intention to perform a targeted
behavior (Eagly & Chaiken, 1993). Intentions to perform a specific behavior most often
22
lead to actual execution of the specific behavior (Ajzen, 1985). In a similar fashion, it
was feasible that college students’ intent to persist was a valid assessment of actual
persistence. Hence, the actual behavior of persistence (i.e. obtaining a degree) was not
the focus of the present research; rather the concentration was on college students’ intent
to persist.
The TPB has been extensively researched and scholars have shown strong support
when testing this theory (Albarracin et al., 2001). Specifically, TPB has been applied to
studies over risky health behaviors (Armitage & Talibudeen, 2010; Cha, Kim, & Patrick,
2008; Collins, Witkiewitz, & Larimer, 2011; Harvey, et al., 2009), condom use
(Albarracin et al., 2001; Arden & Armitage, 2008), and students’ willingness to talk
about smoking behaviors (Brann & Sutton, 2009). Moreover, there is minimal literature
regarding application of the TPB to students’ intentions to persist in college but two
current studies offered insight.
In a recent study, Wheeless et al. (2011) illustrated strong positive relationships
between students’ intent to persist in college to teacher credibility, nonverbal immediacy,
homophily, and enthusiasm. The scholars urged researchers to further explore variables
related to intent to persist as there seems to be a recent void of literature in this area.
Furthermore, Witt, Schrodt, Wheeless, and Bryand (2014) responded to this call of action
and found instructor credibility and nonverbal immediacy moderated the negative effects
of students’ receiver apprehension on intent to persist in college. In other words, when
instructors are viewed as credible and close to their students, students’ fear of
communicating with their instructors and peers is eliminated and thus, students’ like their
instructors and will intend to persist in college. This piece of literature was especially
23
noteworthy because the researchers suggested future researchers explore student
connectedness and family support as they relate to students’ intent to persist, which was
where the current research picked up on this line of research. The author of the present
research applied the TPB perspective to examine the relationships between college
students’ intent to persist to instructors’ misbehaviors, family support, and student-tostudent connectedness.
Moreover, persistence has been examined at two and four year higher educational
institutions. What is evident is that there are more similarities than differences between
students persisting at two and four year colleges. For instance, Strauss and Volkwein
(2004) argued student commitment to the higher educational institution predicts students’
likelihood to persist in college. The scholars found students at two year colleges had
higher commitment than students at four year universities; however the scholars
cautioned that this finding should be taken lightly because the mean differences were
only slightly different.
Tinto (2006) recapped college persistence over the past four decades and
explained that both two and four year institutions struggle to retain students but more
specifically, low-income students. The renowned scholar argued,
We need to know more about the nature of their experiences in both two- and
four-year institutions, the ways those experiences influence persistence, and more
importantly the sorts of institutional and state actions that enhance their success in
higher education. (p. 12)
Furthermore, most of Tinto’s research regarding student persistence has been
conducted at community colleges (Deil-Amen, 2011; Halpin, 1990; Tinto, 1997) but
24
many scholars have applied his model and theory of student departure to four year
institutions (Berger & Braxton, 1998; Pascarella & Chapman, 1983). In response to
Tinto’s call, the present scholar sought to examine student persistence at both two and
four year higher educational institutions. The present researcher did not seek to
determine differences between students from two and four year colleges; rather the focus
was to look at college persistence holistically. Collectively examining students from two
and four year institutions was one such way to holistically look at why students persist in
college.
Research has also shown racial, ethnic, and gender differences and similarities
regarding student persistence in college. For example, Fischer (2007) found no matter
the racial group, student involvement with their peers and professors is imperative for
students to persist throughout college. Black and Hispanic students especially benefit
from being engaged in formal school organizations such as student led clubs. Using
critical race theory, Munoz and Maldonado (2012) examined undocumented Mexicana
college students’ narratives over why they persisted in college. Findings demonstrated
that undocumented Mexicana students persisted in college by utilizing the few resources
available to undocumented Mexicana students at their colleges. While some research
points out that there are more White, Black, and Hispanic students enrolled in college
programs than ever before, a recent study showed Black students are less likely to drop
out of college than Hispanic or White students; whereas Hispanic students are more
likely to drop out of college than Black or White students (Baker & Robnett, 2013).
Hence, these combined findings show that regardless of students’ racial or ethnic
background, students need support from their family, peers, and professors in order to
25
persist in college. Because of this summative conclusion, in this research, race and ethnic
differences were not sought after; rather the focus of this research was on the general
student population.
In regards to sex, Leppel (2002) explored reasons why men and women persist in
college and factors that affect their intent to persist. The findings from this research
showed having children negatively impacted men’s likelihood of persisting; whereas
having children positive impacted women’s likelihood of persisting. Severiens and Dam
(2012) showed that women are more successful in college and because of that women are
more likely to persist in college than men. On the other hand, the same study found that
both men and women depart from their higher educational institutions because of the
perceived poor quality of their academic program (Severiens & Dam, 2012). Thus, both
males and females require some type of support from either their family or the institution
in order to persist in college. In this research, gender was assessed but gender and sex
differences were not sought after as the focus was on the general student population.
The literature also points out that first generation students require similar support
systems to those of traditional college students to successfully persist in college. First
generation students often come from low income, minority backgrounds and as such do
not have access to resources at home that help these students academically and socially in
college. Because of the lack of these resources, first generation students have difficulties
in their academic performance and often drop out of college (Terenzini, Springer,
Yaeger, Pascarella, & Nora, 1996). Pascarella, Pierson, Wolniak, and Terenzini (2004)
contended that first generation students do not differ from traditional students because of
their precollege attributes; rather first generation students sometimes differ from
26
traditional students because of their experiences when they get to college. Such
experiences include their involvement in student clubs and on-campus festivities.
One study found that test scores, income level, and grade point average did not
predict students’ intent to persist among first generation college students (Somers,
Woodhouse, & Cofer, 2004). On the other hand, Ishitani (2006) suggested that first
generation students who come from high income levels than low income levels are more
likely to persist in college. Additionally, the scholar found that first generation students
who had parents that attended some college were more likely to obtain their college
degree than first generation students who had parents that attended no college. In this
research, first generation was assessed but the data was not disaggregated so to provide a
holistic picture as to why the general college student population persisted in college.
Summary
These collective findings illustrated the positive impact student-to-student
connectedness had on learning outcomes. It appeared that student-to-student
connectedness would be related to college student’s intent to persist and some findings
suggested student-to-student connectedness would potentially mitigate the negative
effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist. Furthermore, past
literature showed students’ intent to persist in college would be negatively associated to
instructors’ misbehaviors and positively associated to family support and student-tostudent connectedness. If the relationships between family support, student-to-student
connectedness, and students’ intent to persist in college were strong, these variables
would hold enough power to mitigate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors.
CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
The goal of this mixed methods, non-experimental research was to examine the
relationships among instructor misbehaviors, family support, student-to-student
connectedness, and students’ intent to persist in college. Also, the current researcher
sought to explore if family support and student-to-student connectedness would mitigate
the negative effects of instructor misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college.
The first research question asked, “What types of instructors’ misbehaviors do students
witness in the college classroom? “The second research question asked, “What is the
relationship between college students’ intent to persist, student-to-student connectedness,
family support, and instructors’ misbehaviors?” The third research question asked, “In
what ways does family support moderate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors
on students’ intent to persist in college?” The fourth research question asked, “In what
ways does student-to-student connectedness moderate the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college?” Chapter Three was divided into
four major sections. Part One covered the research design, target population and sample,
participant selection, and operational definitions. Part Two covered the quantitative
phase which included instrumentation, quantitative data collection, data analysis, and
reliability and validity procedures. Part Three covered the qualitative phase which
included data
28
collection, data analysis, and establishing credibility procedures. Part Four covered
research permission and ethical considerations and the role of the researcher.
Research Design
This study used a mixed methods, non-experimental research design to assess
how family support and student-to-student connectedness could mitigate any possible
negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college.
Creswell (2002) argued mixed methodological designs help researchers understand
research questions more holistically. Quantitative data provided an initial look at
whether or not student-to-student connectedness and family support mitigated the
negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college and
qualitative data provided a rich after look as to why or why not student-to-student
connectedness and family support played such a pivotal role in the persistence process.
Specifically, this research used the quantitative procedures conducted by Wheeless et al.
(2011) but with different variables. The researchers used surveys as the
only means of collecting and analyzing data. Similarly, this study used surveys as
quantitative means for collecting data. Additionally, a pilot survey was conducted with
23 undergraduate students to ensure clarity of the items.
Quantitative research focuses on numerical data that represents a sample of a total
population (Field, 2009). Variables are isolated to determine differences between people,
relationships among variables, and to create predictions about variable order. Hypotheses
are used to make projections about what happens between two or more variables through
postpositive claims. Such depictions of everyday phenomenon help researchers share
their knowledge with the academic community. Field (2009) contends it is up to the
29
researcher to determine which instruments to use to assess the targeted variables and is a
critical aspect of the research procedures.
Qualitative research focuses on deep understandings of each person’s reality
through the participant’s lens. Constructivist claims are made to fully comprehend each
person’s point of view of why and how people behave. Forms of data collection include
focus groups, interviews, and participant diaries (Lichtman, 2013). Face-to-face
interviews were needed in this study to capture a deeper picture about how and why
students’ persistence was related to instructors’ misbehaviors, family support, and
student-to-student connectedness.
Sequential explanatory mixed methods provided structure for combining
quantitative and qualitative methods (Creswell, 2002). Two phases were used in this
study which entailed quantitative research methods in the first phase and qualitative
research methods in the second phase. Phase One used surveys as a form of data
collection and were analyzed with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences v. 23
(SPSS). The goal of the first phase was to determine if student-to-student connectedness
and family support combined would mitigate the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college. Phase Two used face-to-face
interviews as a form of data collection and was analyzed via the thematic analysis
technique. The goal of the second phase was to explain why or why not student-tostudent connectedness and family support diminished the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college. The two phases were integrated
when crafting interview questions for the qualitative phase as well as in Chapters Four
and Five of this study. Chapter Four, the Results section, was organized by research
30
questions and supported by findings from the quantitative and qualitative data. Similarly,
Chapter Five discussed the findings from the quantitative and qualitative data and the
implications.
Population and Sample
Undergraduate college students were the target population because the study’s
focus was on students’ perceptions about instructors’ misbehaviors, student-to-student
connectedness, family support, and intent to persist in college. Thus, students’ points of
view were the concentration of this study. Participants were identified through
purposeful sampling. Thus, purposeful sampling allows for the researcher to recruit
participants where the participant criteria have meaning to the research (Field, 2009).
The purposeful sampling technique was chosen in this research because the focus of this
study was on undergraduate college students who were enrolled in a college course and
were at least 18 years old.
The present researcher sought professors teaching summer courses via email and
asked professors if the researcher could enter the professors’ classes to survey their
students. Upon approval from the professors, the researcher entered each class and asked
undergraduate college students to participate in a survey. On average, the survey took 15
minutes to complete including time used for the researcher to discuss the Adult Informed
Consent Form. In Phase One, the following descriptive variables were assessed by
asking participants to volunteer this information on their survey: participants’ age, sex,
ethnicity, nationality, grade level, full-time or part-time status, financial aid status,
financial assistance from family members, whether they were first generation or not, and
number of siblings.
31
The present researcher obtained 297 undergraduate college students (65 males,
219 females, 13 other, and 3 did not identify their gender) recruited from summer courses
at a mid-sized South-Central two-year college and a mid-sized South-Central four-year
university in the United States. Other demographic characteristics of the sample were
reported in Tables 1, 2, 3, and 4.
Table 1
Participants’ Grade Level and Enrollment Status
Part-time
Grade Level
Sophomore
Junior
Freshman
Senior
Other
Unknown
128
168
4
36
58
106
86
7
7
42.70%
56.00%
1.30%
12.00%
19.30%
35.30%
28.70%
2.30%
2.30%
N
Percent
Enrollment Status
FullUnknown
Time
Table 2
Participants’ Race
Race
N
Percent
Caucasian
African
American
Hispanic
Asian Pacific
Islander
Mixed
Race/Biracial
Native American
Other
Unknown
84
47
96
45
16
1
7
4
28.00%
15.70%
32.00%
15.00%
5.30%
0.30%
2.30%
1.30%
32
Table 3
Participants’ Siblings, Birthplace, and First Generation
Had Siblings
N
Percent
Grade Level
First Generation
Yes
No
Unknown
Texas
Another State
Outside of USA
Unknown
Yes
No
280
17
3
195
41
61
3
113
158
93.30%
5.70%
1.00%
65.00%
13.70%
20.30%
1.00%
Unknown
3
1.00%
37.70% 52.70%
Table 4
Participants’ Financial Assistance
Federal Financial Assistance
N
Percent
Family Financial Assistance
Yes
No
Unknown
Yes
No
Unknown
191
103
6
136
158
6
63.70%
34.30%
2.00%
45.30%
52.70%
2.00%
33
34
Participant Selection
In Phase Two, 12 undergraduate students participated in face-to-face interviews.
These participants were recruited through the purposeful sampling technique and came
from the participants who volunteered in Phase One. The purpose for this form of
participant selection was to ensure a wide array of perspectives to prevent potential biases
of responses during the interviews. The researcher initially sought ten participants who
reported a range of perceived instructor misbehaviors but after the first ten interviews
were conducted, the researcher had not reached saturation and additional data was
needed. Hence, two more interviews were conducted.
The researcher initially sought a range of participants who differed in their
opinions over perceived instructor misbehaviors (i.e. high, medium, and low
misbehavior); however there were only seven participants who reported highly
misbehaved instructors and only one of them was able to participate in an interview.
Also, there were only 21 moderately misbehaved instructors and two of those participants
were able to participate in an interview. Most of the sample reported having low
misbehaved instructors and as such most of the interviewees came from this group of
participants (N = 9). Students were notified about Phase Two on the Informed Consent
Form.
The participants in the second phase included four males and eight females. Half
of the participants attended the two year college and the other half attended the four year
university. The pseudonym for the two year college in this study was Pluto College and
the pseudonym for the four year university was Donald Duck University. It should be
noted that three of the participants at the two year institution were only taking summer
35
courses at that college and were enrolled for the Fall 2015 semester at a four year
program elsewhere. Two of the participants identified themselves as African American,
one participant identified as being Hispanic, one participant identified as being
Asian/Pacific Islander, five of the participants noted they were Caucasian, and three of
the participants identified as Other. The average age of the participants was 24 years old.
Three of the participants noted being born outside of the United States while nine of the
participants were born in the state where data was collected.
Operational Definitions
In this research, moderated referred to diminishing outcomes of instructors’
misbehaviors.
Based on the ideas of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1985), Intent to Persist was
operationalized with Wheeless et al. (2011)’s six item instrument that assessed the
likelihood of students intent to persist throughout college. Each item consisted of bipolar adjectives that described how the teacher before the current class had impacted
students’ decision to stay in school. Actual behavior of persisting in college was not
assessed in this research; rather students’ intent to persist was assessed. Intent to persist
was also measured with four open-ended questions which the researcher asked
participants during a face-to-face interview. These open-ended questions assessed
various factors that students’ felt impacted their decision to persist in college such as
family support, student-to-student connectedness, and instructors’ misbehaviors.
Family support was operationalized in this research with the Perceived Social
Support-From Family measure (Procidano & Heller, 1983). This instrument assessed the
perceived positive and negative experiences students had with their kin. The researcher
36
also created six open-ended questions which were used during a face-to-face interview to
gauge students’ perceptions regarding how their family members supported them and
whether this support was necessary for college persistence.
Student-to-Student Connectedness was operationalized with Dwyer et al.’s (2004)
Connected Classroom Climate Inventory. This instrument measured students’ positive
feelings about belonging to their peers in the college classroom (Sidelinger & BoothButterfield, 2010). Additionally, the researcher crafted five open-ended items that
assessed student-to-student connectedness during face-to-face interviews with
participants.
Instructor misbehaviors were operationalized with Goodboy and Myers (2015)
Instructor Misbehaviors Scale which contained 16 Likert-type items. Each item assessed
students’ perceptions over the negative (and one positive behavior which was reverse
coded) behaviors their instructors enacted in the college classroom. The researcher also
created six open-ended items to measure students’ perceptions of their instructors’
misbehaviors in the college classroom, which were posed to participants during face-toface interviews.
Phase I Quantitative
Reliability and Validity
Reliability and validity are two important aspects of quantitative research which
were considered in this research. According to Field (2009), reliability refers to how
accurate an instrument measures a given construct whereas validity refers to whether the
instrument measures what it aims to measure. For this research, reliability was obtained
using the internal consistency reliability technique. Specifically, Cronbach’s alpha was
37
calculated for each quantitative instrument used in this study. Cronbach’s alpha tells the
researcher the average among all split-half correlations of the items in each instrument
(Field, 2009).
Validity was demonstrated in this study through convergent, predictive, and face
validity. Construct validity was evident based upon the Pearson correlations which were
run to test the hypotheses. One form of construct validity, convergent validity, shows
two variables are related to one another (Johnson & Christensen, 2014). In the present
research, it was predicted that students’ intent to persist in college would be positively
related to student-to-student connectedness and family support and would be inversely
related to instructors’ misbehaviors. These relationships were detected and thus,
convergent validity was illustrated.
Table 5
Convergent Validity (N = 297)
Variables
M
SD
1
2
3
4
1.00
-.27**
1.00
1. Antagonism
.30
.55
1.00
2. Lectures
.92
.97
.58**
1.00
3. Articulation
4. Family Support
.39
1.64
.70
.36
.09
-.06
.25**
-.06
5. Student-to-Student
Connectedness
3.08
.53
-.11
-.30** -.31** .27**
1.00
6. Students’ Intent to
Persist
5.83
1.43
-.34**
-.40** -.16**
.20** 1.00
.12*
Note. *p < .05, ** p < .01
A common form of criterion-related validity, predictive validity, was
5
6
38
demonstrated in this research. Predictive validity means that the target construct should
be able to forecast what it seeks to predict (Johnson & Christensen, 2014). Witt et al.
(2014) showed instructors’ credibility and nonverbal immediacy were predictors of
students’ intent to persist in college. Similarly, two dimensions of instructors’
misbehaviors, antagonism and lectures were predictors of students’ intent to persist in
college. In other words, when instructors misbehaved, students were less likely to persist
in college.
Face validity refers to the researcher demonstrating that the items on an
instrument looks like what it should be measuring (Field, 2009). This research argued
face validity regarding Wheeless et al.’s (2011) six-item measure for students’ intent to
persist in college. The rationale for illustrating face validity for this instrument is
because it was fairly new and does not measure actual persistence. Face validity was
used in this research as perceived validity and was not empirically validated as face
validity only examines whether the instrument appears to measure what is argues to
measure. Thus, it was necessary to ensure that this instrument was not only reliable but
also sound. Results from a pilot study conducted in this research showed that with all six
items, Cronbach’s alpha reliability was found to be .90, which illustrated strong internal
consistency. Further analysis illustrated that deleting items would weaken the
instrument. Hence, all six items were used in the final questionnaire.
Furthermore, the researcher conducted a pilot survey with the quantitative
instruments to 23 undergraduate college students. Using the purposeful sampling
technique, students were recruited from educational courses taught during the Summer I
session at the four year institution. To participate in the pilot study, participants had to be
39
enrolled in at least one summer course, be at least 18 years of age, and consent to respond
to the survey. Although there were 25 students enrolled in the face-to-face-course, only
23 students responded to the pilot survey, resulting in a 92% response rate. Cronbach’s
alpha reliability scores were then yielded for each instrument to ensure reliability of each
instrument. Field (2009) considers acceptability of instruments to be at least .70. In the
pilot study, all instruments except for the articulation dimension of instructors’
misbehaviors met Field’s expectation of acceptability. Table 6 illustrated Cronbach’s
alpha reliability scores for the instruments used in the pilot survey.
Table 6
Cronbach’s Alpha Reliability Scores for Each Instrument Used in the Pilot Survey (N =
23)
Cronbach’s
alpha
Intent
to
Persist
.90
Family
Support
.89
Student-toAntagonism Lectures Articulation
Student
Connectedness
.91
.89
.90
.61
Also, participants were asked to make notes on the survey if there was unclear
wording, questions, or concerns regarding each item. Two participants noted the ethnic
label, “Asian Pacific Islander” should have a forward slash between Asian and Pacific to
separate the two ethnicities. In response to this concern, the researcher added the forward
slash between the two ethnic labels for the final version of the questionnaire. The pilot
survey served as a means to illustrate face validity in this research. The reliability scores
and student recommendations demonstrated that the items measured what they sought to
assess.
40
Instrumentation
This study assessed instructors’ misbehaviors, family support, student-to-student
connectedness, and students’ intent to persist in college. The measures that were used in
the study included the Instructor Misbehaviors Scale (Goodboy & Myers, 2015), the
Perceived Social Support-From Family Measure (Procidano & Heller, 1983), the
Connected Classroom Climate Inventory (Dwyer et al., 2004), and the Intent to Persist
Scale (Wheeless et al., 2011). These instruments were provided in Appendices A, B, C,
D, and E. Using the suggestions of Plax et al. (1986), participants were asked to respond
to the survey regarding another instructor taken prior to the present class when the survey
was administered. In other words, students were asked to assess a different instructor
than the current class they were in. Given that this survey was administered during the
summer sessions, participants were urged to consider an instructor from the preceding
Spring semester if they were not taking another summer course.
Instructor misbehaviors. Instructors’ misbehaviors were assessed with the
Instructor Misbehaviors Scale, a 16-item measure that asks participants to rate the
frequency of which their instructors engage in inappropriate classroom behaviors across
three dimensions: antagonism, lectures, and articulation (Goodboy & Myers, 2015).
Responses were solicited using a five-point Likert type scale ranging from never (0) to
(4) very often. Goodboy and Myers (2015) provided the following Cronbach’s alpha
reliability scores for this instrument in two of their three studies .91 and .90 for
antagonism, .87 and .86 for lectures, and .83 and .75 for articulation. One item was
reverse coded, whereas the remaining 15 items indicated a higher frequency of
instructors’ misbehaviors. Field (2009) argued that reliability scores of .70 and above are
41
considered acceptable to high which lends support that this instrument was reliable.
Thus, this instrument was highly reliable, as past research has shown (Goodboy & Myers,
2015). The present study produced Cronbach’s alpha reliability scores of .89 (M = 2.48,
SD = 4.40) for antagonism, .90 (M = 4.58, SD = 4.83) for lectures, and .60 (M = 1.18, SD
= 2.09) for articulation.
Family support. Family support was measured with the Perceived Social
Support-From Family measure (Procidano & Heller, 1983). This instrument contained
20 items and asked respondents to consider the feelings and experiences that they
encountered with their families. Sample items for this measure included, “My family
gives me the moral support I need” and “I have a deep sharing relationship with a number
of members of my family.” These items were depicted in Appendix C. Scores ranged
from 1 (No) to 2 (Yes), and the response, “I don’t know” was not scored. Thus, total
scores for this measure range from 0 to 40, once all of the items were summed.
Procidano and Heller (1983) reported Cronbach’s alpha reliability score of .90. The
present study produced a Cronbach’s alpha reliability score of .88 (M = 32.90, SD =
7.20).
Student-to-student connectedness. Student-to-student connectedness was
assessed with Dwyer et al.’s (2004) Connected Classroom Climate Inventory. This
instrument had 18 items on a Likert type scale ranging from strongly disagree (1) to
strongly agree (5). For instance, two items on this measure were, “the students in my
class are supportive of one another” and “the students in my class are courteous with one
another.” These items and the overall instrument were displayed in Appendix D. Past
Cronbach’s alpha coefficients have been reported at .93 (Sidelinger & Booth-Butterfield,
42
2010) and .94 (Dwyer et al., 2004). The present study yielded Cronbach’s alpha
reliability score of .93 (M = 55.36, SD = 9.51) for this measure.
Students’ intent to persist. Students’ intent to persist was measured with
Wheeless et al.’s (2011) six-item measure. Participants were asked to indicate the degree
to which “the targeted instructor has impacted your decision to stay in school and
continue to take classes until you are finished.” The prompt “He/She influenced me
to…” were followed by six bipolar adjectives (e.g., “Keep going/Give up,”
“Continue/Stop,” “Leave/Stay,” and “Persist/Not persist”) and responses were solicited
using a seven-point scale. This instrument was illustrated in Appendix E. In a previous
report using the intent to persist measure, the results of a confirmatory factor analysis
demonstrated the convergent and divergent validity of the scale relative to other
established measures of instructor behavior (e.g., immediacy cues and enthusiasm;
Wheeless et al., 2011). Wheeless et al. (2011) and Witt et al. (2014) reported Cronbach’s
alpha reliability score of .95. In this study, the scale produced strong internal reliability
with a Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient of .92 (M = 34.99, SD = 8.61).
Data Collection
Upon receiving approval from the Committee for the Protection of Human
Subjects and the Institutional Review Board, participants were recruited during the
Summer 2015 semester. Data were collected at the beginning of several class sessions
where participants responded to a variety of measures designed to assess variables that
related to college persistence. While students responded to the survey, the instructor was
asked to step outside of the room until all of the students had completed the survey.
Participants were provided an Adult Informed Consent form (Appendix A) that informed
43
participants that by signing the Adult Informed Consent form and completing the
questionnaire and returning it to the researcher they agreed to participate in the study.
Following the methodology proposed by Plax, Kearney, McCroskey, and Richmond
(1986), respondents were instructed to complete the questionnaire in reference to the
course they attended immediately prior to participating in the research study.
Considering that data were collected during the summer, students were verbally prompted
to think about an instructor from the preceding Spring semester if they were not taking
another summer course. The current researcher collected the questionnaires once
students finished and referenced the Adult Informed Consent form which illustrated the
researcher’s contact information if students had comments, questions, or concerns. There
was no formal debrief following data collection.
Undergraduate students responded to the surveys over their perceptions of self
(i.e. intent to persist, family support, and student-to-student connectedness) and the other
variable (i.e. instructor misbehaviors). Surveys were the most suitable type of
quantitative data for this study because the nature of this study sought to gauge an overall
impression of why students exhibited persistence (Field, 2009; Wheeless et al., 2011).
Accordingly, an adequate number of participants were needed to make generalizations for
this population.
Data Analysis Procedures
The present researcher used SPSS as the tool to input and analyze the data. The
first research question was tested using Pearson’s product-moment correlations. The
second and third research questions were tested using a hierarchical multiple regression
analysis to account for all possible interaction effects (Aiken & West, 1991). Using
44
intent to persist as the dependent variable, the regression model included the three
dimensions of instructor misbehavior (antagonism, lectures, and articulation), family
support, and student-to-student connectedness as the independent variables. All tests of
statistical significance were set at p < .05 to allow for liberal statistical significance to be
detected. In other words, this study sought to detect statistical significance but with some
flexibility as to how significant these findings might be.
Phase II Qualitative
Data Collection
The present research used the purposeful sampling technique to recruit
participants for the qualitative phase. Participants from Phase One received an Adult
Informed Consent Form stating that they were asked to participate on a volunteer basis
for Phase Two. Also, at the end of the survey from Phase One which participants
responded to, there was a line that asked students if they were interested in participating
in an interview, to provide their email addresses and/or phone number. The researcher
sought a range of participants who had experienced highly misbehaved instructors,
moderately misbehaved instructors, and minimally misbehaved instructors to ensure the
varied experiences were equally represented. As previously noted, the distribution of
perceived misbehaved instructors included one highly misbehaved instructor, two
moderately misbehaved instructors, and nine low misbehaved instructors. To determine
which students rated instructors as high, moderate, or low in misbehavior, the researcher
used Spearman’s test for rank order which tells the researcher the position of a
participants’ score in relation to other participants’ scores. In other words, Spearman’s
test for rank order levels participants’ scores from high to low.
45
The researcher scheduled a time to meet face-to-face with each participant in a
location of the participant’s choice. The participants at the four year institution chose to
meet in the commons area of a main building on the college campus. Most of the
participants at the two year college chose to meet in a classroom on campus except for
one participant that requested to meet at a local Starbucks. Participants received no
benefit or compensation for their participation in this research. Although this
methodology of recruiting participants is widely used and accepted (Lichtman, 2013),
some of the participants did not provide lengthy feedback to the researcher. Hence, the
researcher originally sought ten participants for Phase Two but the final amount of
participants resulted in 12 respondents.
Furthermore, this research included semi-structured interviews face-to-face as
qualitative means of data collection. Interviews were most suitable as a qualitative
methodology for collecting data in this study because this research sought to examine
factors that affected students’ intent to persist. Moreover, this study was explanatory in
nature because this research sought to examine why student-to-student connectedness and
family support impacted or did not impact students’ intent to persist in college, as the
participants described their point of views (Lichtman, 2013). On average, each interview
lasted about 30 minutes, depending on the personality and willingness to communicate of
the interviewee.
Participants responded to semi-structured interviews with two close-ended and 22
open-ended questions. Semi-structured interviews were an appropriate means of
collecting data because the purpose of this study was to gather information regarding why
students did or did not believe connectedness to their peers and family support impacted
46
their intent to persist in college. Lichtman (2013) argued semi-structured interviews
allow for the researcher to assess the same content from participants but still be able to
probe participants if they do not disclose enough information. Participants were asked
the same 24 questions; however there were times when probing was necessary if more
information was needed. The interview questions assessed college students’ perceptions
over their instructors’ communicative misbehaviors, connectedness to their classmates,
family support, and their intent to persist. For instance, one of the interview questions
that reflected instructor misbehaviors was, “Can you give me examples of instructor
misbehaviors?” Appendix F represented the script with interview questions which were
used during each interview. The present researcher kept a digital journal to discuss the
research process, obstacles, and other pertinent information regarding this study.
Appendix C illustrated this digital journal.
There were obstacles that occurred during Phase Two of this research. First, the
word “prosocial” on three of the interview questions caused confusion about what this
word meant. The reference was aimed at the prosocial behaviors instructors used in the
college classroom to create positive feelings. To alleviate this issue the researcher
changed the word “prosocial” to “positive.”
Second, some of the participants had transportation issues. Some students wanted
to participate in this study but were not able to due to lack of transportation. Many of the
students which the participating two-year institution served were low-income and as a
result were sometimes unable to purchase a car and thus resulted in unreliable
transportation. To address this obstacle, the researcher offered many times and dates to
meet the participants around their class and work schedules.
47
Third, there were scheduling conflicts between the primary researcher and
students. Many students worked full-time jobs, sometimes two jobs, and had children
which caused problems trying to schedule an appropriate time to meet with the researcher
in this study. Accordingly, the researcher was flexible with interview times and dates.
There were two participants who wanted to participate in this research but were unable to
due to scheduling conflicts. As such, the researcher sought additional volunteers from
Phase One.
Fourth, the most difficult issue that occurred was some of the participants did not
attend scheduled meeting times. This issue was of most importance because the
researcher resides about an hour from one of the institutions where the data was collected
and given the brevity of time to collect data in this research, time was of essence. This is
one such limitation of conducting interviews and it was anticipated. To address this
obstacle, the researcher rescheduled another time and date to conduct the interview with
only one of the no show participants. Two other volunteers did not show up and did not
respond to an email from the researcher requesting to reschedule the interview.
Data Analysis
Once the interviews were conducted, the researcher transcribed the voice recorded
interviews using Sony’s Digital Voice Editor 3 software. Thematic analysis was used to
analyze the data. First, the researcher read through the data to become familiar with it.
Second, the researcher created initial emergent codes. This step required the researcher
to underline the data that supported each code, which aligned to the research questions.
The researcher highlighted each code with different colored highlighters and markers.
The codes were then transferred to Microsoft Excel which documented the frequency of
48
each code; see Appendix H for the researcher’s codebook. Third, the researcher searched
for themes. In this step, the researcher went through the codes to see which ones could
be collapsed into a unified theme. The purpose of this step was to make sure that there
was no overlap in the analysis of the data. Fourth, the researcher reviewed the themes to
make sure each one was clear, concise, and coherent. This step was done to make sure
that the themes reflected the codes and the data that supported each theme. Fifth, the
researcher defined and named the themes. Sixth, the researcher produced the findings in
this research. This step was the final phase of explaining the data which entailed adding
literature to the findings to support the claims made in this research (Lichtman, 2013).
Qualitative Validity
Validity was established in this study using part of Creswell’s (2013) means of
establishing validity. Specifically, clarifying researcher bias was used as framework to
describe the validity of this research. Although the researcher’s personal experience
influenced the topic of this study, there were advantages and disadvantages that arose.
The first advantage that occurred was that the researcher had first-hand insight about the
research topic. The present author had experienced the focus of this topic (i.e. an
instructor’s misbehavior affected the author’s persistence) and because of this experience,
the author had a general understanding of the impact of instructors’ misbehaviors on
college persistence. The second advantage that occurred was that the researcher
sometimes provided personal information as an example for the participants to give them
an idea of what to talk about during the interviews. Accordingly, being able to relate to
participants possibly enhanced participants’ likelihood of disclosing information and the
amount of information.
49
On the other hand, there was one disadvantage that the researcher encountered. It
was feasible that the researcher’s previous knowledge over instructors’ misbehaviors,
student-to-student connectedness, family support, and students’ intent to persist interfered
with the thematic analysis procedures. Instead of looking through the data to let the
themes emerge, it is feasible that the researcher had in the back of her mind a visual of
the preconceived list of themes and categories. Though this disadvantage occurred, the
researcher addressed this issue. To avoid creating preconceived themes and categories,
the researcher re-read the codes, themes, and categories to ensure that these derived from
the data and not from the researcher’s experiences. In other words, the researcher allotted
additional time to analyze the data (Lichtman, 2013). Also, the current researcher had a
peer review the codes and themes.
Furthermore, the researcher used triangulation of methods in this study. First, the
researcher collected surveys. Second, the researcher conducted interviews with a select
amount of participants from the surveys. Third, the researcher used multiple data sources
(i.e. multiple participants from Phases One and Two). Thus, triangulation of research
methods allowed for stronger claims to be made from the data (Creswell, 2013).
Research Permission and Ethical Considerations
Ethical considerations were addressed in this study. Approval from the
Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects (CPHS) and Institutional Review Board
(IRB) at two organizations were sought. Data were collected from a two and four year
public higher educational institutions located in the South-Central region of the United
States; hence approval for this research was needed from both institutions. The
researcher filed an expedited research application and the CPHS and IRB determined the
50
category of this research.
This study used an Informed Adult Consent Form. The form notified participants
that they had to be at least 18 years of age, enrolled in at least one college course at the
participating educational institution, agree to participate in this research, had rights to ask
the researcher questions regarding this study, and participants might have been contacted
to participate in Phase Two. The Informed Adult Consent Form also stated that at any
time respondents could withdraw their survey or stop during the interview if they decided
to do so. Participants were required to sign the form and return it to the researcher before
actual participation in this research.
Confidentiality of participants’ information was protected by coding the surveys
with numbers in SPSS instead of participants’ names. In Phase Two, participants were
given pseudonyms to protect their names and identities. Also, university and college
names were given pseudonyms to protect the identity of instructors and their affiliated
higher educational institutions. All of the data collected in this study were stored in a
locked file cabinet in the researcher’s office for up to five years and will then be
destroyed.
Limitations of the Study
There were four major limitations to be considered in this research. First, this
study focused on students’ intent to persist which is supported by TPB, but actual
persistence rates measured over time would provide better explanations about student
retention to degree completion. To fully investigate the effect of classroom
communication on persistence, longitudinal studies are needed to track students’ actual
persistence. Second, having identified which instructors’ communication misbehaviors
51
hinder student persistence, future researchers could employ experimental designs to
examine the distinct effects of each instructor’s misbehavior in relation to learning and
student retention. Third, despite the moderating effects of student-to-student
connectedness and family support on instructors’ misbehaviors detected in this study,
there is still variance unaccounted for in the model. Fourth, this study examined
variables from students’ perspective. Research indicates that student and instructor
perceptions sometimes differ, so looking at instructors’ perceptions of their own
misbehaviors would add another dimension to understanding the relationships found in
this study.
Role of the Researcher
The researcher played dual roles in this research. First, the researcher proctored
surveys to participants in Phase One. The data was then inputted into SPSS and analyzed
by the researcher. Results were reported by the researcher in this research report.
Second, the researcher conducted the face-to-face interviews with the participants in
Phase Two. The researcher was a professor at the two-year public organization and had
familiarity of some of the students. Furthermore, the researcher had published peerreviewed articles in communication journals over student persistence and was thus
qualified to further examine this research proposal.
CHAPTER IV
RESULTS
Introduction
Chapter Four presented the results obtained from the analyses of the data relevant
to the research questions tested in this study. This study investigated three research
questions. The first research question asked what types of instructors’ misbehaviors do
students witness in the college classroom. The second research question asked what were
the relationships between instructors’ misbehaviors, students’ intent to persist, student-tostudent connectedness, and family support. The third research question asked in what
ways family support would moderate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on
students’ intent to persist in college. The fourth research question asked in what ways
student-to-student connectedness would moderate the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college.
Descriptive statistics, including means, standard deviations, and Pearson’s
product-moment correlations, were reported in Table 7. The second research question
was analyzed with Pearson’s product-moment correlations. The third and fourth research
questions were tested using hierarchical multiple linear regression.
Research Question 1
To better understand how instructors’ misbehaviors were related to students’
intent to persist in college, it was first important to understand the types of instructors’
53
misbehaviors that students witness in the college classroom. There were ten themes that
emerged concerning types of instructors’ misbehaviors which were: not caring,
putdowns, rudeness, lack of guidance, calling students out, nonverbal communication,
lecture style, class structure, verbal communication, and interpersonal attention.
Types of Instructors’ Misbehaviors
Analysis from the qualitative data showed ten main themes as to what types of
instructor behaviors were perceived as misbehavior by students. The most reported
theme was putdowns and the least reported theme was interpersonal attention. The ten
themes were further discussed in this section.
Not caring. Not caring was conceptualized in this research as instructors failing
to put forth or show students that they had genuine concern for students or instructing the
course material. Not caring was the second most reported type of instructor misbehavior
as many students felt this was a major misbehavior that affected their intent to persist in
college. Olly best illustrated this theme when he stated, “Uh, when they don’t when they
come in late, when they just don’t act like they actually care about the class.” For Olly,
showing care meant encouraging students and motivating them. A specific instance was
provided when Olly recalled when an instructor stayed after class with him to discuss a
course concept further in detail. Olly elaborated:
Never giving up on a student. So like if I need help, usually my professors tell me
to stay after class and help me. This is coming out of their own time so it’s like
you don’t really see that in a lot of teachers, but they do that here.
For Olly, misbehavior also meant not caring about providing help for students after class.
This was especially important for this participant because it showed that this one
54
professor was willing to go the extra mile for him, unlike the many other professors that
Olly considered misbehaved because they did not display care.
Polly offered a vivid description of one of her misbehaved instructors. She
described with sincerity and concern:
And so I think the highest grade in the class was a “C” and so it was horrible and
he didn’t care at all [in general], like he didn’t care if anyone passed or failed. I
mean he just he said that. And I was like, then why are you teaching? What is
the point? Like he didn’t care, if he had office hours, I don’t think he actually
wanted you to come, he just posted them, because he had to and so it was, was
very odd.
This specific example illustrated that not caring related to students’ grades in the class.
For Polly, not caring included many forms of misbehaviors that specifically related to
students’ final grade. She felt confident in the course concepts but she still felt sorry for
her fellow classmates that did not understand the material because the instructor did not
care to help students better understand the class content and that they suffered with C’s.
Jasmine discussed how lack of caring or compassion, as she put it, negatively
affected her learning experiences. Jasmine discussed how she started to give birth to her
eldest child during a past college course. She argued the professor was very
accommodating which she was appreciative of. Jasmine said:
…if you [the professor] know certain family situations, or I mean I’m all for, hey
I’m a clean cut, you know you make your grade kind of thing, but I think
everyone any time, I work as a care assistant any time your job consists with you
working and dealing with other people you have to put compassion in your
55
personality that you wear and that’s just bottom line [of instructors not caring]. I
would just add that lack of compassion [to students] and yeah that’s it.
As Jasmine put it, she illustrated not caring by providing a definition of negation or what
was the opposite of not caring. She later contributed, “Just like I want her [the professor]
to give compassion, I want to give compassion. I think it’s a give and take situation to be
in with the semester [her expectation of instructors because of this one experience]
honestly.” Thus, caring can be seen as a two-way transaction where both students and
the professor must illustrate caring for one another. While not caring was a prevalent
theme, so was putdowns.
Putdowns. Putdowns referred to criticizing students, calling students names, or
making students feel less of a person. Timothy exclaimed with a loud tone of voice, “He
[a professor] should have positive behaviors, he should encourage people, he should
never try to down [putdown] students!” While Timothy referred to all instructors as
males, Timothy pointed out that among the list of many instructors’ misbehaviors, both
male and female instructors could use putdowns as forms of misbehavior. As an
international student, Timothy referred to all professors in the masculine tense but
revealed throughout the conversation that he had both male and female instructors.
A specific form of putdowns by instructors was explained by Ginger when she
discussed misjudgment in an angry tone:
Oh my gosh. Probably when I try to discuss internships with my internship
teacher or professor and she flat out told me that I probably wouldn’t be a good
candidate for a specific internship even though she had no idea who I was and
how hard I could work and so I guess that could be misjudgment.
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In this example of putdowns, Ginger expressed her feeling of being let down when an
instructor made a harsh remark towards her. Ginger’s feeling of being misjudged by her
professor made her more determined to persist in college, even though she felt putdown.
Another vivid example of putdowns was when Zoolander shared a past
experience. He said:
There was a substitute for one of my professors recently and I had a book on my
desk 1984, I don’t know if you have heard of it. He [the instructor] comes in and
asks me so what does he [the instructor] ask me. “Oh yeah do you know have you
read the book?” So you know how he [the book character] gets a diary. He [the
book character] gets it from the illegal stores or whatever. He [the instructor]
asks me “whether it was illegal or not to get a diary” and I said I’m not sure
because at that point I hadn’t read to that part, and then he starts giving me
lessons, starts to talk to me about “what’s going on in the world,” and he [the
instructor] directly asks me, “who Julia is,” you know right. But 1984 being a
thing and so and when he [the instructor] asked me, “who Julia was,” I told him
that I didn’t know and he’s [the instructor] like, “why don’t you know what’s
going on in this world? Julia’s name will be in the history books and your name
isn’t.” And he [the instructor] sort of threw that in my face and I didn’t know
how to react at that time. And he [the instructor] started bashing religion at one
point [to the whole class] and our entire class was just devastated and to the
students here that were with me in that class was just bad [the verbal putdowns].
Just plain bad.
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This example was especially of importance to the present research because it pointed out
the fact that when instructors aim a misbehavior towards one student, sometimes these
misbehaviors expand by offending the whole class.
Additionally, Polly mentioned a specific experience where she felt putdown when
an instructor intentionally assumed she knew course concepts. Polly described:
I’ve had teachers who know a ton about that area, but aren’t necessarily able to
translate that into someone who doesn’t know anything about that area. And so
for me I don’t know if you would consider that a misbehavior, but as a student
I’m in there and I’m not able to learn what’s going on because it’s so over my
head. Because I’m at a beginner level and you’re talking to me at an advanced
level. Wait I haven’t hit those levels yet. I’m trying to recognize what’s going on.
I think being able to, to know your content break it down, and present in a way
that your [the professor’s] students understand and are able to be with you and
conversation is a huge thing.
Later in the conversation, Polly added:
He had to address it [a student walking in late to class] right then and there. He
had a similar tone to the other professor [a professor that was verbally aggressive
from Minnie University]. If he had a question, he hated questions, hated them
[questions]. He was someone who was like, “this is common sense.” And I was
like this is not, if you’re not good at math this is not common sense. I’m good at
math and the way he was teaching it was not common sense. It wasn’t the way I
learned it. He was like you have to learn it my way kind of thing.
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Polly’s past experience illustrated that assuming students know course concepts can
cause students to feel putdown by the instructor if the instructor does it in an aggressive
public manner.
Collectively, the aforementioned examples demonstrated the dire impact
putdowns have on student learning outcomes, especially their intent to persist in college.
Specifically, when instructors put students down, the individual student and the whole
class was negatively affected. Some of the students in this research argued whether they
were personally putdown or a fellow classmate was publically putdown, students felt this
was a major form of instructor misbehavior. While none of these students dropped their
courses with the misbehaved instructors, there were negative outcomes. These
misbehaviors negatively affected these students by decreasing affect for the course
content and towards the instructor.
Rudeness. Rudeness meant that instructors had bad mannerisms or negative
behaviors that made students feel hurt or scared. ZaZu gave a detailed explanation about
a time when an instructor displayed rudeness to one student but it negatively impacted the
whole class. He said:
…she was she was so rude to everybody, you know being in Smallville you know,
lots of Mexicans, and you know, accents, and she would be so rude to them.
“Speak up, I can’t hear you, I can’t understand you.” It’s just like wow, why she
actin like that? It’s not suppose to be like that you know. It’s suppose to make
you feel comfortable, go up there [to class] handle your business, and get out of
class. She just made that class like ugh.
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Later ZaZu reminded the researcher when asked how he would define instructor
misbehaviors, “Uh, going back to the previous teacher her just being rude to students.
You know just I couldn’t believe how rude she was because I have never met a professor
like that.” Both of these statements ZaZu made displayed that one form of showing
rudeness is verbally attacking students in front of other students. When the verbal attacks
were so severe, students like ZaZu remembered these unfortunate instances and the
negative impact that they had on students.
These statements were especially important to the present research because it
showed that overall, students do not have many misbehaved instructors but when they do,
these negative experiences stand out to students. Although rudeness was a prevalent
theme in the data so was lack of guidance.
Lack of guidance. Lack of guidance was defined in this research as instructors
giving vague instructions or not aiding students during in-class work assignments. Lack
of guidance included not helping students figure out answers on their own and not
providing clear, explicit directions on assignments with support along the way. For
example, Ariel noted, “…and her you know, her directions were very vague on all of the
assignments online…” It is apparent that Ariel felt having detailed directions for
assignments was important to her, especially when taking online courses. Thus,
instructors’ misbehaviors occurred not only in face-to-face settings but also in online
settings.
Zoolander illustrated lack of guidance when he explained telling students that
they were wrong was not effective; rather helping students see why they were wrong on
their own was effective. Zoolander explained:
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Uh, not telling students they are wrong is one of the examples I’m going to give
[examples of instructor misbehavior]. But so what you can get from that
particular thing is that when an instructor, normally educated people, what I
would imagine them to be people that can actually make you see your own
mistake, if you are wrong at all. Because like if you tell flat out to a person you
are wrong, what ends up happening, that ends up having a certain level of
animosity towards you automatically, but if you get them to sort of see your own
mistake. Let’s just say you ask me something and I tell you something and
supposedly it’s wrong. You tell me in a way that is you let’s say you give me
facts or you tell me to look at a different perspective and instead of telling me flat
out that I’m wrong, I will probably realize my own mistake because again when
someone is questioned they tend to research on their own, but if they are flat out
told they are wrong, it sort of like, I want the belief perseverance thing happens
where you want to believe, you want to prove that person wrong instead of just
understanding, so I would think just directly bashing people would be bad.
In addition to helping students see how they came to get a wrong answer, another
form of lack of guidance was when an instructor did not provide additional learning
opportunities such as a review for an exam. Timothy argued:
They aren’t they [instructors] don’t try to help students. And let’s in my opinion
if I were a teacher, I would try to to help students. Not to some level. He
[instructors] can help them understand the course might be hard too. Some
teachers can just teach the class in my opinion I would do it like this.
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Hence, when instructors did not provide guidance on class assignments, some students
felt this was a major form of misbehavior in the college classroom. Additionally, calling
students out was another type of instructor misbehavior.
Calling students out. Calling students out meant the instructor called on students
publicly without notice or used students’ work without permission. Alicia exclaimed,
“And verbal [communication] would be parading them in class or singling them out in
class.” She later added in a serious tone,
Yes I had a friend who cried in front of the class because the professor was just
like yelling at her for being late! And she didn’t she missed the first half of the
class and got thrown out because of that!
At first, Alicia nonchalantly listed calling out students as a misbehavior but then recalls a
specific example that left a memorable impression on her. This example demonstrated
that there are emotional repercussions when instructors misbehave especially when they
single a student out in front of the whole class.
Another form of calling students out was when it was done in potentially a
positive light but had adverse effects on students. For example, Elsa explained a past
experience:
Well there’s you know breach of confidentiality. You know talking about one
student in front of another. Actually an example of misbehavior it’s not strictly
misbehavior, but he didn’t specifically say that he had permission to read large
exerpts of somebody’s paper is an example. And he probably had permission, but
he didn’t explicitly say that and that made me uncomfortable.
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Similar to Elsa’s example, Shelia provided two vivid examples back to back when
she said:
Oh when, it was one of my education classes and a student was it was about our
field experience, and a student was asking questions and the teacher would just
call her out about her personal experience in front of the entire class, didn’t just
pull her to the side. And then another one was when a student didn’t want to
answer a question that was asked of the class, and she didn’t volunteer to answer
it, but the professor called on her and she said she didn’t want to answer, and the
teacher just pushed and pushed and pushed for her to answer the question and
wouldn’t move on with the class until she gave some kind of answer.
In sum, these examples showed that calling students out in front of their
classmates was perceived as misbehavior in the college classroom. Specifically, using
students’ work as examples in class without stating the professor had permission was one
such form of illustrating instructor misbehavior as was calling on students who had not
volunteered to answer questions. In addition to calling students out, negative nonverbal
communication was viewed as a type of instructors’ misbehaviors.
Nonverbal communication. Nonverbal communication referred to all means of
interacting, except the spoken messages, that made students feel harmed or scared. Such
behaviors included rolling of the eyes and frowning. When asked for types of
instructors’ misbehavior both Jasmine and Zoolander said rolling of the eyes. Jasmine
stated, “Rolling of the eyes” and Zoolander stated, “nonverbal would be like eye rolling
stuff like that…” Other negative eye behavior included giving mean stares. ZaZu
explained, “after lunch and you know I knew when I walked in there she was going to
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give me this look.” Anastasia further supported ZaZu’s feelings when she said, “I guess
just uh like the looks they give us.”
Later Anastasia added that the tone of voice was another negative nonverbal
communicative behavior enacted in her past college course. She noted, “That their tone
of voice [was viewed as a type of misbehavior].” Ginger concurred with Anastasia that
tone of voice was a major form of nonverbal communicative misbehavior. Ginger
explained:
I mean I think it’s really good what they do [instruct college courses]. That they
should be doing more I feel like a lot of my instructors don’t do that it’s everyday
mundane monotone talk, I don’t think that’s really prosocial at all.
From Ginger’s point of view, tone of voice was a form of instructor misbehavior
that impacted her perceptions of the instructor. Polly felt that another type of negative
instructor misbehavior was not smiling. She recalled a specific instructor, “So he was
just he I don’t know if he ever smiled, or ever was happy, he just seemed very mad all of
the time at everything and so.” Hence, it was apparent that some of the students in this
research felt negative nonverbal behaviors such as lack of smiling, rolling of the eyes,
and tone of voice impacted their impressions of instructors and even their learning
outcomes.
Lecture style. Lecture style was conceptualized as instructors’ communicator
style in the college classroom. For Ginger, poor lecture style meant instructors just
reading from their class notes or PowerPoint. She said, “I guess just not giving enough
class assignments to discuss in class besides just reading yeah. So not enough
substance.” Ginger later contended that some of her instructors would read from the
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PowerPoint slides and that was it. Hence, lack of substance meant that instructors had a
boring method of delivering instruction. Similar to Ginger’s arguments, Olly felt that a
bad lecture style was when his professors zipped through PowerPoint presentations. Olly
stated, “…and when they go through a PowerPoint and not actually like you know give
substance.”
Moreover, poor lecture style for some participants meant not meeting students’
communicative needs; rather using a one style fits all approach to lecturing. Polly
preferred a variation of auditory, visual, and kinesthetic strategies of instruction and
communication. Polly best demonstrated this theme when she described:
Because he [the professor] knew what he was talking about, you could tell he was
so knowledgeable in his content area, but he, he, didn’t really teach. He just like
did a couple of problems on the board and class was over. I was like ok. Yeah it
was awful and so he just didn’t want to ever help anyone and he didn’t want to
answer questions, he didn’t want to talk to anyone, he didn’t want to explain
anything, he was like “if you don’t understand anything you shouldn’t be here in
this class.” I was like this is an introductory class, like this isn’t advanced. Yeah
I mean it’s your lowest level business calculu,s this is I’m just like wait, [laughter]
you haven’t explained anything yet and so it was awful.
Thus, some students found it imperative that instructors match their lecture style
to the needs of the students by teaching through various strategies such as hands on
learning projects and having discussions rather than lectures with students. While lecture
style was a major theme that arose from the data, so was class structure.
Class structure. Class structure meant how the instructors set up the college
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course such as using Blackboard and having a syllabus. For example, Anastasia said,
“You know they give us this like a assigned assignments and due dates but they don’t
follow the syllabus. They you know they promise you something but they don’t fulfill
it.” Hence, not following a syllabus was one such means of having a poor class structure.
Similar to Anastasia’s comments, Polly agreed that having an unorganized class
structure was a form of instructor misbehavior. Polly argued:
…but I also think how you, you open and close a class. Like you know do you
say good morning or good afternoon, do you greet the class, or do you say today
we’re going to hit the ground running. When you close a class do you say, thanks
so much for coming, you know we have a topic blah blah blah…
She later added:
So, for me opening and closing a class really just sets the stage for a lot of
different things. Same with the first day of class. The astronomy class I had she
hit the ground running teaching and I was like whoa, [laughter]. Like we didn’t
go over the syllabus, she didn’t have a Blackboard, like I was going crazy, I was
like how am I going to like I’m someone I know it’s weird but I like to have paper
cus then I can yeah touch it yes. It’s just I’m that way and I like organization.
As it appeared, lack of a strong class structure included not having a syllabus,
BlackBoard or online program to organize the class materials, and not officiating class
each time it started and ended. Furthermore, cancelling class was seen as a form of poor
class structure. Ariel demonstrated:
A hybrid class there you go. A full semester we went like every two or three
weeks to the class the rest was online and even then the class was cancelled a lot
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but it wasn’t like in the convenient way [notifying students with at least a week’s
notice] because then she would assign us something and our due date was always
the day after class so [random assignments would be given on a short notice].
Class structure entailed all of the physical and communicative components that
made the course structure organized, whether online or face-to-face. Though students felt
class structure was a prevalent form of instructor misbehavior, so was verbal
communication.
Verbal communication. Verbal communication was defined as all of the spoken
messages communicated by instructors to students either in or out of the classroom.
Verbal communication differed from nonverbal communication in this research because
verbal communication was viewed as having concrete meaning, whereas nonverbal
communication was vague in meaning. For instance, Alicia said, “Positive behaviors like
relating to students, being friends with them, like not just being someone talking in class
and not really interacting you know.” Alicia later contributed, “Mmm…misbehavior like
going out drinking with your students yes.” Thus, verbal communication was constituted
as not verbally talking to students in the college classroom but also talking with students
during inappropriate settings outside of the classroom.
Not responding to students emails was seen by some participants as a form of
lacking verbal communication. Timothy explained, “Misbehavior. Yeah I mean some
professors don’t respond to emails, I mean some, I don’t know some teachers they talk
outside of the classroom, yeah so I don’t need that, but technically that’s not supportive.”
For Timothy, he did not want to communicate with the instructor other than the
communication that was necessary for instruction during class time.
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Paige agreed that lack of email was a form of misbehavior when she stated:
The instructor didn’t have an email. I was like how on earth am I supposed to
communicate with you? I work full time I can’t come up here for your office
hours? I need to communicate! Well, I mean this she might have had one she just
didn’t put it on her syllabus and so so I was like oh my gosh. Yeah because I’m
like I can’t come up when you have a two to three office hour like I work and so I
can’t, can’t be off too much like to be there.
Accordingly, lack of verbal communication in and out of the college classroom or
verbal communication with students in inappropriate settings was seen as instructor
misbehaviors in this research. When instructors failed to verbally communicate with
students via email, some students felt discouraged and confused which caused these
students to not want to persist in that class. Also, witnessing classmates drink with the
professor outside of class resulted in low affect for the instructor which decreased
students’ motivation to persist in the class.
Interpersonal attention. Interpersonal attention was conceptualized in this
research as instructors giving one-on-one consideration to students in the college
classroom. For example, Ginger said:
…not paying attention to like every single student that you have in there, I know
that it’s difficult when you have say like 500 students, but still I think that’s when
you’re in the major classes and you’re not they are not that big like 30 students at
the most, I still think that you should be paying attention to each student equally
as well. I find that I find that some of them pick their favorites and it’s just we’re
all adults and we all need to be learning in the same way as well.
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Thus, interpersonal attention did not require much effort from instructors but merely
acknowledging students in the class equally.
Paige also felt similar feelings as Ginger did, however she felt knowing students’
names was another way to show that the instructor gave attention to having interpersonal
relationships with every student. Paige exclaimed with a louder and stern tone of voice:
And so because I have had instructors where its only 20 maybe 30 people and
they don’t know who I am. I’m like we’ve been together for four months and you
don’t know who I am [because the professor never called her name aloud]. I
don’t understand that. Yeah. I just think that’s bizarre because they don’t
recognize my name obviously, they aren’t really here in my opinion here for
teaching, because if they were they would care who they are teaching to, because
once you recognize the name you’re more inclined in my opinion, to get to know
them and know where they stand on topics or educational whatever. And so for
me its energy level and, and, knowing your students. I’m not saying you need to
know every detail about them but just knowing a little about them. For verbal, is
when well nonverbal, I guess they go hand in hand for this one is like, I said the
name recognition, or you don’t say a person’s name instead you point or you just
agree and said yes, go ahead, versus oh go ahead Polly, or go ahead whoever.
As such, having interpersonal attention meant instructors knowing students’ names when
the course size allowed.
Moreover, another form of misbehavior related to interpersonal attention was
having inside jokes with only select students. Alicia recalled a past experience when she
said:
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Misbehavior probably like inside jokes. I don’t like inside jokes in class. I have a
classmate who they would just exchange jokes and they would be laughing their
heads off and I’m like well you have 40 other students in class which means talk
to us.
Inside jokes made Alicia feel like she was excluded from the discussion and as such she
was interpersonally neglected.
Collectively, the aforementioned types of instructors’ misbehaviors illustrated
what students perceived as negative communicative behaviors in the college classroom.
On the other hand, it was also necessary to discuss the quantitative and qualitative
findings for the second research question.
Research Question 2
Research Question 2 asked what were the relationships between instructors’
misbehaviors, students’ intent to persist, student-to-student connectedness, and family
support. The second hypothesis proposed a negative relationship between instructors’
misbehaviors to students’ intent to persist in college.
As depicted in Table 7, all three dimensions of instructors’ misbehaviors had
negative associations with students’ intent to persist (antagonism, r = .-.34, p < .001;
lectures, r = -.40, p < .001; articulation, r = -.16, p < .001); however the strengths of these
relationships were weak to moderate. Family support had a weak positive relationship
with students’ intent to persist, r = .12, p < .05. Student-to-student connectedness had a
weak positive relationship to students’ intent to persist, r = .20, p < .001. Thus, the
second research question’s hypotheses were supported. Table 7 represents these findings.
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Table 7
Descriptive Statistics and Pearson’s Product-Moment Correlations (N = 297)
Variables
M
SD
1
2
3
1. Antagonism
2. Lectures
.30
.92
.55
.97
1.00
.58**
1.00
3. Articulation
.39
.70
.09
.25**
1.00
4. Family Support
1.64
.36
-.06
-.06
-.27**
5. Student-to-Student
Connectedness
3.08
.53
-.11
6. Students’ Intent to
Persist
5.83
1.43
-.34**
4
5
6
1.00
-.30** -.31** .27**
1.00
-.40** -.16**
.20** 1.00
.12*
Note. *p < .05, ** p < .01
The second research question was further supported with qualitative data.
Regarding persistence factors overall, two main themes emerged: family and self-goals.
As for how students’ intent to persist were related to instructors’ misbehaviors, there
were five themes which emerged: interest, learning, negative feelings, attrition, and
censor behaviors. Students’ intent to persist and family support had five emergent
themes: modeling, achieving dreams, motivation, time investment, and first generation.
There were two themes for how student-to-student connectedness was related to students’
intent to persist: motivation and healthy competition. These themes were further
discussed in the following sections.
Persistence Factors
Family. Family was the most reported factor of students’ persistence in college
as indicated in the interviews performed in this research. Family members included
mothers, father, in-laws, aunts, and siblings. For example, Zoolander, a freshman
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undergraduate student at Pluto College argued:
And let’s see that’s basically the basis but what that comes from is my parents
[his reason to persist in college]. Both of my parents are educated people. My
mom is a doctor and my dad is an engineer. I look up to them and I want to reach
positions where you know, where they are or at least somewhere close to them or
higher possible. And so that’s what motivates me because you know, to do better
and even if I wasn’t in college that’s the number one thing that would trigger
everything that I do because I want to be somewhere as good as they are.
Thus, this statement showed that family members were a major reason why some
students persisted in college. Specifically, students like Zoolander want to be equally if
not more successful in their life achievements than their parents which included obtaining
a college degree. Elsa, a mother and full-time student, was influenced by her mother-inlaw who shared a similar educational college degree. Elsa described:
Yeah as long as I can get a position. My mother-in-law is a special ed teacher and
so I have watched her for years, and she’s elementary, which I’m not. I’m
intermediate/high school but still have that idea that side of it.
In this example, although not blood-related, Elsa’s mother-in-law had a similar degree to
Elsa and Elsa idolized her mother-in-law’s success. Elsa later discussed how much her
in-laws contributed to her success throughout her current college program. Hence, family
support heavily related to Elsa’s likelihood of persisting in her college program.
Another example of family support was evident in Ariel’s statement when she
shared:
…I’m the first person in my family to go to college aside from my aunt. That’s
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actually who let me stay with her, that’s kind of who’s been the good influence in
my life. For the first like years [of college], so I was back here and then now it’s
kind of my boyfriend and his family that kind of taken me in. He’s got a normal
haha family and you know they have all gone to college, and they appreciate the
value of it I guess and they always kind of keep me motivated…
This statement showed that like Elsa, Ariel, a full-time female college student at Donald
Duck University looked up to someone else in her family to support her goal of achieving
a college degree. Furthermore, this example showed that going to college not only
impacted her directly but also other family members as she was the first in her immediate
family to go to college.
Similar to Ariel’s experience, Shelia, a female college student at Donald Duck
University also disclosed that she was the first in her immediate family to go to college.
Shelia stated, “Doing what my family did, well my family did not do so [go to college].”
The researcher then asked if she was first generation and Shelia replied, “I am so.”
Collectively, it appeared that family members going to college model for participants the
importance of obtaining a college degree. Also, identifying as first generation was
another major factor of how family support was related to students’ intent to persist in
college. While this finding was detected in the data, family support also meant providing
a better way of life for some of the participants’ children.
For example, Jasmine, a single mother and undergraduate college student at Pluto
College said, “And honestly just wanting to give my children a better [life], so it’s like I
give you a better life, or we are basically homeless. It’s a lot on me to really pursue [a
college degree] and keep going.” Here, Jasmine lets the researcher know that being a
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mother is an important factor of her identity of not only being a student but a full-time
mother. Moreover, Jasmine argued she wanted to provide for her children and to be the
future model in their lives so they might go to college later in life. Anastasia, a single
mother to her daughter and full-time college student at Donald Duck University also felt
the same way for providing a better way of life for her daughter. Anastasia argued:
I guess for my daughter, [I] want to show her that no matter what life throws at
you, you have… Well, I have been through some difficult situations… No matter
what happens in life, education is always a first and so. When I was pregnant
with her, I was in school and I just, I never stopped. I just want to show her that
education is the most important thing you will have in life and without that, you
can’t do much. So, she is my focus and that I want to do my best for her.
Family support, whether it be blood related or by law, played a major role in the
present sample’s reason for persisting in college. It played so much of a role that the
interviewees collectively noted family support fourteen times. In addition to family
members, some of the respondents noted self-goals were their main reason for persisting
in college.
Self-goals. Self-goals were the second most reported reason why students
reported they persisted in college. Self-goals referred to students’ drive or personal
motivation that drove them to pursue their dreams of obtaining a college degree. For
instance, when asked what factors influenced him to persist in college, Timothy stated,
“Ok I would [have to say] my own financial power [to earn a higher income]. Yes, that’s
it.” Timothy identified as being an international student. English was his second
language. While somewhat broken, his statement later revealed that Timothy, a middle
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aged part-time male student at Pluto College came from a collectivist background where
traditionally the males provided for the females and the children. Thus, Timothy sought
out a college degree so that he could earn more money and provide for his future family.
Timothy also contended, “Yeah because I was working and so I was working with
minimum wage so I see all the people they were in college and they were given a better
job.” This argument meant that Timothy was out of high school for a while and saw
those who he worked with earn a higher income than he had because they had college
degrees, which is why he wanted this personal goal.
Another personal goal was for participants to one day work in their dream jobs.
Ginger, a full time female college student, had a personal goal to find her future career.
Ginger described, “Probably my motivation to find my career. I have an insatiable
appetite to learn and work. So that’s basically what keeps me going.” She let the
researcher know that what she did as her future job was very important to her and meant
that she would ultimately be happy. As a result, achieving a degree was one such means
for her to get that job and keep herself happy; thus she persisted.
Other participants just wanted to pursue higher education as a personal goal.
“Continuing my education and trying to get my bachelor’s degree, that’s about it,” said
ZaZu, a young male college student at Pluto College. Shelia mentioned, “Let me think
just to have a goal in life.” As shown, persisting in college was not only impacted by
family members but it was also an intrinsic factor that students were in control of.
Additionally, there were direct themes that emerged regarding how instructors’
misbehaviors, family support, and student-to-student connectedness related to students’
intent to persist in college which were further explored.
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Instructors’ Misbehaviors and Persistence
Instructors’ misbehaviors were negatively related to students as shown in the
quantitative analysis. The qualitative data showed five main themes as to why
instructors’ misbehaviors negatively related to students’ intent to persist in college. The
themes were interest, learning, negative feelings, attrition, and censor behaviors.
Interest. Some of the participants argued that when their instructors misbehaved
in the college classroom, the participants’ interest in that course decreased. Olly
explained that his lack of interest was because the misbehavior caused him to place his
interest elsewhere. “I stopped caring about that class and just do my other work in that
class. Yeah,” said Olly, a young male college student at Pluto College.
Ariel best illustrated this theme when she described:
I mean if they just really are unorganized, or they don’t seem interested in what
they’re teaching, or in any of the students in their class, it makes it hard for you to
care, if they don’t care. It’s definitely it definitely rubs off on you, I think.
This statement shows that being unorganized was a form of instructor misbehavior and
when performed, Ariel was likely to not have interest in that class.
Paige summed up that in general when her college instructors misbehaved, she
was not interested in the course. Paige declared, “Yeah, every piece of the class my
interest level has definitely left.” Accordingly, when college instructors misbehaved,
some of the participants felt their level of interest in the course decreased but did not
impact their grades or intent to drop the course
Learning. A few of the interviewees argued decreased learning occurred when
their past instructors misbehaved in the college classroom. For instance, Anastasia
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described an instance when an instructor misbehaved in the classroom. Specifically, the
instructor was rude, late to class, and did not care about creating a safe learning
environment for students. Anastasia said:
I would say just learning [decreased when her instructor misbehaved], like you
wouldn’t want to be in class that would affect you to think is this really what I
want to do? Is this what they’re doing? The way they’re teaching? Is this how
I’m going to teach? It would just, just negative, just that negative feeling I think
would just be not good at all.
In this example, Anastasia stated that her concern for how she will be as a teacher
increased. Anastasia disclosed that she wanted to be a teacher when she graduated, and
so in this statement she reflected over the perils that instructors’ misbehaviors have at the
college level which could be translated to the K-12 classroom.
Instructors’ misbehaviors also caused some students to not learn in the classroom
so they had to learn on their own. Alicia, a full-time nursing student at Pluto College
explained how instructors’ misbehaviors decrease her learning, forcing her to study
outside of class and learn on her own. She said:
I don’t know if it’s good for learning because I hear some of my classmates
complaining that they don’t really learn in class and that they learn from reading
the book themselves. So, I kinda do that too study by myself instead of listening
in front of the class.
This example showed that not only did the present interviewee experience having to
spend extra time learning on her own but so did her fellow classmates. Hence, when
instructors misbehaved, some students felt that they did not learn directly from their
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instructors.
Negative feelings. Negative feelings were the second most reported reason why
instructors’ misbehaviors negatively related to students’ intent to persist in college.
Negative feelings referred to how students felt emotionally in the classroom when their
college instructors misbehaved. For example, ZaZu described a past experience:
I mean cuz I’m not the smartest kid in class, but you know a “B” a “B” for me
you know, I take it and run with it, but you know her class it just they [the
misbehaved professor] gave me no ambition at all. You know it was Tuesday and
Thursday class 3 o clock right after lunch and you know I knew when I walked in
there she was going to give me this look. She didn’t like me, I don’t know why
she didn’t like me but I just couldn’t stand it. I couldn’t go in there you know
with a positive mindset you know. I never learned something today [any day that
he had this class], I never learned like that [a positive learning experience].
In this example, ZaZu felt he was doomed for each class because he felt disliked by the
instructor, so much that the negative feelings he experienced resulted to a loss of
learning. Alicia reported one of her past instructors misbehaved by calling students out
which made students feel scared. The instructor would verbally attack students when
they showed up late or unprepared. As a result, Alicia and her classmates felt fearful in
the class. Alicia noted, “Uhm, it kind of motivates me cause I don’t want to be that
student right in front of the class so I show up in class prepared…” While Alicia stated
she was motivated by the instructor’s misbehavior, she also shared that she felt like she
was walking on thin ice. She experienced fear and this fear caused her to use the
instructor’s misbehaviors for a positive learning experience.
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Attrition. One of the most reported reasons why instructors’ misbehaviors were
negatively related to students’ intent to persist in college was due to attrition. Many
students felt that the misbehaviors were so severe that they contemplated dropping the
course and even changing majors. Jasmine described:
I didn’t come to the next class I was kind of like I’m about to drop her but I
needed the grade so it kind of overrode my personal feelings. But it can definitely
affect a person. It was to a point where I felt I didn’t want to take her class so that
would have been on me in the long run.
Polly contended, “My, my desire to even be anywhere near that degree has left for
fear of being in that a class that has them [the professor] again.”
Shelia further supported Polly’s arguments that she too felt like dropping the
course when her instructors misbehaved. Although Shelia stated she might have to take a
course with a misbehaved instructor and she did not look forward to that class, she argued
it was because of a course requirement for her degree plan that only this instructor taught.
Shelia said:
The misbehaviors affect me by motivation because of, if they are the ones
teaching the next class, I have to teach like, take it, just kind of drives me to not
want to take it, or not look forward to taking it the next semester.
Together these interviewees demonstrated how instructors’ misbehaviors can
cause students to want to drop the course or the program all together. By far, this theme
may be the most important to the present research because the focus of all educators in
higher education should be to help students obtain their college degree, not to cause them
to drop out. It was important to note that only one of the interviewees in this research
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stated that they had dropped out of college due to financial reasons but returned a year
later.
Censor behaviors. Censor behaviors meant that students watched what they said
or did in the college classroom when their instructors misbehaved habitually. Polly best
illustrated censorship of behaviors in the classroom when she elaborated:
Truthfully you just get this petrified state where you don’t want to move the
wrong way because you’re scared they are going to say something or offend you
or you name it. Cause one professor I had was not afraid to tell someone they
were stupid. Like he wasn’t [the student was not stupid] and so for me, I don’t
want to be called stupid. Like sorry, I don’t know everything about genetics but I
don’t want to sit [be] anywhere near that [the professor’s negative behaviors].
There’s just uncomfortable tension that you sit there and pray that class will end
soon [she laughs]. And so you don’t have a clue what going on in the class
because you’re so focused making sure you’re you know you’re taking notes or
just staring watching that you are not even listening to what’s going on.
She later said:
“There’s no questions to be asked [the instructor stated].” And so it just became
very awkward and you didn’t know how to behave in the class you didn’t know if
asking a question was appropriate or and so it was just I don’t know. You just
hope it ends quickly and you get in and pass [laughter]. That’s all you focus on.
Both of these statements showed that Polly felt scared and was heavily focused on
her behaviors for a fear of a negative result. Polly described being scared due to being
called stupid as well as being yelled at by her instructor. This instructor had verbally
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attacked a staff member at the school, which the whole class had witnessed, and as a
result Polly and some of her peers felt scared.
Similar to Polly’s experience, Zoolander described an experience when an
instructor made him feel uncomfortable in the classroom and as a result needed to censor
his behaviors. The instructor gave him negative nonverbal cues including rolling of the
eyes, not smiling, and staring at Zoolander in a negative manner. He stated:
I don’t really express my opinion completely. You know I tried to censor what I
am saying not censor in a bad way just censor in general so that I don’t have to
face her whenever she has like misbehavior [gave mean stares and negative
nonverbal cues] and so that’s why.
These two respondents felt that instructors’ misbehaviors led them to monitor
their own behaviors so much that they were likely to not retain any usefulness from the
course and as a result were less likely to persist in college. In addition to the effects of
instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college, family support and its
relationship to persistence was further explored.
Family Support and Persistence
There were five specific themes that emerged from the data. These themes
included modeling, achieving dreams, motivation, time investment, and first generation,
which were illustrated in the following sections. Students noted family support and selfgoals were the two main reasons why students persist in college. The present themes
regarded specific types of family support which increased students’ likelihood of
persisting in college.
Modeling. Modeling in the present research meant a family member
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demonstrated what to be or served as a role model for the students. For example, Olly
explained:
Probably not my mom, but my brother, like he’s going to Goofy University, so it
helps me, like motivates me to be like him, more like be better than him. He
always tells me to be better than me because he doesn’t want me to be like you
know [a bad student].
In this excerpt, it was apparent that Olly’s brother went to college and Olly looked up to
him. Furthermore, the brother served as a parent-like figure and encouraged Olly to be
not equally successful in life but more successful than the brother. Hence, family support
from this experience was best seen as showing rather than telling. Having siblings and
family members that went to college helped show students that college was a positive
goal to have in life.
Like Olly’s form of family support, ZaZu argued his dad modeled college-like
behaviors which was why he persisted in college. He said, “But yeah definitely [I] feel
supported, they help me a lot, like I said, my dad being the only person in college. It just
makes me, makes me want to graduate even more.” Both Olly and Zazu saw college as a
normative behavior that had been enacted in their families and thus, they too should
engage in these acceptable behaviors.
Achieving dreams. Achieving dreams was defined in this research as family
support that helped students obtain their life goals. One such form of achieving dreams
was helping students obtain a degree in whatever they chose to major in. Anastasia
argued:
I got support from my family and then when I decided what I was doing wasn’t
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what I wanted to do, they were just behind me 100 percent and like my parents,
my fiancé, my daughter like they all understand what I’m going through so they,
they support me in any which way ever I need I needed to be yeah.
Prior to this statement, Anastasia noted that she was lost a few times during the start of
her academic career, as she did not know what to major in. Through all of her changes in
her degree plan, her family stuck by her side. Thus, family support as Anastasia saw it
was supporting the degree programs which she chose that helped her persist in college.
Anastasia later contended that she overcame a few emotional obstacles and her parents
still helped her achieve her dreams. She said:
They are the ones that give me the guidance of words and just let me know that
“You’re almost done. Think of your daughter, you know, she’s the one you’re
doing this for.” Their words just push me into to just continuing, doing my best in
everything that I do.
Just like Anastasia’s experiences, Polly also felt some of her family members
supported her through helping her achieve her dreams. Polly explained:
…and like I said had my mom not been there I don’t know if I would have gone
to Minnie University. So even though I might not always like what they say when
they’re trying to support me trying to help me in life.
Accordingly, helping students achieve their dreams was a major form of family
support that helped students persist in college. Specifically, some of the participants in
this research reported that their parents were the main family members who helped
students achieve their dreams. While some of the participants noted not having a clear
vision of what their dream careers were, the participants did argue that obtaining a
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college degree was a big enough dream.
Motivation. Motivation was the number one reported reason why these students
felt family support helped them persist in college. Motivation meant there were some
communicative behaviors from family members that made students feel like they had a
sense of urgency to persist in their academic programs. To show this theme, Timothy
said:
Uh, yeah [pause]. I mean their advice to, I mean at some point you they push you
because they have a lot of expertise in life, so they tell you to be persistent and
give out advice, that life without them [family members], family gives a better
view, some more, some more, and then you will see a great deal [of clarity in
achieving a college degree] so. They tell that you have to be persistent and have a
long view.
In this statement, Timothy felt that motivation for him was through receiving advice from
his parents. The advice in turn made him feel motivated which enhanced his likelihood
of persisting. Polly also displayed motivation in her example:
It affects a lot, my sister because she’s she she actually went here but because she
was before me in college she knew how to apply, and do this, and FAFSA, and all
the ins and outs of how to do school, and so when I went to Minnie University it’s
so different when you’re trying to apply for classes and all of that. But my mom
my sister, and I went up there for orientation and got everything situated and it
was just nice because my sister was like well you have to do this, get this done,
and so. I don’t want to say she’s been my motivation per se cause like I don’t
know if I’ve had a person that’s been a motivator but she’s helped me along the
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way each transition that I’ve had from each school you know will have you
applied for that blah blah blah, so she kind of pushed me even sometimes when I
didn’t want to be pushed she made me.
For Polly, family support stemmed from her mother and sister. In this example she
discussed her sister as a motivator who provided guidance over a college-related issue.
While Polly’s sister both modeled college persistence behaviors and motivated Polly, it
was apparent that family support was important to Polly’s likelihood of persisting in
college. Taken together, Polly and Timothy’s experiences illustrated that motivation
served as a means of family support which enhanced students’ likelihood of persisting in
college.
Time investment. In this study, time investment was defined as family members
spending long amounts of time mentoring and providing guidance to their college
student. Prior to this statement, Shelia added that she had been in school for a while and
through this amount of time her family members supported her no matter the amount of
time spent in college. Shelia, a female college student at Donald Duck University
explained, “I planned to continue college knowing that I have my support system.
Knowing that they’ve pushed me this far will push me the extra to finish or to continue.
Yeah.” Moreover, Zoolander contributed some insightful information when he argued:
And I, I, feel you know what do you call this? I feel supported both, by both of
them [his mother and father] and because again because I have good relationships
with them, and it’s been building up [their positive relationships], and again as I
said, I moved a lot so essentially the best place I could find constant support from
was my parents. And I guess will always be my parents because again, they are
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the people the two people that never fluctuated or changed in my life because you
know they are always there. They are my parents and I can’t change my parents
obviously so like that’s the thing [the relationship]. But like my peers change [the
relationships changed and sometimes ended] and that’s the reason I really didn’t
look there and instead I kept my folks and that ended [seeking meaningful
relationships from peers].
This gentleman constantly moved and the only consistent people in his life were his
parents. Hence, time investment for both Shelia and Zoolander meant that their parents
provided guidance and time spent with students throughout their childhood and more
specifically, prior to these students entering college.
First generation. There were two participants who noted being first generation
was a form of family support that impacted their reasons for persisting in college. One of
the participants, Ariel noted being the first in her family to obtain a college degree.
Furthermore, Ariel mentioned feeling a bit competitive against her family members
because she felt like she wanted to show what a college degree could do for her. Some of
her family members did not see or accept the value of a college degree. Ariel stated:
It first it made me upset and then after a while I just kind of okay just how our
relationship is. And it I think this one [goal of obtaining a college degree] is
competitive also I just want to do it I want to be the first one. I want to show
everybody I can do it.
Family support from Ariel’s perspective included Ariel being the first in her family to go
to college. Hence, family support from this lens required both the family members’ and
students’ active participation. It was not expected that family members understand the
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college persistence process but merely listen to their student who would be the first to
graduate with a college degree. Additionally, students support their family members by
modeling college persistence behaviors (i.e. attending classes and obtaining a college
degree).
The other participant who stated being the first to graduate in their family was
Jasmine. She said, “I’m the only one in my family in two generations to go to college.
So that means something and I kind of feel like everyone is watching. I’m on stage so I
came to perform [laugh].” For Jasmine, persisting in college meant that she served as a
role model to her family members which resulted in motivating Jasmine even more.
Jasmine could only recall the past two generations of her family members not being
college educated, so that is what she spoke about. In other words, Jasmine was not able
to speak about generations before her grandparents, if those family members had gone to
college or not. As she put it, she felt like an actor on stage while her family members
watched. Jasmine showed that being a first generation student was a form of family
support which she considered important for her to persist in college. Additionally, there
were themes that arose in regards to student-to-student connectedness being related to
students’ intent to persist in college.
Student-to-Student Connectedness and Persistence
The quantitative data showed that student-to-student connectedness was positively
related to students’ intent to persist in college. The qualitative data further explained how
this relationship existed. There were two main themes related to student-to-student
connectedness and students’ intent to persist in college that arose from the data:
motivation and healthy competition.
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Motivation. Motivation referred to students encouraging other students through
communicative behaviors such as positive reinforcement. For instance, Ginger said,
“Then of course they [other students] are always supportive.” Supportive from her point
of view meant giving positive words of encouragement. Motivation also came from
witnessing other students prevail their circumstances.
Polly best described this phenomenon when she said with excitement:
I have a similar, for instance, I mean just within the school of education I’ve
noticed there’s a lot of older women and men coming back to school. I’ve always
found that impressive. I was at Mickey Mouse University for a semester and
there was uh a couple that was in their 70s. And a lot of my, one of my, science
classes, and I was like oh my gosh, like I was just so impressed by that [elderly
students seeking a college degree]. Just because it’s something that they really
desire, because they might not have had the opportunity, didn’t have the money,
didn’t whatever that I’ve had. And they weren’t able to at the time but you know,
want to now they might not have even needed, they might be completely retired
and have no desire to go back to the work force. But it was just the fact that they
were able to accomplish that. And you know I have a one of my friends has like
four kids and she’s a single mom [and also a college student] you know it’s just a
lot going on. So, I think that these people who you know have all of this going on
in their life and they are still here they’re still doing class and I mean like I
worked full time but uh I don’t have kids [laughter], like it’s not I don’t have that
much strain on my life. It’s busy don’t get me wrong but certainly nothing
compared to some of the people that I’ve been in class with so I think that’s
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inspiring and so I watch them. When I, at our, for me, when I try and complain
about my life I’m like ok shut up [laughter]. It’s ridiculous cause I see people
who are struggling with significantly harder things than I am and they are still
here and they’re doing great and getting good grades. So I appreciate watching
that and getting to know those people through this experience.
In this example, Polly felt seeing her peers with diverse backgrounds was empowering
for her. Polly argued that seeing her peers take on obstacles made her reflect over her
struggles and saw persistence as a must because as she said, if they can do it, so could
she.
Healthy competition. Healthy competition in this research was conceptualized
as students’ need to challenge their peers to better themselves. One example of healthy
competition was specifically aimed at beating peers to complete the academic program.
Ginger explained, “The fact that they [her peers] keep going. I’m like uh got to beat
them haha or like a competition thing. So I definitely feel like that helps.” She later
described that this competition was a good behavior because she and her peers still
supported each other. Achieving degrees early or on time as she put it was a healthy
form of competition for college students.
Like Ginger, Ariel felt student-to-student connectedness was trying to compete
against her peers. She stated:
That actually was kind of pertinent to me I was going to graduate a semester early
than all of my friends we started the same time as me and then I moved and I had
to take a semester off so I was going to transfer but it didn’t work out. But just
the whole not wanting to have to watch all of them [her classmates] graduate and
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them and me not doing it was kind of like ok. So, I took, you know, five classes
this semester and came back and was doing the drive and working and now I’m in
two internships next, so it’s just kind of like uh a competitive but not in a bad way
not a negative way.
As such, it was evident that student-to-student connectedness included
challenging behaviors against other peers so that students would persist in their academic
programs. The quantitative data showed that students’ intent to persist in college was
positively related to family support and student-to-student connectedness but was
negatively related to instructors’ misbehaviors. The qualitative data demonstrated that
family and self-goals were the two themes that emerged regarding persistence factors
overall. The qualitative data demonstrated that there were ten themes related to how
instructors’ misbehaviors negatively impacted students’ intent to persist in college which
were: not caring, putdowns, rudeness, lack of guidance, calling students out, nonverbal
communication, lecture style, class structure, verbal communication, and interpersonal
attention. The data also illustrated that interest, learning, negative feelings, attrition, and
censor behaviors were factors that explained how students’ intent to persist was
negatively related to instructors’ misbehaviors. As for family support being related to
students’ intent to persist in college, five themes emerged as to why this finding was
evident which included modeling, achieving dreams, motivation, time investment, and
first generation. In relation to how student-to-student connectedness was related to
students’ intent to persist there were two themes: motivation and healthy competition.
While the quantitative and qualitative data provided valuable insight as to how
instructors’ misbehaviors, family support, and student-to-student connectedness were
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related to students’ intent to persist in college, so was the quantitative data valuable to
answer the second research question.
Research Question 3
The third research question asked in what ways does family support moderate the
negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college. The
third hypothesis posited family support would enhance students’ likelihood of persisting
in college by mitigating the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors. To test this
research question, a hierarchical multiple regression was conducted. Before conducting
this analysis, all standards were met to ensure the accuracy of the results. First, a sample
size of 297 was deemed appropriate according to the suggestions of Field (2009) who
argued to reach a “minimum sample size of 50+8k, where k is the number of predictors”
(p.222). There were three predictor variables which were instructors’ misbehaviors,
family support, and student-to-student connectedness. Thus, 50+8(3) = 74 which was
well below the sample size used in this research. Second, the assumption that the
independent variables were not too closely related to the dependent variable was met.
This was to ensure that the dependent variable was not actually the same variable as the
independent variables. In other words, instructors’ misbehaviors, family support, and
student-to-student connectedness were vastly different from students’ intent to persist in
college that there was no way these four variables were the same variable or concept.
Third, by examining the variance inflation factors, all values were less than 10, hence
there was no evident of multicollinearity (Field, 2009).
A hierarchical multiple regression analysis produced a significant multiple
correlation coefficient. At step one, all three dimensions of instructors’ misbehaviors
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were entered as independent variables and intent to persist as the dependent variable.
The model accounted for 18.50% of the total variance in students’ intent to
persist, R = 0.43, F(3, 277) = 20.92, MSE = 1.71, p < .001, as instructors’ antagonism (β
= -0.17, t = -2.49, p < .001) and lectures (β = -0.29, t = -4.24, p < .001) emerged as
significant predictors in the model; however articulation (β = -0.08, t = -1.44, p < .001)
was not a predictor of students’ intent to persist in college. Table 8 illustrated these
findings.
Table 8
Model 1 Summary of Hierarchical Multiple Linear Regression Analysis for Students’
Intent to Persist in College (N = 297)
Variable
B
SE B
Β
Antagonism
-0.43
0.17
-0.17
Lectures
-0.45
0.29
-0.29
Articulation
-0.17
0.08
-0.08
Note. R = 0.43, F(3, 277) = 20.92, MSE = 1.71, p < .001
t
-2.49
-4.24
-1.44
P
0.01
0.00
0.15
At step two, intent to persist was entered as the dependent variable and
antagonism, lectures, articulation, and family support were entered as the independent
variables. Once again, only two two-way interaction effects were statistically significant,
F-change (1, 276) = 2.44, p < .001, ΔR2 = .01, bringing the total variance accounted for in
the model to 19.20%, R = .44, F(4, 276) = 16.39, MSE = 1.70, p < .001, as instructors’
antagonism (β = -0.16, t = -2.43, p < .001) and lectures (β = -0.29, t = -4.32, p < .001)
emerged as significant predictors in the model. Articulation (β = -0.05, t = -0.93, p <
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.001) and family support (β = 0.09, t = 1.56, p < .001) were not significant predictors in
the model. Hence, the third hypothesis was unsupported. Table 9 showed these findings.
Table 9
Model 2 Summary of Hierarchical Multiple Linear Regression Analysis for Students’
Intent to Persist in College (N = 297)
Variable
B
SE B
Β
Antagonism
-0.42
0.16
-0.16
Lectures
-0.46
0.29
-0.29
Articulation
-0.12
0.05
-0.05
Family
0.35
0.09
0.09
Support
Note R = .44, F(4, 276) = 16.39, MSE = 1.70, p < .001
t
-2.43
-4.32
-0.93
1.56
p
0.02
0.00
0.35
0.12
As the quantitative data illustrated, family support did not moderate the negative
effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist. While these findings
shed some insight to this research question, qualitative data provided further insight as to
why these finding arose. Like the second research question, thematic analysis was used
which allowed for the themes to emerge from the data rather than to seek specific themes.
In regards to types of family support, there were seven main themes that arose from the
data: guidance, just be there, emotional, encouragement, financial, school work, and life
decisions. The types of family support was further explored.
Types of Family Support
The quantitative data did not detect family support as a moderator nor a
statistically significant predictor of students’ intent to persist. While this finding refutes
much of the existing literature over family support and student persistence, the
interviewees from the second phase offered some valuable explanation as to what types
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of behaviors constituted as family support and more importantly how these behaviors
were not strong enough to moderate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors.
These findings shed light to the present research as they pointed out how family support
benefits students’ intent to persist in college. None of the data indicated that family
support was unbeneficial to students’ lives. Thus, the following seven themes solely
focused on what specific behaviors students saw as family support. These themes
included guidance, just be there, emotional, encouragement, financial, school work, and
life decisions.
Guidance. Guidance was conceptualized in this research as family members
providing advice over academic and personal-related issues. For example, Timothy said:
… a father is very, he is the one working making the money but at some point he
should take care of [his child], he contacted the teachers [college instructors] of
the student doing, so at that point he can advise the student.
He later contended:
Ask advice [the student should ask parents advice] because they have better extras
[experience] of life. If I make a mistake, they will, the adult advice should be a
supplement not as, a, but if you are in high school they should be the, you’re the
idea should be supplement not the lead, that’s what I believe [parents’ advice
should be considered but not the only factor that impacts college students’
decisions in their college courses when faced with difficult issues].
His two statements above showed how family members providing advice can make
students feel supported. Moreover, Timothy noted the age of the student was an
important factor to consider. He felt the younger the student, the more important that
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student should consider the parental advice. Accordingly, Timothy’s statements
illustrated that family members play a pivotal role in students’ likelihood of persisting;
however there was minimal evidence that showed family support could offset the
negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors. Similarly Alicia added, “Family support?
Is your family just listening to you giving you advice.”
Also, Anastasia explained:
They give me advice if I have like a meltdown anything and this is not what I
need to do. They give me advice and say, “you’re almost there, keep pushing on.
At the end of the day you’ll see the light at the end of the tunnel and it will be
totally worth it.”
These comments mean that guidance comes in many forms but giving advice is
one such form of providing guidance or more importantly family support. An important
consideration of this theme was that often family members, especially parents, had prior
experiences that could offer insight to their college students. Anastasia’s arguments also
illustrated that while family support was important, specifically guidance, family support
was not strong enough to offset the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors.
Just be there. In this study, just be there meant having a family member who had
good listening skills and literally served as a person who listened to students vent about
their trials and tribulations. A major way for parents to be there was through the act of
listening. For example, Shelia argued:
Family support in my own words would just be not so much to give advice but to
just listen to what I have to say because my family wasn’t, they haven’t been
through what I’m going through, so they don’t know how to give advice anyways
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but just to let me vent to them. And to be there let me do whatever I needed to do,
to get over my bump that I’m on.
Later Shelia goes on to talk about her mother specifically. Shelia stated, “Yeah,
my mom, she’s there I just vent to her she didn’t go through it so she doesn’t really
understand but she just agrees with what I have to say while I’m saying it.” For Shelia,
being first generation meant a lot as her parents could not empathize with her obstacles so
she needed them to only listen to her.
Like Shelia’s experiences, ZaZu felt the same about his mother. He stated:
Family support well, I’ve always had my mom and dad with me. My mom was
gone for quite some time business wise, but she was always there [emotionally]
and she always asks and tells me you know I’m sorry I couldn’t be there, but she
is always there for me you know every time I need a call her, or just speak to her
5-10 minutes she’s always there.
Again, just being there mainly was evident as family members providing an ear
for students to vent. Some of the participants felt that just being there was a type of
family support that increased students’ likelihood of persisting in college, but there was
no evidence that this type of support was strong enough to mitigate the negative effects of
instructors’ misbehaviors. While just being there was an important theme that emerged
from the data, so was emotional support.
Emotional support. Emotional support in this research meant family members
attended to their students’ feelings and emotions and were able to respond to those
emotions appropriately. When asked for examples of family support, Ariel mentioned
emotional support. Ariel stated, “Definitely for me there’s a lot of emotional support…”
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She later continued, “Yeah but I think as far as the persevering, it’s emotional support
more than anything you can always find the money and get a job but I think that’s the
hardest thing that uh to overcome.” These statements illustrated the importance of family
members providing support through tending to Ariel’s emotions and feelings. For her all
other types of support could somehow be overcome if there was a voidance; however
emotional support was not as easily obtainable.
Jasmine argued, “Family support it depends on what you consider support
meaning for me family support is the backup emotionally if not anything else.” Ellie
displayed emotional support when she said, “Uh well there’s two different kinds of
family support. Well I guess more than two there’s emotional support. Which is you
know helping through the ups and the downs.” Both of these women urged the
researcher that there were more than one type of family support but emotional support
was necessary to persist in college. The qualitative data illustrated that emotional support
enhanced students’ likelihood of persisting in college but there was no indication that
emotional support from family members was strong enough to eliminate the negative
effects of instructors’ misbehaviors. Aside from emotional support, encouragement was
also an evident theme that emerged from the data.
Encouragement. Encouragement was conceptualized as cheering on students’
decisions to achieve a college degree. This was the most reported theme for types of
family support. Encouragement often took place as words of encouragement or positive
reinforcement. For instance, Anastasia described a past experience with her mother and
father:
I just didn’t have a feel for it [her old degree program] anymore and so I talked to
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my mom and dad, and you know, my, they were very supportive, they were like,
“whatever makes you happy, makes us happy. We’re not gonna be disappointed
in you in any which way.” So that is what really made me feel good about my
decision and changing [her degree plan] and that’s just that support system really
helped me really well.
Polly gave a more broad perspective over what encouragement looked like for her
when she said, “When stuff is happening you know I either hear the truth or they’re [her
family members] just like its ok we’re going to get through this whatever.” Later Polly
added:
…I was so sick that year, it [the school] I was like five people out of the top ten
percent [of her high school graduating class] and I was like it just ruined my
world, so I was like oh my gosh, I can’t get in now [into her dream university].
And so I just had this huge melt down at my house and my mom’s like no it’s ok,
we’re going to figure it out, and get you into somewhere cool somewhere nice
that works for you. I was like ok well it didn’t really believe her because I didn’t
have any desire to go anywhere else because I was like, I’m not going to college.
It was this big drama scene it was awful. But so honestly when I calmed down
and realized life was going to be ok we went to uh up to Minnie University and I
went to Minnie University once when my sister was thinking about going there. I
walked around and fell in love with the campus, it’s [the college campus] so
beautiful campus [a new university that was not her first choice]… You know I
applied did all that and one morning [her mother] just comes in my room and like
screaming. She’s like you got in. I was like ok!!! Because my mom was there
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she’s like no don’t just give up on college just cause you can’t get into one
university, that’s absurd. And so she helped me and my mom’s never been to
college so so she doesn’t really necessarily know all of the ins and outs of of
college.
In this specific example of encouragement as family support, Polly describes how
persisting began before her classes even started. Polly had plans to go to one university
but could not because she was ill for a whole school year and did not have the grades.
Encouragement was her mother not giving up on her and pushing Polly to apply to
another university so that Polly would achieve her dream, although not from her dream
school. Hence, encouragement is imperative for students as it starts early on in the
college persistence process but there was no explicit evidence that demonstrated
encouragement was strong enough to moderate the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college Furthermore, financial support was
another theme that emerged from the data.
Financial. Financial support was defined as family members giving students
money to pay for school-related expenses. Many respondents laughed when they
discussed their need for financial support from their family members, especially from
parents. Elsa said:
…and of course there’s also financial support. Which is key and honestly I hate
to say this at age 39 but I get [money] from my mother my dad. They’re enabling
me to go to college. I would not be here if they were not paying for my tuition,
books, part of my rent.
Elsa later added:
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Well, there’s the you know financially my parents. We actually just got their old
car that they were getting rid of. They were getting rid of it, my father spent
weeks working on it to make sure it was perfect for us. It’s not perfect [laughter]
but that’s just because it barely holds six people, but we need it. A car that’ll
carry everybody.
For Elsa, financial support included receiving actual money as well as commodities that
held monetary value such as the car that she mentioned.
Similar to Elsa’s perspectives, Ginger explained, “Then of course financially you
know when I didn’t have the money my mom would always back me and then I would
pay her back and so that’s a good way of being supported and living with her.” She later
repeated her statement of living with her mother, “Mmm, well my mother lets me stay at
her house again financially…” Ginger later gave a specific example where her mother
had to cover her tuition which was a major form of support for her.
Yes, my mom, I had to it was too late to sign up for financial aid and I had to pay
out of pocket for one of my semesters, and my mom stepped in and paid with one
of her credit cards, and so that was a really big help.
For Ginger and Elsa, financial support came in many forms but especially paying
for tuition when needed. ZaZu noted another form of financial support when he said,
“What’s going on calling me, checking up on me, seeing if I need anything, if I need any
groceries, you know I find that’s support.” Financial support from ZaZu’s point of view
included providing food to alleviate this financial factor for him. Later in the
conversation ZaZu revealed that financial support was not just giving money to him but
also helping him find money to pay for college. He said:
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One is fundage is a problem, fundage, funding. So yeah yeah. I’ve had a job and
other jobs where I held golf clinics junior golf but actually having a job was last
summer and he [his father] keeps keeps wanting me to put an ad on Craig’s list
college golf or 30 minute lessons for $20. I’m like no I don’t want to do that.
[laughter]. I mean he [his father] definitely wants to help me.
Consequently, financial support was one such means of support that family
members gave some of the interviewees in this research. Help with school work was
another form of family support which helped students persist in college but was not
strong enough to moderate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’
intent to persist in college.
School work. School work referred to parents aiding college students finish their
homework or providing childcare for some of the students’ children. When help with
school work was given students felt supported. For instance, Ginger argued:
Whenever I need like second opinions on my student work or like uhm projects.
She [her mother] is always there to like help or like edit just to have like a second
pair of eyes to look at something. And then of course if I’m like reading anything
she’s really good at discussing it with me after if I’m not already discussing it
with my classmates.
Timothy further supported this theme when he explained:
Yeah, family support is lot of work so maybe they can help you with they make
connection with the teacher they see you work every week at, they support you
here [in the class], if they are, let’s say you went to college, they will can help you
with your homework, yeah.
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Both Ginger and Timothy felt family support was experienced when they received
help with their school work at home. Although in college, these students felt that it was
their parents’ responsibility to tutor them with their academics when needed. Though this
was one form of family support, there was another perspective of school work.
When help with school work included allotting time away from children, some
college students felt they were able to finish homework or major assignments because
they could spend that time on their work instead of working with interruptions by their
children, thus illustrating family support which helped these students persist in college.
Elsa best described this theme when she shared:
I kinda have to take the time, they’re [her family members] not going to say oh
Elsa go work but if I leave to go work, they keep the kids away from me. You
know my husband and I really just try to balance. Like the other night I was
exhausted cause I was not sleeping. And I had spent, I pretty much have from
when I drop off the kids in the morning until when six at night Monday thru
Thursday to do all of my work. But the other night I was just so exhausted and he
just he took the kids so that I could go home and take a nap. Which is not giving
me time for school work its giving me time to take care of myself so it. Yeah.
But it’s a juggling thing for him and I because he teaches he teaches at Bee
College and so he teaches two nights a week so those nights I really do not have, I
mean [she doesn’t have enough time for school work]. I’m me four kids, dinner,
playing, trying to keep them off of the tv the whole night, bedtime, at the end of
that I’m just wiped.
In this example, Elsa shared that for her it was impossible time-wise to persist in college,
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unless her husband or in-laws watched her children while she studied and did her class
assignments.
Like Elsa, Anastasia felt having her family watch her daughter helped her persist
in college. Anastasia noted being a single mother but with a supportive boyfriend and
family members. Her daughter played a pivotal role in her life, especially in her college
persistence but she noted needing help watching her daughter while she did her school
work. She said:
If I ever needed like help with a project or if I needed to interview someone. Or if
I just need time alone to study, do my homework, they give me that time. They’ll
give me they’ll watch my daughter for whatever reason if I needed like help with
school or just really just in general you know anything that is school related you
know they’re there.
Both of these women argued that family support was evident when they were
provided time alone to do their schoolwork. Thus, school work was an important type of
family support that increased students’ likelihood of persist in college but was not strong
enough to moderate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors. While school work
was a prevalent theme, so was life decisions.
Life decisions. Life decisions meant aiding students making important decisions
in their personal lives although often these decisions impacted their likelihood of
persisting in college. For instance, Jasmine argued that her brother helped put her son in
little league sports:
I would have to say my brother [Jasmine’s brother gave family support to
Jasmine]. You know I’m a single mom with three by the way and I have two
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boys and he called me recently about a month ago and is like hey you know I
know you have been wanting to get them in sports I’m going to be a coach so I’ll
come and get him every day and make sure he’s in sports you know. Cause I
know you don’t have the means to do it and that just really meant a lot to me so
that’s very supportive of him.
While putting her son in little league sports had nothing to do with her studies, it did help
her provide a better way of life for her kids while she was consumed with school and
being a single parent.
Prior to this statement Jasmine said, “And just knowing that your brother cares if
his nephews are in sports you know just just a lot of knowing that those blanks are being
filled. That are not not left wide open.” This statement reinforced her argument that to
persist in college meant she had to be holistically supported and one form of being well
supported was by having her personal life voids filled.
Life decisions also meant being supported throughout students’ lifetime, not just
through college. Zoolander discussed how he struggled with depression as pre-teen and
teenager and how his family members helped him make the life decision of being happy
and going on to college. For instance, Zoolander said:
Yes [family support was important to have] because family support [his mother
and father], the first group of people that you like interact with even as a child so
once you grow up you would still want to reconnect to them and still feel that you
had a strong foundation and you can get through life with them [he could
overcome his depression].
Life decisions were also directly aimed at deciding a college major that would
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later impact students’ lives forever. Polly noted:
I do also want them [her family members] to support decisions I’ve made so for
instance, I [laughter] since I have started college I’ve switched my major four
times ok. So it was chaotic and crazy and I’ve been to three universities and
junior college. Lots just happened and not bad, just been chaos and so my family
has supported me in each one of these transitions and so, which is nice and it’s
[family support] good but for me.
Collectively, life decisions took place in many forms but when the decisions were
present, helped some students feel supported by their family members which resulted in
persisting in college. The quantitative data in this research showed that family support
was not a predictor of students’ intent to persist in college, and thus could not mitigate
the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college.
There were seven themes that emerged regarding type of family support which included
guidance, just be there, emotional, encouragement, financial, school work, and life
decisions. In addition to answering the second research question it was necessary to
examine the data that addressed the third research question.
Research Question 4
The fourth research question asked: In what ways does student-to-student
connectedness moderate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’
intent to persist in college? The fourth hypothesis predicted student-to-student
connectedness would enhance students’ likelihood of persisting in college by mitigating
the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors.
In the third phase of the quantitative research, intent to persist was entered as the
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dependent variable and antagonism, lectures, articulation, family support, and student-tostudent connectedness were entered as independent variables. Again, only two two-way
interaction effects were statistically significant, F-change (1, 275) = 1.80, p < .001, ΔR2 =
.18, bringing the total variance accounted for in the model to 19.70%, R = .44, F(5, 275)
= 13.51, MSE = 1.70, p < .001, as instructors’ antagonism (β = -0.17, t = -2.52, p < .001)
and lectures (β = -0.27, t = -3.91, p < .001) emerged as significant predictors in the
model. Articulation (β = -0.04, t = -0.67, p < .001), family support (β = 0.07, t =
1.24, p < .001), and student-to-student connectedness (β = 0.08, t = 1.34, p < .001) were
not significant predictors in the model. Hence, the fourth hypothesis was unsupported.
Table 10 illustrated these findings.
Table 10
Model 3 Summary of Hierarchical Multiple Linear Regression Analysis for Students’
Intent to Persist in College (N = 297)
Variable
B
SE B
Β
Antagonism
-0.44
0.17
-0.17
Lectures
-0.42
0.11
-0.27
Articulation
-0.9
0.13
-0.04
Family
0.29
0.23
0.07
Support
Student-to0.22
0.16
0.08
Student
Connectedness
Note R = .44, F(5, 275) = 13.51, MSE = 1.70, p < .001
T
-2.52
-3.91
-0.68
1.24
p
0.01
0.00
0.50
0.22
1.34
0.18
To test for main effects, a new variable called moderator was created by
multiplying the standardized scores of family support and student-to-student
connectedness. The moderating variable was entered into the final hierarchical multiple
linear regression to detect main interaction effects. Results of the analysis indicated
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family support and student-to-student connectedness were not predictors of students’
intent to persist, thus, they do not moderate the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors as measured by these instruments. The model accounted for 19.80% of the
total variance in students’ intent to persist, R = 0.43, F(6, 274) = 11.28, MSE = 1.70, p >
.001. Table 11 demonstrates these findings.
Table 11
Model 4 Summary of Hierarchical Multiple Linear Regression Analysis for Students’
Intent to Persist in College (N = 297)
Variable
B
SE B
Β
Antagonism
-0.43
0.17
-0.17
Lectures
-0.43
0.12
-0.27
Articulation
-0.08
0.13
-0.4
Family
0.27
0.24
0.07
Support
Student-to0.22
0.16
0.08
Student
Connectedness
Moderator
-0.04
0.07
-0.03
Note R = 0.43, F(6, 274) = 11.28, MSE = 1.70, p > .001
T
-2.48
-3.93
-0.60
1.13
p
0.01
0.00
0.55
0.26
1.13
0.18
-0.56
0.58
Qualitative data was gathered and analyzed from face-to-face interviews to
provide insight as to why student-to-student connectedness was not a predictor of
students’ intent to persist in college. To better understand this occurrence, categories of
student-to-student connectedness were sought which demonstrated that while not
statistically significant, student-to-student connectedness was important to the persistence
process. Moreover, the qualitative data demonstrated that student-to-student
connectedness was not strong enough to eliminate the negative effects of instructors’
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misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college. Seven themes emerged from the
data: familiarity, group work, communication, disclosure, friendship, moral support, and
homophily. These themes were further discussed.
Types of Student-to-Student Connectedness
There were seven themes that arose from the face-to-face interviews. The most
reported of these themes was homophily whereas the least reported theme was friendship.
The seven themes were further examined in the following sections.
Familiarity. Familiarity was conceptualized in this research as getting to know
fellow classmates in and out of the college classroom. There were two major aspects of
familiarity which included networking and knowing classmates from previous
educational institutions. For example, Jasmine illustrated using familiarity of classmates
to network when she explained that her professional life related to her academic life.
Getting to know people, especially her classmates helped Jasmine persist throughout her
classes. She said:
Well definitely first of all it [student-to-student connectedness] builds social
interactions. I’m big on networking I run a small business out of my house so
getting to know people you know on a school level [in college classes],
professional level [what students did to earn a living] is always a plus for me.
For Polly, knowing students’ names was a form of familiarity with her fellow
classmates. She said, “…but just I mean truthfully just getting to know students’ name is
already significantly deeper than just sitting in class with other people.” Thus, these two
examples demonstrated how being familiar with students in the classroom helps students
such as Jasmine and Polly felt supported by their peers which in turn enhanced their
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likelihood of persisting in college.
As for the other type of familiarity, having prior familiarity with some students
before entering the present higher educational institution helped students persist in their
classes. Olly explained, “Any time we walk around in the hallways it’s like everyone
knows everybody so we just say hi when we see each other in class we know each other’s
names.” He later added, “Like yes, [he experienced student-to-student connectedness]
because we know a lot of people as I said from high school which is just down the road.”
In his explanation, Olly argued he felt connected in the college classroom because many
people who attended his high school also attended his present college. This example also
connected to Polly’s arguments that knowing classmates’ names helped intensify the
feelings of being connected in the college classroom. While familiarity was one such
means of student-to-student connectedness, so was group work.
Group work. Group work in this study referred to students completing projects
or assignments with the help of other classmates in and out of the college classroom.
When some students performed assignments with other classmates, they felt a sense of
teamwork. For instance, Timothy said:
Yeah. I think it, they [his classmates], I mean it’s, it’s to improve your uh
attention to teamwork, teamwork in the class or like to build your teamwork
[skills]. Like in my class now I volunteered [at an outside nonprofit organization
for a class project] last week so I improve my teamwork.
Elsa contended, “…when we would do our group presentations, it [the
communication] would be very open.” For Elsa and Timothy, these students both
required specific characteristics of classmates (i.e. teamwork and openness) for group
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work to be successful.
Similar to Elsa and Timothy’s feelings, Ginger described several instances when
she felt connected to her peers via group work. Ginger stated, “I guess when like you
relate with like certain [classmates] again projects [related to students when they worked
on group projects]…” Ginger later added that she and her peers worked on individual
class assignments in groups, which increased her sense of student-to-student
connectedness. She later contributed, “Uh probably when we have to take quizzes as this
sounds really bad but we get together and study and then sometimes take the quizzes
together.” She then immediately stated, “I feel like it’s [student-to-student
connectedness] the same in every class and mainly for the same reasons so again group
presentations…” For Ginger, group work included individual and group assignments
done by multiple students which enhanced feelings of persisting in college.
Group work also meant tutoring other classmates over individual assignments.
ZaZu told the researcher, “For instance, statistics and psychology you have some people
that just love the stats class and you have some people that don’t and try to help each
other out.” Anastasia further supported ZaZu’s feelings when she stated:
Yeah, I would define it [student-to-student connectedness] as I would think
maybe like collaborative work, it’s not only your opinion, you’re getting someone
else’s as well. So you get different thoughts and different ways to think about
different ideas and concepts of what you’re learning.
Thus, group work did not mean having to work on a project with multiple
classmates; rather group work could include helping classmates with their struggles over
individual assignments. As the data illustrated, group work was a form of student-to-
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student connectedness that enhanced students’ likelihood of persisting in college but was
not strong enough to eliminate the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors.
Communication was another form of student-to-student connectedness that helped
students persist in college.
Communication. Communication pertained to verbally and nonverbally
interacting with fellow classmates in and out of the college classroom. Communication
entailed being able to communicate on the same education level with other classmates.
Shelia explained, “Some of them [her classmates] I guess are just about where we are in
our education [class] was a little bit different so it was kind of hard to connect on the
same vocab like education vocabulary with some of them [her classmates].” In this
example, Shelia noted that connectedness was impossible for her to have if her
classmates did not have the same jargon which she used. She later added:
Just being able to ask one another questions, you know, not feeling like you can’t
reach out to somebody. [pause]. Like knowing that its ok I guess too that they
understand there’s no dumb question or [long pause]. That.
Again, Shelia felt that being on the same education-level and using discipline specific
language to communicate enhanced her feelings of being connected to her classmates.
Another form of communication was being the receiver of verbal messages and
listening. Polly stated, “It was fluid [the communication in the class], everyone generally
listened. I don’t know, it was interesting [the level of connectedness was heightened in
that class].” Later Polly said, “However I do like to, to listen to people’s ideas and
opinions and thoughts on things so connected in the sense that it’s a really good
discussion, there’s a good flow. Yes.” In between these statements Polly explained that
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she felt that her peers like to listen to her arguments just as much as she liked to listen to
her peers’ ideas in class and these were normative behaviors. In these two arguments,
Polly pointed out that communication was a two-way phenomenon where she listened to
her peers and her peers listen to her. As such, it should be noted that students felt
connected to their peers when both their classmates and themselves interacted, not just
one-sided communication.
Also, seeking advice and improving one’s communication skills fell under the
communication theme in this research. For instance, Timothy described, “Yeah I mean
it’s [communication] important for me cause it’s my communication skills and I get a lot
of, information from my friends and sometimes they can give you some advice some
advice to help [with school assignments or general words of encouragement to persist in
college].” For this non-native English speaker, being connected to his peers meant
verbally communicating to improve his English. Although communication was a
prevalent theme in the data, so was disclosure.
Disclosure. Disclosure was defined in this research as sharing unknown
information about one’s self to another classmate. For many of the interviewees, these
individuals required receiving and sharing disclosures to feel connectedness to their
classmates. Ariel gave a vivid description of one of her past experiences that
demonstrated disclosure. She said:
I think I it was my first special ed class at a community college. We did kind of
[a class assignment] about me thing, we do it a lot in the education classes, but it
was like a bag of things that you were supposed to explain and it was just kind of
[an introductory assignment], gave you lot more background even to people that I
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was friends with and I remember, I’m not a very emotional person, but I was
crying and everybody in the class was crying. Just everybody talking about their
families and what they were like so it was more like in depth than the usual like,
I’m Ariel, I’m from here, I have this yeah [type of life and background].
In this example, Ariel shared that the disclosures her classmates shared were deep and
meaningful which enhanced feelings of connectedness.
Similarly, Shelia shared a past experience where a classmate disclosed
information about herself. Shelia explained:
A specific time is when one of my classmates was, we were talking about our
degree plan and we had, come across a problem and she broke down into tears
over her degree [taking a turn and causing the student more time in school],
pushed her back a little bit [the student was not going to graduate when the
student anticipated, rather the student had to graduate a semester later] so. I just
felt connected I was able to help her and emotionally talk to her about it. And let
her know that there was still other options that she could do.
This instance showed that in addition to sharing unknown information with peers,
sometimes the end result of disclosure is not only being connected but also having an
emotional closeness. Furthermore, disclosures increased students’ likelihood of
persisting in college but was not strong enough to diminish the negative effects of
instructors’ misbehaviors. In addition to disclosure, friendship was another important
theme that emerged from the data.
Friendship. Friendship referred to having a higher level form of connectedness
to fellow classmates where communication was constant, familiarity was high, as were
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disclosures. Friendship was the least reported theme but many of the students talked
strongly about this theme. For example, Alicia argued, “It’s [student-to-student
connectedness] working professionally as a student [while] at the same time keeping a
level of friendships where they kind of relate through the same time productive [same
amount of college course hours] towards your goals [a college degree].” When asked if
she thought student-to-student connectedness was important, Alicia said, “Yes, it is,
because no man is an island [laughter]. And you have to have friends to support you no
matter.” Both of Alicia’s arguments illustrated that persisting in college was not an
individual effort for her; rather persistence meant having classmates, more specifically
friends, that bonded with her which positively impacted her likelihood of persisting in
college.
On the flip side, some students felt not having friendships with classmates,
prevented them from being connected with their peers. Ginger best illustrated this
finding when she explained:
I think, well, in my case, because I’m older, a lot of the students in there are
younger, but it’s also just a matter of, I don’t know, it’s just like no one like,
initiates, you know, friendship in the classrooms.
This argument showed that because Ginger was older than her classmates, she felt
already distanced and unable to establish friendships with her peers but that did not
impact her intent to persist in college. Though friendships was a type of student-tostudent connectedness, so was moral support.
Moral support. Moral support meant students providing encouraging words
regarding their peers’ school-related issues. Though similar to communication, in that
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moral support meant exchanging verbal messages, moral support was aimed at the
positive reinforcing messages students used to build their peers up. One such case was
when ZaZu described how he was unsocial but required student-to-student connectedness
when his parents were not present. ZaZu reflected over an instance when his past
roommate and athletic teammate helped him with his homework by reminding ZaZu of
the repercussions of not doing homework. Also, the roommate encouraged ZaZu to not
only complete his class assignments but also to pursue his dreams of earning a college
degree. He said:
Yes. Well, going back to me not being so social, but to my peers and my, my
teammates, you know, they’re connected with them cuz I think you need some
kind of, you know, you need some fall back when your parents aren’t there
especially when they’re five or six hours away. You know, you need peers and
somebody that can help you and just for support [laughter].
Furthermore, moral support meant providing resources to fellow classmates or
networking to help that classmate be successful. Anastasia contended, “Later on in life
you might need their opinion or you might need, you know, a contact of some sort and so
just staying connected with them and staying, you know, just, I guess, connected.”
Jasmine also stated:
I actually do [believe that being connected to her classmates was important].
Because I’m walking into an environment where I don’t know no one I don’t
know the material so for me I have to I have to bond I have to know where you
are cause you might know something that’s going to help me get to where I need
to be and I really believe in utilizing every effort you can haha. So, I work on
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gaining friends haha.
For both of these respondents, moral support required sharing resources with
other classmates to fully feel connected with their peers. Thus, moral support was a type
of student-to-student connectedness that positively impacted students’ intent to persist in
college. Another theme that arose was homophily which was further examined.
Homophily. Homophily was conceptualized as the perceived attitudinal and
background similarities students felt about their classmates. Attitudinal background
referred to having the same beliefs, values, and outlooks on life shared by classmates.
Background similarities referred to having similarities to fellow classmates because of
one’s sociodemographics such as age, race, religion, and level of education. This theme
was the most reported theme under types of student-to-student connectedness that it was
mentioned 30 times by the participants in the qualitative phase. ZaZu best defined this
theme when he said, “I guess different backgrounds relating to one another, same beliefs
on the classes.” When asked if he felt connected to all of his classmates he said:
Yeah I do feel connected. Not in my current class cus it’s so diverse and we have
high school people in the class but definitely feel connected at my university. We
have a lot of the same things going on in our lives. We’re trying to graduate,
we’re everybody is on a different degree plan so, yeah. I feel sort of connected.
ZaZu felt that having similar life events and coming from the same backgrounds made
him feel connected to his classmates. It was important to note that expectations of
student-to-student connectedness differed from dual credit students versus traditional
students. ZaZu argued the age difference and life experiences made him feel
disconnected from the dual credit students in his summer class.
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For Zoolander, homophily meant, “people that share the same thought process
…” Anastasia felt homophily meant having similar ideas when she explained, “You
know, we kind of, as of now, start having [the] kind of the same ideas. So we should
[did] kind of connect on that level.” She later added:
In our field of work. We can all just relate to that. You know whether it’s our
internship or something our methods courses. It’s all happened to us one time in
life and in our school time so I just feel like when they [his classmates] feel that,
we feel the same way.
Hence, homophily was evident in many different forms stemming from similar attitudes
and backgrounds of the interviewees in this research.
The results of this research demonstrated strong positive links between students’
intent to persist to family support and student-to-student connectedness but a strong
negative link between students’ intent to persist in college to instructors’ misbehaviors.
Furthermore, instructors’ misbehaviors appeared to be the strongest and only predictors
of students’ intent to persist, based on the quantitative data. Further analysis of the
qualitative data showed that family support and student-to-student connectedness were
major factors behind students’ likelihood of persisting in college. The findings in this
study were imperative to discuss but so were the conclusions of the findings which were
further deliberated in Chapter Five.
CHAPTER V
SUMMARY, IMPLICATIONS, AND CONCLUSIONS
Chapter Four showed only one of the hypotheses was supported while two of the
hypotheses were unsupported. Chapter Five discusses the summary, implications for
theory, research, and practice, and conclusions regarding the findings in this research.
Thus, it was first necessary to discuss the summary of the findings.
Summary of Findings
This research sought to determine factors that influenced students’ intent to
persist in college. Specifically, this study examined the types of instructors’
misbehaviors in today’s college classroom and the impact instructors’ misbehaviors,
family support, and student-to-student connectedness had on students’ intent to persist in
college. Furthermore, it was hypothesized that family support and student-to-student
connectedness would play strong roles in the persistence process, that when combined
these two variables would diminish the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors.
Existing literature showed a negative link between instructors’ misbehaviors to student
learning outcomes (Goodboy & Bolkan, 2009; Goodboy & Myers, 2015; Gorham &
Christophel, 1992; Gorham & Millette, 1997) and positive links between student
persistence in college to family support (McCarron & Inkelas, 2006; Ratelle et al., 2005;
Tinto, 1975) and student-to-student connectedness (Battistich et al., 1995; Schaps &
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Lewis, 1997; Tinto, 1997). Witt et al. (2014) found strong support for instructor
credibility and nonverbal immediacy as moderators between students’ receiver
apprehension and students’ intent to persist in college. This research was a response to
Witt and his colleagues’ call for further examination of factors that impact students’
intent to persist in college. The following research questions and hypotheses were posed
to address these concerns:
1.) What types of instructors’ misbehaviors do students witness in the college
classroom?
2.) What is the relationship between college students’ intent to persist, student-tostudent connectedness, family support, and instructors’ misbehaviors?
College students’ intent to persist is positively related to student-tostudent connectedness and family support, whereas college students’
intent to persist is negatively related to instructors’ misbehaviors.
3.) In what ways does family support moderate the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college?
Family support enhances students’ likelihood of persisting in college by
mitigating the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors.
4.) How does student-to-student connectedness moderate the negative effects of
instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ intent to persist in college?
Student-to-student connectedness enhances students’ likelihood of
persisting in college by mitigating the negative effects of instructors’
misbehaviors.
There were two phases used to gather and analyze the data used in this research.
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First, quantitative measures were utilized where face-to-face surveys were proctored to
297 undergraduate students from a two and four year public higher educational
institutions located in the Southwest region of the United States. The data was inputted
into SPSS and a Pearson product-moment correlation and a linear hierarchical multiple
regression were run. Second, qualitative measures were used via face-to-face interviews.
The sample was drawn from participants from the first phase who gave consent to do the
interviews. Using thematic analysis to allow for emergent themes, the researcher coded
the data and reported the themes in Chapter Four. The two phases combined provided a
holistic perspective to address the following research questions and hypotheses.
Accordingly, it was necessary to review the findings for each research question.
Research Question 1
Types of instructors’ misbehaviors. There were ten themes that arose regarding
types of instructors’ misbehaviors: not caring, putt downs, being rude, lack of guidance,
calling students out, nonverbal communication, lecture style, class structure, verbal
communication, and interpersonal attention. Not caring meant instructors appeared
verbally and nonverbally disinterested in students’ success. One example of not caring
included professors sitting while lecturing. Research shows that in order to increase
student learning outcomes, instructors must show concern for their students (Wheeless et
al., 2011). Putdowns on the other hand were described as derogatory comments made by
instructors in the college classroom. Kearney et al. (1991) also found that name calling
was a form of putdowns that students reported as a major type of instructor misbehavior.
In this research, some students felt when instructors were rude, they were
misbehaved. Being rude simply meant that instructors made students feel harmed or
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uncomfortable because of their verbal and nonverbal behaviors. Similar to this finding,
Goodboy and Bolkan (2009) and Kelsey et al. (2004) demonstrated that when instructors
made rude or negative comments, students’ learning decreased. Lack of guidance
referred to when instructors failed to give thorough instructions or support for an
assignment. When students feel lost or confused when trying to complete an assignment,
students often dissent with their peers about the instructor, which was experienced by
some of the students in this research (Goodboy 2011a; 2011b).
Calling students out was described by some of the students in this research as
being singled out to speak aloud in front of the class against students’ will. Most
students, especially students who are fearful to communicate in public, experience a
decrease in learning outcomes and have negative perceptions of the instructor when they
are called out (Witt et al., 2014). Nonverbal communication in this study was
conceptualized as the negative gestures that instructors used in the college classroom.
Such negative behaviors included rolling of eyes and not smiling. Past literature supports
this finding that students feel unmotivated when their instructors enact negative
nonverbal behaviors (Christophel, 1990; Jaasma & Koper, 1999; Pogue & Ahyun, 2006).
Additionally, lecture style was seen as a type of instructor misbehavior in this
research. Goodboy and Meyers (2015) found poor lecture style played such a pivotal role
in students’ perceptions of their instructors that the scholars coined one of the three
dimensions of instructors’ misbehaviors “lectures.” On the other hand, the structure of
the course was another type of misbehavior detected in this research. Class structure was
defined as lacking organization in class and online. Weaver and Qi (2005) suggested that
when instructors properly open and close their classes, students will learn more and feel a
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sense of closure each day of class.
Verbal communication differed from nonverbal communication because some
students perceived verbal communication as the spoken messages that instructors said to
make students feel bad. Kearney et al. (1991) and Goodboy and Meyers (2015) both
illustrated the grave impact negative verbal communication had on students’ cognitive
and affective learning. Interpersonal attention was viewed as not having one-on-one
relationships with students in the college classroom. While having close interpersonal
relationships with every student may be difficult due to the size of the class, students in
this study merely requested that instructors refer to students by their name which was
viewed as being interpersonally immediate. Although the themes regarding types of
instructors’ misbehaviors were imperative to summarize, so were persistence factors.
Research Question 2
The data in this research showed that instructors’ misbehaviors were negatively
related to students’ intent to persist in college. Also, family support and student-tostudent connectedness were positively related to students’ intent to persist in college.
Simply put, instructors must not be overly misbehaving in the college classroom which
may hinder students’ likelihood of persisting. Moreover, family members and students
play important roles in the college persistence process and should be supportive to their
kin or peers attending college.
Persistence factors. Students reported during the interviews that family
members and self-goals were the most important factors that helped them persist in
college. Family members served either as role models or motivators for their first
generation college students. Tinto (1975) and Procidano and Heller (1983) supported this
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finding that family members often serve as the most significant influence in students’
decision to persist in college. Whether first generation or not, students with family
support were more likely to persist in college than students without family support. Selfgoals pertained to students having an intrinsic yearning to obtain a college degree. This
finding has been especially evident in the literature concerning minorities persisting in
college. For instance, Bliss and Sandiford (2004) argued that Hispanic college students
often persist because of their dreams of having a college degree. In addition to the two
major themes that arose regarding why students persist, there were multiple themes that
arose regarding how instructors’ misbehaviors, family support, and student-to-student
connectedness were related to students’ intent to persist in college.
Instructors’ misbehavior and persistence. There were five themes evident
from the face-to-face interviews concerning how instructors’ misbehaviors were
negatively related to students’ intent to persist in college which included lack of interest,
learning, negative feelings, attrition, and censor behaviors. Some students felt that when
their instructors misbehaved they were disinterested in the course content all together.
This finding was consistent with past literature that illustrates the negative impact
instructors’ misbehaviors have on students’ interest and motivation (Goodboy & Bolkan,
2009; Gorham & Christophel, 1992).
Goodboy and Bolkan (2009) found that instructors’ misbehaviors led to a
decrease in students’ cognitive and affective learning which was further validated in this
research. Also, some of the students in this research experienced negative feelings
towards the course content and the instructor, as indicated by the qualitative data, when
their instructor habitually misbehaved. Goodboy (2011a; 2011b) contended that negative
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feelings are a natural response students feel when their instructors misbehave in the
college classroom and that often these students will dissent with their peers by talking
negatively or complain about instructors.
A few of the participants noted wanting to drop the course when their instructors
were highly misbehaved. By far, this may have been the most important finding in this
research because the aim of educators and administrators should be to help college
students persist rather than deter students from college. Lastly, some students felt they
had to censor their behaviors in the classroom when their college instructors misbehaved.
Research shows that students feel on edge when they feel potential harm from their
instructors which supports the findings in the present research (Kelsey et al., 2004).
Family support and persistence. Modeling, achieving dreams, motivation, time
investment, and first generation were the themes that were apparent from the data
regarding how family support was positively related to students’ intent to persist in
college. Many of the students in this research argued that their parents or other family
members such as brothers and aunts modeled the behavior of going to college and thus
influenced students to persist. Tinto (1975) argued one of the main reasons why students
go to college in the first place is because of their parents’ attributes which included being
alumni of a higher educational institution or just attending college period. A more vague
but valuable theme that emerged was that parents helped students achieve their academic
dreams no matter what their dreams were. One such means of helping students achieve
their academic dreams was through listening. Existing literature notes the importance of
parents listening to students and their expressing goals as a means of family support
(Nora & Cabrera, 1996).
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Another form of family support was motivating students with words of
encouragement or positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement helps motivate students
during emotional and academic struggles (McCarron & Inkelas, 2006; Procidano &
Heller, 1983; Ratelle et al., 2005). Time investment referred to parents spending
countless years with their students and providing support in students’ academic careers.
Much of the research concerning parental influence on student persistence demonstrates
the grave impact that time spent with parents helps enhance student performance in
school (Strom & Savage, 2014).
As for being first in the family to graduate from a college, some students in this
research reported having a heavy weight of serving as a role model to their children or
other family members. Pascarella et al. (2004) argued that first generation college
students face many more challenges than the traditional college student but when
overcoming these obstacles, first generation students are likely to obtain a college degree.
Student-to-student connectedness and persistence. There were two themes that
explained how student-to-student connectedness was positively related to students’ intent
to persist in college which were motivation and healthy competition. Motivation referred
to the verbal and nonverbal actions by fellow classmates that stimulated some of the
students in this research to persist in college. In other words, when some of the students
in the present sample saw their peers face adversity and yet persist, some of the students
in this sample felt that they were motivated to persist. This research finding contributes
to the current literature concerning college persistence factors. While some research
showed that students can help their peers persist (Gerdes & Mallinckrodt, 1994), this
literature fails to examine how these students can provide assistance. The present study
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showed that student-to-student connectedness is best evident when students motivate and
compete with their peers.
The other form of student-to-student connectedness that enhanced students’
likelihood of persisting in college was healthy competition which entailed students
competing to earn a better grade or graduate earlier than their classmates. Competition in
these instances could be beneficial to students when aiming to persist in a timely manner
as some research has shown (Gasiewski, Eagan, Garcia, Hurtado, & Chang, 2012).
While the research findings were important to recap for the first research question, so
were the research findings regarding the second research question.
Research Question 3
In this study, only two dimensions of instructors’ misbehaviors were found to be
negative predictors of students’ intent to persist in college. Specifically, antagonism and
lectures were shown to be statistically significant predictors of hindering students’
likelihood of persisting in college. The qualitative data provided further insight as to why
these findings occurred. Thus, it was necessary to summarize the themes relating to types
family support as they pertained to why students did or did not persist in college.
Types of family support. As for types of family support, the following themes
arose from the data: guidance, just be there, emotional support, encouragement, financial
support, school work, and life decisions. Guidance meant that some students in this
research received advice over their academic careers from a family member. Most
reported in this study was guidance received from parents. Traditional college students
who have college graduated parents, tend to exhibit lots of guidance from their parents
(Tinto, 1975). Just be there was conceptualized in this study as family members listening
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to students vent about their academic obstacles. Procidano and Heller (1983) argued that
often students just need to be heard rather than given advice. Emotional support was
defined as family members responding to college students’ feelings as they pertained to
college related issues. Second to financial support, emotional support has been noted in
past literature as an important form of student support in the college persistence process
(Tinto, 1975; Torres & Solberg, 2001).
Additionally, encouragement was another theme that arose from the data in
relation to types of family support. Encouragement was viewed as offering inspirational
messages to help students persist in college. Encouragement is imperative no matter the
educational grade level for students to be motivated to want to persist in school (Cabrera
et al., 1992). Financial support was found in this study to be the most dominant form of
family support which was not surprising as past research has consistently found the same
finding (Goldrick-Rab, Harris, & Benson, 2011; Tinto, 1975). Goldrick-Rab et al. (2011)
argued that students absolutely will not persist in college if they do not have the financial
resources to do so.
School work was another form of family support that was evident in this research.
As described by some of the participants, school work referred to family members either
helping students with their school assignments or giving students time away from their
children to do school work. This finding shed new insight to the existing literature
concerning family support in college because the traditional college student enters
college without children. Some of the participants in this study noted having children
greatly impacted their intent to persist which added that not only do mothers and fathers
most often constitute as family members who give support but so do children. The final
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theme that emerged from the data was life decisions. This form of family support helped
students make important choices that affected their future such as deciding on students’
degree program or future career. Metheny & McWhirter (2013) showed that family
members heavily influence college students’ decisions to pursue a particular career or
college degree.
Research Question 4
Analysis of a multiple linear hierarchical regression showed that like family
support, student-to-student connectedness was not a statistically significant predictor nor
a moderator between instructors’ misbehaviors and students’ intent to persist in college.
The qualitative data shed valuable insight as to why this finding occurred. While studentto-student connectedness was not a predictor of students’ intent to persist it was related to
students’ intent to persist in college. Thus, the present researcher found it necessary to
examine the types of student-to-student connectedness which were summed up in the
following section.
Types of student-to-student connectedness. Familiarity, group work,
communication, disclosure, friendship, moral support, and homophily were the themes
that emerged from the data concerning types of student-to-student connectedness that
enhanced students’ intent to persist in college. Familiarity referred to college students
knowing other classmates from a previous college or high school class. Being familiar
with fellow classmates reduces uncertainty and anxiety of communicating in the college
classroom (Neuliep & Ryan, 1998). Group work meant that students had either an
assignment to be done with fellow classmates or students received assistance from their
classmates to perform an individual assignment. Barkley, Cross, and Major (2014) urged
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instructors to incorporate a group assignment to force students to not only work with each
other but also to allow social interaction time.
Communication in this research was conceptualized as having social interaction
with fellow peers in and out of the college classroom. Research consistently shows that
the student-to-student relationship in today’s college classroom requires successful
exchanges of communication for student learning and connectedness to flourish (Frisby
& Martin, 2010; Glaser & Bingham, 2008). Hence, it was not surprising to discover that
students felt connected to their peers in this study through the mechanisms of
communication. Disclosure referred to students sharing unknown information about
themselves to fellow classmates. Petronio (2002) argued that for friendships to occur,
people must disclose appropriate information to the recipient of the disclosure.
Also, this research showed that friendship was a reoccurring theme that emerged
from the data. Friendship was defined as students from the present sample having deeper
level interpersonal relationships with some of their classmates than other classmates. It is
not uncommon for lifelong friendships to initiate in the college classroom, thus this
finding was consistent with past literature (Tinto, 1997; 2003). Moral support was
perceived in this research as students providing emotional words of encouragement and
sharing educational resources. Many students are likely to persist in college if they feel
morally supported by their peers (Dennis et al., 2005). Homophily in this study was
defined as the shared background and attitudes that students shared with their classmates.
This was the most reported theme that arose regarding types of student-to-student
connectedness. This finding shed light to existing research because historically
homophily has been referenced from a teacher-student interpersonal perspective (Rocca
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& McCroskey, 1999). Accordingly, this research made it apparent that homophily can be
existent between college students and when high levels are exhibited, students feel
stronger connectedness to each other. The aforementioned themes regarding types of
student-to-student connectedness were imperative to summarize but it was also necessary
to discuss the implications for theory, research, and practice that these findings had.
Implications for Theory, Research, and Practice
The findings shown in this research had several implications for educational
leadership theory, research, and practice. Thus it was necessary to further discuss these
implications and suggestions offered by the researcher in the following sections. To
begin, implications for theory were first discussed.
Implications for Theory
There were three major implications for educational leadership theory. First, this
research used the intent to persist perspective as described by Ajzen (1985) and Wheeless
et al. (2011). The internal reliability showed that the instrument used to assess intent to
persist in college was reliable, however actual persistence was not measured. Also, this
research used a sequential explanatory mixed methods design which limited this research
from making causal claims, as only experiments can do so (Field, 2009). Future research
should conduct experimental methods to argue causal claims about what truly impacts
students’ intent to persist.
Second, only intentions to persist were tested in this research. TPB argues that
behavioral beliefs, normative beliefs, and control beliefs precede intent to behave which
precedes actual behavior. Gagné and Godin (2000) argued that while scholars have
shown strong support for the TPB, there are assessment issues with this theory. Ajzen
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(1985) offered suggestions for assessing all of the tenants of TPB but as this theory is
psychology savvy in nature, it has been widely used in other disciplines such as
healthcare (Godin & Kok, 1996) and communication (Brann & Sutton, 2009). As such,
future researchers should directly test all of the tenants of the TPB but with caution, as
assessment of this theory has shown to be cumbersome.
Third, this study was conducted over the span of a few months, thus actual college
persistence could not be assessed. Longitudinal studies of actual persistence should be
examined as this is the one true way to measure college persistence. In part, much of the
existing literature over persistence is limited in theoretical nature because there are few
studies that assess whether students obtained their college degrees or not (Cabrera et al.,
1993). It should also be warranted that the two higher educational organizations where
data was collected in this research were considered moderate in the student population
size. The two year college has over fifteen campuses and the four year university has
three campuses. Both institutions were not considered research focused institutions as
the two year college does not require research and publications from its’ faculty and the
four year university focuses on teaching. Thus, it is feasible that conducting a
longitudinal study at a tier one research institution or small private university may
provide different results than those found in this research. In addition to the implications
for theory, the implications for research were necessary to deliberate.
Implications for Research
In this research there were two implications for research which included other
variables that account for the unexplained variance in students’ intent to persist in college
and other variables that might mitigate the effects of instructors’ misbehaviors. This
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study found that only antagonism and lectures, two of the three dimensions of instructors’
misbehaviors were statistically significant predictors and accounted for 19.80% of the
variance in students’ intent to persist in college. The third dimension of instructors’
misbehaviors, articulation yielded a Cronbach’s alpha reliability score of .60 and .61 in
the pilot study which could have been a possible reason for not being a statistically
significant predictor of students’ intent to persist in college. There were two items that
assessed articulation which is a plausible reason behind the low internal reliability score.
Consequently, there is still much of the variance left unexplained in why students persist
in college. Future researchers should explore other variables that predict students’ intent
to persist in college to provide a holistic perspective. This study explored negative
communitive instructor behaviors but future research should examine positive
communicative instructor behaviors such as use of humor and verbal immediacy that
could influence students’ intent to persist in college.
Additionally, the data from this study did not detect family support and studentto-student connectedness as predictors of students’ intent to persist in college,
nonetheless these variables were not moderators either. There must be student or
instructor attributes that can offset the negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on
students’ intent to persist which were not examined in this study. Future research should
explore other factors like students’ personality traits or tutoring programs like
supplemental instruction to see if these factors are strong enough to moderate the
negative effects of instructors’ misbehaviors on students’ persistence. While it was
important to cover the implications for research, it was also important to discuss the
implications for practice.
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Implications for Practice
The author of this research proposed four major implications for practice in the
field of educational leadership which were instructors cannot misbehave in the college
classroom; instructors should aim to provide mentorship to instructors’ students; the
findings from this research should be used in orientations for new faculty; and family
members and peers should be involved in students’ persistence in college. The only
statistically significant predictors of students’ intent to persist found in this research were
antagonism and lectures, two dimensions of instructors’ misbehaviors. Thus, this finding
shows instructors must not misbehave in the college classroom so that they do not
negatively impact students’ intent to persist.
While it may be hard for instructors’ to determine if they misbehave or not,
instructor’s end of the semester evaluations are one such way to formally measure
instructors’ misbehaviors. Most higher educational institutions conduct teacher
evaluations which are assessed by students. These assessments should be greatly
examined as many times these evaluations can detect instructors’ misbehaviors.
Furthermore, instructors should be willing to make changes in their behaviors if
instructors find that they misbehave habitually. Simply put, instructors cannot misbehave
in and out of the college classroom so that these behaviors negatively impact students’
intent to persist in college.
One way to offset instructors’ misbehaviors is for instructors to provide
mentorship to students. While the data showed that overall there were not many
misbehaved college instructors, the data showed that two dimensions of instructors’
misbehaviors negatively impacted students’ intent to persist in college. Many of the
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themes surrounding types of instructors’ misbehaviors essentially meant that there was no
closeness or frequency of appropriate communication between instructors and their
students. Mentorship requires professors to establish interpersonal relationships, provide
advice, and have constant interactions with students. Accordingly, mentorship was
proposed by the present researcher as a tool to prevent instructors’ misbehaviors. Other
types of preventative tools include professional development and employee improvement
plans. Professional development allows instructors to learn new ways to be effective and
employee improvement plans allow for instructors and their supervisors to devise a plan
that could make the instructor less misbehaved in the college classroom.
Additionally, the findings from this research should be used in orientation
programs at colleges and universities for new faculty. Often times part-and full-time
instructors are lost in the instructional practices of the organization, as there is little to no
discussion about creating organizational culture in the classroom. While the findings in
this study focused on the negative behaviors enacted in the classroom, there is still much
value from the results. Higher educational organizations should create an organizational
culture segment in new hire orientations over do’s and don’t in the classroom. The types
of instructors’ misbehaviors found in this study should be further explained in the new
hire orientation so to prevent future instructor misbehaviors and more importantly to
retain students.
Although this research did not find that family support and student-to-student
connectedness were predictors of students’ intent to persist in college, these variables
were positively related to students’ intent to persist. As such, family members and
classmates should be involved in students’ college lives to enhance students’ intent to
134
persist in college. Administrators should implement a college department dedicated to
family outreach like a larger form of the Parent Teacher Association. This department
would be in charge of communicating with parents and family members to include them
in students’ activities like homecoming and Fall festivals. By including family members
in students’ college activities, family members are able to be engaged in students’ college
lives. Also, administrators should use the learning communities model which clumps
students into large groups of students so that these groups will take classes the first two
years with the same set of students. By utilizing the learning communities model,
students are likely to establish friendships with their classmates which has shown to
enhance college persistence (Tinto, 1997; 2003).
Conclusions
Today’s increasingly high rates of student enrollments are hopeful for colleges
and universities to gain profit; yet graduation rates are still of concern (ACT, 2013).
Educational leadership scholars have explored many factors that impact student college
persistence including this study that looked at family support, student-to-student
connectedness and instructors’ communicative behaviors; however there is still so much
unknown about what can offset negative factors that hinder students’ intent to persist.
This study showed that instructors, family members, and classmates are key players in
the college persistence process. Future research should examine other factors that predict
students’ intent to persist in college as well as all of the tenants of the TPB should be
tested.
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Wilson, S., & Gore, J. (2013). An attachment model of university connectedness. The
Journal of Experimental Education, 81(2), 178-198.
doi:10.1080/00220973.2012.699902
Witt, P. L., Schrodt, P., Wheeless, V. E., & Bryand, M. C. (2014). Students' intent to
persist in college: Moderating the negative effects of receiver apprehension with
instructor credibility and nonverbal immediacy. Communication Studies, 65(3),
330-352.
APPENDIX A
DESCRIPTIVE ITEMS ON SURVEY
153
APPENDIX A
PARTICIPANT SURVEY
Please complete the following information that describes you. Make sure to answer
every item. Remember your answers will remain anonymous.
Age (in years):___________
Gender : _____Male _____Female ____________Other (please specify)
Year in School (check one): ____ Freshman ____ Sophomore ____ Junior ____
Senior ____Post-Bac _____Graduate
Are you enrolled this semester as a full-time or part-time student? (Please check one)
_____Full-time
_____Part-time
What is your ethnicity (check only one)?
____ Caucasian (White)
____Native American
____Hispanic (non-white)
____ African American
____Mixed Race/Biracial
____ Asian Pacific Islander
____________Other (Please Specify)
Do you have any siblings? _____ Yes
Where were you born? ____ Texas
_____ No
If yes, how many? _______
____ Another State in the U.S.
____ Another
Country
Did you receive financial aid (e.g. scholarships, loans, or grants) for the 2014-2015
school year? _____ Yes _____ No
Did you receive financial assistance from a family member for the 2014-2015 school
year? _____ Yes _____ No
APPENDIX B
INSTRUCTOR MISBEHAVIORS SCALE
155
APPENDIX B
INSTRUCTOR MISBEHAVIOR SCALE
Instructions: Think about your teacher before this class. Please respond to the following
items about the frequency of your teacher’s behaviors using the response format below.
Never
0
Seldom
1
Sometimes
2
Often
3
Very Often
4
_____1. My instructor belittles students.
_____2. My instructor yells at students when they ask for help.
_____3. My instructor argues with students during class.
_____4. My instructor tells students their opinions are wrong.
_____5. My instructor criticizes students’ responses to instructor comments or questions.
_____6. My instructor screams or yells at students.
_____7. My instructor discriminates against certain students.
_____8. My instructor tells students their opinions are wrong because his/her opinion is
right.
_____9. My instructor lectures in a dry manner.
_____10. My instructor goes over the material so quickly it is difficult to take notes.
_____11. My instructor gives boring lectures.
_____12. My instructor teachers in a confusing manner.
_____13. My instructor lectures in a monotone voice.
_____14. My instructor speaks English very well.
_____15. My instructor speaks in a strong accent.
_____16. My instructor has problems with pronunciation or articulation due to accent.
APPENDIX C
FAMILY SUPPORT INSTRUMENT
APPENDIX C
FAMILY SUPPORT INSTRUMENT
Instructions: The statements which follow refer to feelings and experiences which
occur to most people at one time or another in their relationships with their families.
For each statement there are three possible answers: Yes, No, and Don’t Know.
Please circle the answer you choose for each item.
Yes
Yes
No
No
Don’t Know
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Don’t Know
Don’t Know
Don’t Know
Yes
Yes
No Don’t Know
No Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
Yes
No
No
Don’t Know
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Yes
No
Don’t Know
1. My family gives me the moral support I need.
2. I get good ideas about how to do things or make
things from my family.
3. Most other people are closer to their families than I
am.
4. When I confide in the members of my family who
are closest to me, I get the idea that it makes them
uncomfortable.
5. My family enjoys hearing about what I think.
6. Members of my family share my interests.
7. Certain members of my family come to me when
they have problems or need advice.
8. I rely on my family for emotional support.
9. There is a member of my family I could go to if I
were just feeling down, without feeling funny about it
later.
10. My family and I are very open about what we think
about things.
11. My family is sensitive to my personal needs.
12. Members of my family come to me for emotional
support.
13. Members of my family are good at helping me
solve problems.
14. I have a deep sharing relationship with a number of
members of my family.
15. Members of my family get good ideas about how to
do things or make things from me.
16. When I confide in members of my family, it makes
me uncomfortable.
17.Members of my family seek me out for
companionship.
18. I think that my family feels that I’m good at helping
them solve problems.
19. I don’t have a relationship with a member of my
family that is as close as other people’s relationships
with family members.
20. I wish my family were much different.
APPENDIX D
STUDENT-TO-STUDENT CONNECTEDNESS INSTRUMENT
159
APPENDIX D
STUDENT-TO-STUDENT CONNECTEDNESS INSTRUMENT
Instructions: Please respond to the following items about your behaviors using the
response format below.
Strongly
Disagree
Neither
Agree
Strongly Agree
Disagree
Disagree nor
Agree
0
1
2
3
4
_____1. I feel a sense of security in my class.
_____2. I have common ground with my classmates.
_____3. I feel a strong bond with my classmates.
_____4. The students in my class share stories and experiences with one another.
_____5. The students in my class are friendly with one another.
_____6. The students in my class respect one another.
_____7. I feel included in class discussion in my class.
_____8. The students in my class are courteous with one another.
_____9. The students in my class praise one another.
_____10. The students in my class are concerned about one another.
_____11. The students in my class smile at one another.
_____12. The students in my class engage in small talk with one another.
_____13. The students in my class are non-judgmental with one another.
_____14. The students in my class laugh with one another.
_____15. The students in my class are supportive of one another.
_____16. The students in my class show interest in what one another is saying.
_____17. The students in my class cooperate with one another.
_____18. The students in my class feel comfortable with one another.
APPENDIX E
INTENT TO PERSIST SCALE
161
APPENDIX E
INTENT TO PERSIST SCALE
Instructions: Check the numbers below that best represent how the teacher before
this class has impacted your decision to stay in school?
He/she influenced me to:
Persist
1
2
3
Continue
1
2
3
Leave
1
2
3
Keep going 1
2
3
Go away
1
2
3
Persevere
1
2
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
5
5
5
5
5
6
6
6
6
6
6
7
7
7
7
7
7
Do not persist
Stop
Stay
Give-up
Remain
Halt
APPENDIX F
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
163
APPENDIX F
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
Interview Questions
The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation and for
my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are no
right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are unsure
about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or emotional
risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere from 45
minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any time we
can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your verbal
consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this interview?
Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to describe you,
age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
1. What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
2. How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own words?
3. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
4. Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your
classmates?
5. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If not,
why?
6. Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
7. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist, if at
all?
8. How would you define family support in your own words?
9. Can you give me examples of family support?
10. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family members)?
11. Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
12. Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
13. Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
14. How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in college,
if at all?
15. What type of prosocial behaviors do your college instructors use in the
classroom?
16. How would you define prosocial instructor behaviors?
17. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed prosocial
behaviors?
18. How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
19. What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be instructor
misbehavior?
20. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
21. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors?
164
22. How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
23. Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
24. In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Thank you for your time and input.
APPENDIX G
RESEARCHER DIGITAL JOURNAL
166
APPENDIX G
RESEARCHER DIGITAL JOURNAL
Researcher Digital Journal
June 16, 2015
Today I started to input my quantitative data. As I went through the data I could
get a feel of which students scored high and low regarding their perceptions of
instructors’ misbehaviors. There was a tropical storm that hit Houston today and UHCL
cancelled classes. I should have collected 3 classes worth of data but could not. Hopefully
the weather will get better tomorrow. I already feel like I am behind. My goal is to input
all of my quantitative data by June and all of my qualitative data by July. That way I can
write the results by the end of July and complete chapter 5 by August. There is so much
to do in such little time!!!
July 1, 2015
Just finished collecting some data. This is moving way too slow than I anticipated
and is very frustrating. Hopefully my interviews will move faster so that I can make up
for time. I have entered the surveys collected thus far so at least that is done. I am fine
collecting surveys and administering them but for some reason I’m nervous to conduct
the interviews….haha totally not like me. I think that because I am more familiar with
quantitative methods I feel comfortable with the surveys but I have only conducted two
qualitative studies. Blah…the rain keeps coming and because I keep most of my work,
including my surveys, some of the surveys got warped.
On another note, I keep thinking that I should conduct either 9 or 12 interviews so
that I can equal out the amount of high, medium, and low rated instructors. I feel that this
would provide a holistic perspective of the respondents. Also, I need to do a NVivo
tutorial so I know how to use the program. I know how to use Excel but I’m pumped
about using NVivo.
July 28, 2015
So a lot has happened over the past few weeks. I had a personal life changing
event which caused me to step away for a while from my data collection. I even lost of
few scheduled interviews but it’s okay because I found more participants to make up for
the loss of participants. I now have 12 interviews completed and transcribed and it feels
so good! I have also setup my codebook and I have been reading and rereading the data. I
transcribed and entered the data myself so I feel like I have a good grasp on knowing my
data inside and out. It’s just a bit overwhelming because there is so much data to code.
Thus, I will need to use the next few days wisely focusing on coding alone. I feel good
about the qualitative data but I’m disappointed in my findings from the quantitative data.
Only one hypothesis was supported and the other two were partially supported. Oh well!
I know that my qualitative data will provide a good perspective as to why I found this.
At first I was hesitant to do interviews but I am so glad that I did because I feel
like it will provide valuable insight. I’m more excited now about my qualitative data than
167
I am my quantitative data. On a side note, my hands are killing me from typing so much,
so on that note…until next time!
August 5, 2015
Today feels so freaking great because I not only have all of my data collected and
analyzed, I also have everything regarding my fifth chapter written up. I have edited and
need to re-read to make sure all looks well. Next, I will email this version of my paper to
the committee and await their review. I think I will start on chapter five as I wait for their
comments. I seriously have typed so much this past month, my hands feel like they are
going to fall off. Surprisingly, I feel like I have stronger affinity for qualitative methods
than I do quantitative methods. I think because it allowed me for a few moments to put
other people’s eyes as my own, was a really neat experience. Also, I just realized that I
can apply for graduation if all goes well with this chapter by August 24th!!!! Woooo
hoooo!!!! I finally see the light at the end of the tunnel!!!
August 11, 2015
I submitted my fourth chapter and have now started the fifth chapter. I feel like I
have made some strides finally. Also, I have started to re-format my paper because Word
keeps throwing margins and other settings off. I’m also thinking about sending a shorter
version to SERA or maybe AERA. Fall starts in two weeks so by then I will decide which
conference.
APPENDIX H
CODEBOOK
169
APPENDIX H
CODEBOOK
Table 12
Codebook of Students’ Responses
Persistence Factors
Family
Olly 77-79
Elsa 25-27
Elsa 24-25
Self Goals
Ariel 44-45
Shelia 21
Elsa 23-24
Olly 120122
Zoolander
27-32
Ariel 41-44
Anastasia
21-26
Zoolander
19-21
Ariel 39-41
Jasmine 2021
Zazu 23
Ginger 2021
Polly 20-22
Zoolander
21-23
Alicia 2021
Elsa 163164
Shelia 2122
Tim 19
Elsa 27-29
Zazu 21-22
Ginger 74
Time 23-24
Elsa 157159
Jasmine 20
Misbehavior and
Persistence
Interest
Learning
Negative Feelings
Attrition
Censor behaviors
Student Connectedness
and Persistence
Motivation
Healthy competition
Family Support and
Persistence
Modeling
Achieve Dreams
Motivation
Olly 186
Anastasia
191-193
Anastasia
193-194
Jasmine
181-184
Polly 519526
Ariel 276278
Alicia 165168
Ginger 201
Polly 517518
Polly 531534
Polly 517
Polly 526528
Alicia 164165
Ginger 201205
Zoolander
307-310
Olly 64-65
Alicia 6264
Ginger 6768
Ginger 67
Elsa 86-87
Ariel 106112
Jazzy 63-66
Ginger 6869
Shelia 7273
Olly 120122
Elsa 153154
Shelia 115116
Zazu 121125
Zazu 108110
Anastasia
80-83
Zoolander
109-116
Alicia 103105
Anastasia
129-131
Zoolander
191
Anastasia
127
Zazu 198199
Zazu 193198
Shelia 193195
Anastasia
69-74
Polly 112129
Olly 64-65
Ginger 6768
Polly 274275
Tim102105
Anastasia
115-118
Polly 284293
170
Time Investment
First generation
Misbehaviors
Not caring
Putt Downs
Rude
Lack of guidance for
Assignments
Calling students out
Nonverbal
Communication
Poor Lecture Style
Class structure
Verbal Communication
Shelia 121122
Ariel 172173
Zoolander1
43-150
Jasmine
111-112
Olly 155156
Polly 489493
Olly 137139
Tim 121122
Zazu 132137
Polly374383
Olly 171173
Anastasia
139-140
Zazu150151
Polly 452463
Polly 451
Elsa 217218
Jasmine
144-148
Anastasia
159-161
Ginger 170173
Zoolander
249-251
Polly 485489
Anastasia
158
Jasmine
164-166
Jasmine
162-164
Elsa 216
Anastasia
145-146
Polly 309311
Jasmine
132-139
Ginger 158
Polly 388395
Polly 466469
Shelia 165169
Polly 496498
Olly 132133
Shelia 133
Zoolander
248
Ginger 136138
Olly 156157
Alicia 128130
Ariel 245246
Anastasia
158-159
Elsa 211
Anastasia
166
Tim 172175
Ginger 150153
Zazu 186187
Tim 146
Ariel 246
Polly 77-92
Polly 414416
Shelia 163165
Elsa 226227
Jasmine
144
Polly 469470
Ginge 160162
Zazu 160163
Ariel 243244
Polly 426437
Tim 137141
Polly 421-
Ariel 132133
Ginger 182
Shelia 150151
Zoolander
256-257
Shelia 128
Polly 474
Jasmine
152-153
Shelia 177
Ariel 112
Polly 419421
Shelia 177178
Anastasia
145
Ariel 270271
Zoolander
248
Shelia 156157
Shelia 149150
Elsa 216217
Polly 371372
Anastasia
153-154
Shelia 156
Polly 482485
Polly 383388
Ariel 226
Ariel 221222
Polly 395403
Ariel 246247
Olly 149150
Alicia 135136
Tim 134135
Zoolander
232-243
Alicia 140142
Elsa 227230
Elsa 226
Shelia 157159
Anastasia
166-167
Polly 493496
Shelia 147149
Polly 411414
Zoolander2
58-260
Polly 337334
Zoolander
264-272
Anastasia
136-137
Zazu 196
Polly 452
Shelia 159
Zazu 151155
Tim 149150
Polly 416419
Polly 419421
Ariel 248-
Tim 146-
171
426
(In- and Out-of Class)
Interpersonal Attention
Family Support
Guidance
Alicia 135
Olly 161162
Ginger 182187
Olly 83-85
Tim 96-98
Tim 62-66
Just be there
Olly 109
Shelia 8990
Zoolander
141-143
Emotional
Elsa 91-92
Encouragement
Elsa 93
Anastasia
80-83
Olly 113115
Ginger 7879
Financial
School Work
Life decisions
Elsa 94-96
Shelia 8485
Alicia 8587
Anastasia
87
Elsa 107109
Anastasia
98-100
Alicia 9698
249
Ginger 150
Ginger 159
Shelia 159
149
Alicia 109110
Polly 315321
Polly 372373
Polly 408411
Polly 478
Anastasia
90-93
Shelia 109111
Polly 171185
Polly 133134
Zazu 98102
Tim 77-79
Polly 185192
Tim 88-90
Polly 275280
Jasmine
104-105
Shelia 7780
Polly 202205
Alicia 68
Anastasia
122-123
Alicia 6869
Shelia 97101
Jasmine 71
Alicia 7375
Anastasia
107-111
Shelia 9293
Jasmine 7677
Elsa 100103
Shelia 9092
Ariel 137139
Ginger 8687
Elsa 109118
Polly 134167
Zazu 71-74
Alicia 68
Shelia 84
Polly 199201
Elsa 104107
Shelia 101103
Zoolander
120-121
Ginger 7981
Shelia 103105
Ariel 149155
Ginger 8789
Elsa 130138
Zoolander
126-132
Ariel 137
Poly 209236
Elsa 122124
Jasmine
71-72
Ariel 130131
Ariel 51-53
Ginger 85
Ariel 139141
Olly 98-101
Elsa 150153
Olly 77-79
Zazu 114116
Ginger 98100
Zazu 76-77
Polly 244259
Zazu 81-85
Tim 71-72
Anastasia
87-90
Jasmine
77-80
Elsa 93
Zazu 33-36
Olly 32-33
Jasmine 9094
Zazu74-76
Student Connectedness
Familiarity
Olly 52-53
Polly 34-35
Zoolander
48-51
Jasmine 5759
172
Group Work
Communication
Disclosure
Friendship
Moral Support
Homophily
Olly 57-59
Zoolander
51
GInger4849
Anastasia
34-37
Elsa 62
Ginger 42
Ginger 5455
Polly 32-34
Ginger 3032
Ginger 4849
Polly 68-71
Tim 56-58
Zazu 28-29
Zazu 60-66
Zoolander
64-70
Elsa 39-43
Polly 99101
Jasmine
105-106
Shelia 5657
Elsa 49-53
Elsa 61-62
Jasmine 4041
Ginger 3638
Ariel 88
Alicia 3536
Shelia 4546
Zoolander5
2-55
Anastasia
42-43
Ginger 4344
Anastasia
55
Zazu 47-48
Anastasia
43
Ariel 94-96
Jasmine 3536
Jasmine 35
Ariel 88-89
Zoolander
79-82
Ariel 53-54
Polly 31-32
Polly 60-61
Zoolander
41-44
Elsa 63-64
Zoolander
67-68
Jasmine 57
Polly 51
Shelia 4345
Elsa 63-64
Ariel 75-81
Elsa 61-62
Anastasia
62
Polly 53
Shelia 3739
Polly 102104
Jasmine 53
Alicia 25
Alicia 5657
Ariel 63-65
Alicia 56
Zazu 52-55
Shelia 30
Zoolander7
9
Anastasia
56-57
Shelia 58
Alicia 2526
Elsa 38-39
Anastasia
43-44
Anastasia
61
Anastasia
48-49
Shelia 6263
Ginger 6061
Elsa 49-53
Shelia 32
Polly 106
Time 28-30
Shelia 32
Elsa 80-81
Anastasia
62-65
Jasmine 5053
Zazu 27-28
Ginger 55
Anastasia
49-51
Ginger 42
Ginger 55
Tim 34-37
Anastasia
42
Zazu 46-47
Ginger 6162
Elsa 81-82
Ginger 43
Elsa 33-35
APPENDIX I
TRANSCRIBED INTERVIEWS
174
APPENDIX I
TRANSCRIBED INTERVIEWS
Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Ariel
Date: July 2, 2015
Interview Time: 18:51
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
A: Um I have lived kind of all over. My parents moved a lot umm even right now I live
four hours away from here I’ve been commuting here for school. Yeah. I have hahaha. I
live outside of Austin. Basically long story short I thought I was done moving and then
my boyfriend got a job out there and yeah we moved and I tried to transfer schools so it
was a big mess and so it was
MS: Oh bless your heart
A: Drive here a year or go back take freshman classes for another three years trying to
get my bachelors. Laugh.
MS: I had a friend go from corpus to Austin so I remember hearing her stories so wow
that’s dedication. That’s awesome though.
A: Um I have three younger brothers, they live in Florida with my parents so it’s just me
here as far as family. Um immediate family.
MS: Ok.
A: Um I don’t have a lot of free time it’s pretty much just work and school right now.
Um that’s pretty much it.
MS: Great. So, what influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these
factors influence you to persist in college.
A: I I don’t really know that to be honest that I hear that I’m crazy all of the time for
what I’m doing with the drive but uh yeah I just want to get I’m the first person in my
family to go to college aside from my aunt. That’s actually who let me stay with here
175
that’s kind of who’s been the good influence in my life. Um for the first like years so I
was back here and then now it’s kind of my boyfriend and his family that kind of taken
me in. He’s got a normal haha family and you know they have all gone to college and
they appreciate the value of it I guess. And they always kind of keep me motivated but
for the most part I think its kind of just like a personal internal thing.
MS: For sure. I completely understand. How would you define student-to-student
connectedness in your own words?
A: I think it’s really unique in education because we do so much group work and things
like that and I know for me personally there’s a group of a few girls that would kind of
travel throughout community college and everything and so they’re basically kind of in
the same classes sometimes the same times sometimes not but we always are right around
the same part of each other so we always texting emailing whatever.
MS: Are yall in cohorts or no? Can you take classes wherever you want?
A: You mean did they have like a strict structure? No. it’s pretty lenient to be compared
to others.
MS: Ok. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
A: Um. I guess similar to the last question there’s a group of us who kind of all know
each other become kind of close just from traveling around and we we typically do things
together if we can.
MS: Ok good. Would you say yall study together at all or is it more like support?
A: Some do but I like to study by myself haha because I think it doesn’t work for me but
yeah some of them do.
MS: Ok cool. Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your
classmates? Here if you can recall one experience that would be great.
A: Um I think I it was my first special ed class at a community college. We did uh kind
of about me thing we do it a lot in the education classes but it was like a bag of things
that you were supposed to explain and it was just kind of gave you lot more background
even to people that I was friends with and I remember I’m not a very emotional person
but I was crying and everybody in the class was crying. Just everybody talking about
their their families and what the were like so it was more like in depth than the usual like
I’m ashlee I’m from here I have this yeah.
MS: For sure that’s awesome. Really cool. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of
your classes? If so, why? If not, why?
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A: For the most part and that’s I think that’s pretty unique because this school especially
I mean there’s a lot of people who have kids my age that are in my classes and stuff like
that but everybody it’s easy to be connected because for the most part everybody is very
friendly and willing to work together and and things like that.
MS: Cool. Great that’s good to hear. Thank you. Do you believe it is important to be
connected to your peers? Why or why not?
A: I I do think so. Uh I really believe that everybody has a lot to bring to the table and um
even if you don’t think people have something to contribute based on what you see a lot
of times it can even be like what not to do might be their contribution to you so.
Something to learn.
MS: For sure. Would you say that for the group work or just in class discussions or kind
of all of the above?
A: Yeah all of the above. We were together a lot in all of our classes well the one im in
now any given day we are in like three different groups so.
MS: Ok. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist, if at
all?
A: Um. That actually was kind of pertinent to me I was going to graduate a semester
early than all of my friends we started the same time as me and then I moved and I had to
take a semester off so I was going to transfer but it didn’t work out. Uhm but just the
whole not wanting to have to watch all of them graduate and them and me not doing it
was kind of like ok. So I took you know five classes this semester and came back and
was doing the drive and working and now I’m in two internship next so it’s just kind of
like uh a competitive but not in a bad way not a negative way.
MS: Ok. I’m in similar shoes right now. I have a cohort but I came in with hours and
now I’m in an odd place so I uh yeah understand. Let’s see. How would you define
family support in your own words?
A: As in my my family?
MS: Your family and whoever you constitute family for instance family for me was just
mom. I was raised by a single mother and so that’s who when I think of family I think of
like it can also extend to parents, grandparents, uncles, even your boyfriend’s family.
A: Yeah, um as far as my well put it this way I’m going to Florida Sunday to see for a
work conference but also to see my family while I’m there. That should tell you
something hahaa that’s the second part why I’m going not the first. It would be the first
time I have seen them in two and a half years. And we never had a bad relationship which
just. We’re just not very connected we have not been like a very huggy family call
everyday family. Uhm and so when I in here for school uh I stay with my boyfriend’s
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family, his parents, and uhm they’re really my support system. They are always asking
how is school. Reminding me how important it is to graduate and all of that stuff so being
around them has made a huge difference because when you’re the first person to go to
college you know your parents are proud of you but also if that you didn’t go they
wouldn’t care either way.
MS: Cool. Alright. Let’s see. Can you give me examples of family support?
A: Um definitely for me there’s a lot of emotional support and also you know the fact
that they let me stay with them for half the week or you know when I start internship two
everyday um my boyfriend has been helping me financially supportive um. Yeah but I
think as far as the preserving it’s emotional support more than anything you can always
find the money and get a job but I think that’s the hardest thing that uh to overcome.
MS: k. Great. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family
members)?
A: My aunt, my mom’s sister specifically and my boyfriend and his parents.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
A: Uhm yeah I the first couple years of college I was just kind of just floating through I
was actually getting a business degree but I hated it. I wanted to get in education I wanted
to be a teacher but I you’re not going to make any money I was always hearing stuff like
that and I really wanted to switch majors and I thought im already so far behind I thought
my friends are already getting ready to graduate at um and that’s actually my boyfriend
who said don’t worry about money do what you want to do do what will make you
happy. He has made a huge difference. Hahaha.
MS: Yes, there will be doubt about making money in education but that’s great that you
love it. Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
A: My family no. um and again I think it’s one just the type of relationship that we’ve
always had and two them not understanding necessarily what college entails.
MS: For sure. Ok. Um Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family?
Why or why not?
A: I do. Um it seems like that the you know the friends and the peers that I have who
have a lot of family support always are it just seems so easy for them hehehe.
MS: Ok. How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in
college, if at all?
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A: Um. It it first it made me upset and then after a while I just kind of okay just just how
our relationship is. And it I think this one is completive also I just want to do it I want to
be the first one. I want to show everybody I can do it. Um.
MS: Cool that’s great. What type of prosocial behaviors do your college instructors use
in the classroom? In other words what positive behaviors do they use?
A: I think since we’re in education they’re always kind of demonstrate things that we can
use in our own classroom so they’re always giving praise and you know verbal nonverbal
kind of um I don’t know what the word is.
MS: Yeah like positive cues.
A: Yeah. Yeah.
MS: Ok. How would you define prosocial instructor behaviors?
A: As in like what are they or?
MS: Yeah so here let’s see. Maybe give me some examples I guess of some positive
behaviors in the classroom.
A: Um. They again they’re always kind of um giving us pats on the back and you know
telling us when we’re right and also when we’re wrong. Um. They always kind of twist
that into a positive. They put a positive spin on it. So.
MS: Teacher have a great way of doing that.
A: Haha. Good idea but…. Hahaha.
MS: That’s awesome. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed
prosocial behaviors?
A: Um. I mean in the class I’m in now I I get I’m always getting positive notes on my
papers when I did well. Things like that so. I do get like I cited professors from here and
my teacher was friends with them and I got a smiley face written on there.
MS: That’s awesome. Haha. What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you
consider to be instructor misbehavior? So instead of positive, what are negative instructor
behaviors?
A: You know other than you know some little things slightly unorganized I have had
really really good experiences with my instructors here as far as my education classes.
MS: Ok.
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A: Um. There’s nothing that kind of sticks out to me and is like.
MS: Ok. Yeah. How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
A: Um. I think it’s just kind of when they the classroom environment just has a negative
energy all of the time.
MS: Ok.
A: Um. You know when just the way they correct people and things like that I think are.
MS: You mention you were at a community college. Which one?
A: Lee college.
MS: Ok so there did you witness any other smaller instances of misbehavior? It doesn’t
have to be like locking a child in a closet or you know in college we don’t do that but um
for instance showing up to class late or not responding to emails. That kind of things.
Have you ever experienced anything like that?
A: Actually my first semester here they make you take four you pick out core classes you
have to take and one was uh it was a uh why can’t I think of any words today. Uh. Where
the class is mixed part online part in class.
MS: Oh uh. I’ve taught them it was a uhhh. Not a cross breed…
A: A hybrid class there you go. A full semester we went like every two or three weeks to
the class the rest was online and even then we class was cancelled a lot but it wasn’t like
in the convenient way because then she would assign us something and our due date was
always the day after class so. And she never responded to emails and her you know her
directions were very vague on all of the assignments online so you know we would come
to class or the kids the students actually started like uh like a group email and you know
four five people at a time I emailed her you know none of us have gotten a response.
Yeah that one was pretty rough.
MS: Yeah that would be irritating. Can you tell me about a time when a college
instructor misbehaved? You talked about the one experience have you had any other?
A: I’ve had a couple you know late to class but nothing outstanding.
MS: Ok. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors? You mentioned not
responding to emails, uh assigning assignments last minute, and canceling class, moving
more online, what else would you add?
A: Um. [long pause]. I really don’t know other than that.
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MS: Ok that’s fine, let’s move on. How many of your college instructors have
misbehaved? So just kind of a general number estimate.
A: I would say that stick out of my head maybe two or three.
MS: Ok. Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
A: Um, just the one that I had mentioned a minute ago um that was constantly you know
a bit the ones that like maybe once they were fifteen late to class and they couldn’t tell us
because something happened but at the time it was very inconvenient but.
MS: Yeah for sure. In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if
at all? So for instance your interest your motivation?
A: I mean if they just really are unorganized or they don’t seem interested in what they’re
teaching or in any of the students in their class it makes it hard to it makes it hard for you
to care if they don’t care. Um it’s definitely um it definitely rubs off on you I think.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
A: Um I don’t think so.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Zoolander
Date: July 20, 2015
Interview Time: 25:59
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
Z: This is my year in college, I have no siblings, and I’m uh really into animae.
MS: Great, thanks. What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these
factors influence you to persist in college.
Z: Well first of all this is my first year in college so I’m uhm in a weird spot. Um when it
comes to persisting is um more persisting but um I have a sense that I want to be
something that’s someone that’s like good at things and stuff like that academically to a
certain extent. Uh and so what I think influences me mostly is uh at times the grade for
instance. That you know I want to be I want to get a good grade and so that like motivates
me to study and stuff like that.
MS: Ok. Yeah.
Z: And let’s see that’s basically the basis but what that comes from is my parents. Both
of my parents are educated people. My mom is a doctor and my dad is an engineer. Um I
look up to them and I want to reach positions where you know where they are or at least
somewhere close to them or higher possible. And so um that’s what motivates me
because you know uh to do better and even if I wasn’t in college that’s the number one
thing that would trigger everything that I do because I want to be somewhere as good as
they are.
MS: Yeah, ok. Great thank you. How would you define student-to-student connectedness
in your own words?
Z: Just the concept itself?
MS: Yes.
Z: Mmmh. I guess uh, [long pause]. It’s the extent to which the extent to how much or
how well students communicate with each other. And also how much they understand
each other because of course communication includes what is being able to understand
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can also convey messages the person is looking for so. It’s basically back and forth thing
so yeah.
MS: Ok. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
Z: Um, luckily the people that in my class that I’m with in a group are mostly from my
high school sao two of them are fairly my close friends and let’s see. Connected to your
classmates. And so uh the way I feel connected to them for instance one of my college
classes because you know taking a class with them is like doing a group project with
them and stuff and also uh connectedness in the sense that um we all have similar interest
obviously when you look for friends. But for similar interests like uh I’m a big fan of
animae and uhhhh Karen is a person who is into animae so we can have that connection
where we talk about stuff and everything so yeah.
MS: Ok good. Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your
classmates?
Z: Let’s see. Uhm. [long pause].
MS: You can elaborate with like the example of your friend Karen.
Z: we both started a club and uh our school we called it the visual arts club so it’s
basically like we talk about animae and stuff like that and there’s lots of students who
started it up and she’s the President and I’m the uh Secretary of the club. And uh when
I’m in the club in itself I feel connected to her because you know we sort of worked
together and everything and like to discussions and everything and I’m the person to help
her out or she helps me out whenever I’m doing the things and stuff like that so yeah
that’s basically like every week we have a club uh meet up so I feel connected every time
we have that um.
MS: Um. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If not,
why?
Z: You can’t really feel connected to every one of your peers because you know there’s
always differences between you and people and stuff like that that’s always going to be
there. But um uh but in the classes that I took throughout my high school career I mean
uh mostly I took classes that I wanted because I had the option but some classes that are
mandatory so like I feel really connected to the people but at the same time when you
really don’t like a class or some of the people that share the same um thought process so
you’re sort of like to connect but oh we need to finish that work and you sort of help each
other out and there’s times you can find the answers or something you tend to um do that
and so in that capacity I feel like I would be connected to a certain extent to every single
one of them but not the farthest extent. Some of them more some of them less, especially
in my college classes now.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
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Z: [sigh]. Um actually uh there was a point in my life well in the beginning when I was
even younger like first and second grade I was mostly isolated to a certain extent like I
was also bullied at school and so what happened was I sort of just disliked the concept of
getting friends because every time I would get a friend there would be a problem or
something like that. And uhm it you know we ended up like breaking up or something
like that and but like later on uh I uh sort of went through a change a particular change in
my life and after that I started getting friends and uh what my problem was that I felt like
I expected too much of a person. And so when what happened was you know nothing
nobody really lived up to any of the expectations so later on I started to to a certain extent
lower expectations and also I tried to like figure out what I can expect of a person
because before I would be like oh you are my friend you can do this for me and I was the
only child so it was like you expected people to be nice to you and staff and now it’s
easier to understand that certain people you can expect certain things and other people
you can’t expect certain things. And you have to try to figure that out and that’s how I
work out my friends so yeah.
MS: Great examples.
Z: It’s so cold in here, I’m shaking.
MS: I know sorry. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to
persist, if at all?
Z: Um, yeah im not very uh my classmates don’t really motivate me much yeah. Because
as I said my parents its my family that already motivates me. My family is educated and
we have a C thing going on and stuff too. So like um you know I don’t necessarily need
my classmates and also I have been traveling a lot. I have been to japan, Malaysia,
Bangladesh, and Canada for four years. So in these places that I have been changing a lot
so normally when people motivate you they tend to have a certain level of connection
because of the certain amount of time you know them and college and schools so like I
couldn’t really create a connection because I haven’t had the chance.
MS: Gotcha. Ok. How would you define family support in your own words?
Z: Mostly whenever you have a particular problem um let’s say because mostly when
you talk to your family its either just for the fun of it or it’s because you have an issue.
And I have realized that in our age my age um we tend to normally divulge ourselves
more to our peers than our parents at times. Um but there’s certain things you can’t tell
your peers and there’s certain things you can’t tell your parents and those things normally
have you know there’s certain problems that uh going both ways so things that you tell
your parents the best thing I guess would be um what do you call it uh? Would be
something that where your parents understand you. Um and understand you not only but
try to see it from your point of view and also at times others the lack of understanding
because you know to them they live in a different environment than the environment that
you live in. so like whenever they sort of um live in the same environment as you and uh
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uh sort of get it it’s essentially get it that’s when you know you feel the greatest family
support because other than that you normally have you just want people to know what
you are feeling and that’s makes you feel better right?
MS: Yeah, yeah, great. Ok. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which
family members)? You’ve kind of hit a little on this but..
Z: Yeah um well, yeah it’s my mom and dad. I mean I actually go to them equally.
Mostly equally because um. The two person being they are they are very intellectuals so
well like the mother being a soccer person thing um I haven’t for both of them at the
same time they are both strict they are strict and I have you know, the change to like see
both sides of the both my parents and you know they we the way we can communicate
you know there’s times you know my dad and I just laugh for like hours and then there’s
other times he’s just angry at me because of certain something I mean like and so um.
And I I feel uh uh you know what do you call this? I feel supported both by both of them
and because again because I have good relationships with them and it’s been building up
and uh again as I said I moved a lot so essentially the best place I could find constant
support from was my parents and I guess will always be my parents because again they
are the people the two people that never fluctuated or changed in my life because you
know they are always there. They are my parents and I can’t change my parents
obviously so like that’s the thing. Um but like as I peers change and that’s the reason I
really didn’t look their and instead I kept my folks and my parents and that ended.
MS: Cool ok. Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported
you?
Z: Um, I think the world of math. Um my father is a uh an excellent mathematician I
mean he’s a structural engineer but he is really good at math. There are times I am mind
blown at how fast he does things right and so um it this whole math thing started for me
in first grade and during that time I wasn’t very good at that subject but he wanted me to
get better and stuff and so um you know I did exercise with him and everything and
within a small amount of time I got better and the specific incident that would be um
there was a thing in first grade they would give us a paper with a hundred math questions
right and. It used to be really small addition subtraction questions like 8-9 or stuff like
that I’m sorry 9-8 um 9-8 or 10+2 something like that the highest number could go up to
20 like the addition or subtraction could go up to 20 so um those questions and you had
10 minutes to do it right. In first grade. And so the it we sort of competed against each
other and as time went on at the beginning I was uh at like 8 minutes and by the end of
that school year as my dad helped me out stuff like that yeah its addition and subtraction
but there is always a better way to do things in a more um you know faster way like uh so
um and by the end of that entire uh school year I beat the person who did it the fastest
which was 5 minutes the kids name was Sammy and I beat him the top number 3 minutes
so I was pretty happy with that.
MS: That’s really cool. That’s awesome. Do you feel supported by your family? Why or
why not?
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Z: Most definitely because again I as I said I didn’t really have anyone else to connect to
because I moved and changed a lot and changed countries as well so I only had my
parents with me so yes, I definitely do feel supported by my family.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
Z: Um, when it comes to family again I come from a collectivist society so I’m from
Bangladesh so what happens is in my in my society we believe that having your family
by your side could is essentially the strongest level of strength you can possibly have.
That is uuh it’s inexplicably strong so um in that in that capacity of course I think um uh
being supported by family helps you a lot so I guess that would make it important but
again at certain times there’s um your family can’t really do something for you and you
need other people so like it just depends on the scenario I guess and certain capacities as
well so yeah.
MS: Ok. How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in
college, if at all?
Z: again it’s the more the achievement thing where yeah basically.
MS: Yeah ok. What type of prosocial behaviors do your college instructors use in the
classroom?
Z: Um let’s see I had a history class and our teacher used to have seminars basic
seminars that what you had was a particular group was given an issue like in my past
class and then we would discuss them with the whole class and it allows us to exchange
ideas and also it’s a world history class so we had to know the cause and effect of things
and the way we did it was that when we talked about these issues worldwide issues um
we tend to discuss about the causes and effects and also that created a sense of bond
between the students as well um so like that allowed um what do you call this?
MS: Positive behaviors.
Z: Yeah um uh and then another class. When I took a language class my teacher used to
have discussions um on pretty good things we did in class for instance we read a book so
what do you think of this person’s character or something like that. Which you know a lot
of which is to seek out evidence education wise it helped and also again positive behavior
in terms of like we interact with each other and understand each other to see how each
other thinks and also created a better bond between those people who you do know and
those you don’t. You know you don’t really talk too much.
MS: Yeah ok. Let’s see. How would you define prosocial instructor behaviors?
Z: Um [sigh], instructor behaviors would definitely be to be friendly I guess. Yes, but
again they’re instructors so it’s uh has a certain capacity to it that every the for me
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personally I feel like every single thing is going to be a should be a qualifying statement
where you know it’s not necessary true at any particular position so um definitely you
have to be friendly to a certain extent. You have to be strict to a certain extent.
Everything has a limit to it. So yea I yeah overly strict or overly friendly none of those
are good. You need good balance between both of those things and that’s what I believe
prosocial instructor behaviors.
MS: Great. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed prosocial
behaviors?
Z: I had a teacher Mr. Who again World History professor uh he was that person you
could open up to but he was strict like we were scared if we couldn’t do his work. But yet
the same time we could laugh with him as long as you wanted. I would go after class just
for the sake of talking to him and those not only me it was actually a bunch of others me
and two others.
MS: Great. That’s good. On the flip side. How would you define instructor
misbehaviors?
Z: Uh, not telling students they are wrong uh is one of the examples Im going to give but
um so what you can get from that particular thing is that when um an instructor normally
educated people what I would imagine them to be people that can actually make you see
your own mistake if you are wrong at all. Because like if you tell flat out to a person you
are wrong what ends up happening that ends up having a certain level of animosity
towards you automatically but if you get them to um sort of see your own mistake. Let’s
just say you ask me something and I tell you something and supposedly it’s wrong. You
tell me in a way that um is you let’s say you give me facts or um you tell me to look at a
different perspective and instead of telling me flat out that im wrong I will probably
realize my own mistake because again when someone is questioned they tend to research
on their own but if they are flat out told they are wrong it sort of like I want the belief
perseverance thing happens where you want to believe you want to prove that person
wrong instead of just understanding so I would think just directly bashing people would
be bad.
MS: For sure. What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be
instructor misbehavior?
Z: Um, verbal again the bashing um of course and nonverbal would be like eye rolling
stuff like that. Um, definitely because like sometimes you just like uh I did this and you
know you’re just teasing me and I feel uncomfortable personally so. I don’t know how
other people feel but like I feel like you know to a certain extent weird.
MS: Ok. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
Z: Um, there was a one instance well not one instance actually that language teacher she
uh there was certain times when um we sort of didn’t realy agree with what she said and
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she sort of tried to impose her ideas on us. Um but actually that’s something I don’t want
to give but ok I said it anyway but here is another one. Um there was a substitute for one
of my professors recently and I had a book on my desk 1984 I don’t know if you have
heard of it. He comes in and asks me so what does he ask me. Oh yeah do you know have
you read the book?
Uh, long time agao.
Z: So you know how he gets a diary. He gets it from the illegal stores or whatever. He
asks me whether it was illegal or not to get a diary and I said im not sure because at that
point I hadn’t read to that part and then he starts giving me lessons starts to talk to me
about what’s going on in the world and he directly asks me who Julia is you know right
but 1984 being a thing and so um and when he asked me who Julia was I told him that I
didn’t know and he’s like why don’t you know what’s going on in this world? Julia’s
name will be in the history books and your name isn’t. And he sort of threw that in my
face and I didn’t know how to react at that time. And he started bashing religion at one
point and our entire class was just devastating and to the students here that were with me
in that class was just bad. Just plain bad. So yeah.
MS: Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors?
Z: I just gave you two right.
MS: Yeah ok. How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
Z: [sigh] Um. I think there are always times when a certain instructor misbehaves so
would you want me to give you an answer where…
MS: Im looking for a numerical answer
Z: Do you want to to tell you the certain extent to that number.
MS: So that’s uh we’ll move on to the next question so you can answer them together. Of
those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
Z: So um I had like four teachers that never misbehaved but yeah um I’ve only been in
school for a year. Every once in a while there are people who get tipped off something
small and something understandable to happen but like it’s misbehavior and so like um
uh there were certain times when I really didn’t like behavior by a teacher but if I were to
say highly really high misbehaved in a very you know a lot uh I would say there were 3
teachers that were very very aggressive in their misbehavior. Yeah.
MS: For sure. In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all
(e.g. learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
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Z: Um, after my uh third grade math teacher I started really hating on teachers for a while
I just hated teachers in general for some reason and then after 4th grade there was a
teacher that changed that for me but was a teacher that never ever misbehaved. He was
the one to motivate me to like education in itself and so um but like uh as it did cause me
to dislike teachers and then there’s another time that not all teachers could be good.
Again I was a distrusting people but then I went through a change I don’t want to
mention but then I realized that you cannot always judge everybody and I understood that
and um my language teacher sort of not very um very comfortable to be around she
affected me to be a certain extent to I uh don’t really express my opinion to the
completely you know I tried to censor what I am saying not censor in a bad way just
censor in general so that I don’t have to face her whenever she has like misbehavior and
so that’s why. That’s basically how it affected me. Yeah.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
Z: No, thanks.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Ginger
Date: July 19, 2015
Interview Time: 19:42
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
G: Uh let’s see I like to shop, I love to read and workout um I’m in my late twenties and I
have one sister. Hahaha.
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
G: Um probably my motivation to find my career. I have an incesatable to learn and
work. So um that’s basically what keeps me going.
MS: How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own words?
G: [pause]. What like student-to-student connectedness?
MS: Like connected to your classmates in the classroom so like examples.
G: I can’t think of anything yeah I don’t I would say like haha. Um I don’t really feel too
connected to my class peers um but in group you know presentations or anything like that
it’s always good comradery you know when everyone gets together but other than that
there’s nothing really outside of the class.
MS: Why would you say you do not feel connected to your peers in general?
G: Um I think well in my case because I’m older a lot of the students in there are
younger but um but it’s also just a matter of I don’t know it’s just like no no one like
initiates you know friendship in the classrooms.
MS: Ok. Uh. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
G: I guess when like you relate with like certain again projects but then also um I guess
passions or like hobbies are like why you are even taking the class or what degree you are
getting into so that would be how I would connect with them.
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MS: For sure. Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your
classmates?
G: [pause]. Uh probably when we have to take quizzes as this sounds really bad but we
get together and study and then sometimes take the quizzes together. Can I say that on
there?
MS: Yeah ok. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If
not, why?
G: Um, I feel like it’s the same in every class and mainly for the same reasons so again
group presentations um related hobbies or why we are in school um. That’s pretty much
it.
MS: Ok, that’s fine. Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why
or why not?
G: I do feel like it’s good to be connected to your peers because I believe it creates good
networking and you know. Again when it goes back to just being I guess relative just
having related I shouldn’t say hobbies.
MS: Yeah ok. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist,
if at all?
G: MMM it’s probably more of a motivational thing um. The fact that they keep going.
I’m like uh got to beat them haha or like a competition thing. So I definitely feel like that
helps. Then of course they are always supportive. Um let’s see.
MS: How would you define family support in your own words?
G: I’m trying to think. Family support. I mean I think that its amazing to have family
support I think that you should definitely have family support. It’s what drove me to go to
college so um.
MS: So then let me ask you in what ways did they support you?
G: Well, first of all getting initiated into college and finding out where you wanted to go
and um then of course financially you know when I didn’t have the money my mom
would always back me and then I would pay her back and so that’s a good way of being
supported. And living with her.
MS: Ok. Let’s see. Can you give me examples of family support?
G: Mmm, well my mother lets me stay at her house um again financially uhm whenever I
need like second opinions on my student work or like uhm projects. She is always there
to like help or like edit just to have like a second pair of eyes to look at something um.
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And then of course if I’m like reading anything she’s really good at discussing it with me
after if I’m not already discussing it with my classmates.
MS: Great. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family members)?
G: Mmm, my mom um. Everybody on her side of the family. My aunts, my uncles, my
grandma, my cousins, my sister.
MS: Ok. Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
G: Yes, my mom uh I had to it was too late to sign up for financial aid and I had to pay
out of pocket for one of my semesters and my mom stepped in and paid with one of her
credit cards and so that was a really big help.
MS: Ok. Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
G: I definitely feel supported by my family, yes. 100%.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
G: Yes, I definitely feel it is very important to be supported by your family I feel that that
is a major factor why I am still going there so yes. Having that support means a lot it also
means that they trust you to like go out there and be like your own person so I think that’s
good.
MS: How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in college, if
at all? So in other words, does it positively, negatively, or nether impact your intent to
persist?
[pause]
G: I definitely think it’s positive that’s for sure.
MS: What type of prosocial behaviors do your college instructors use in the classroom?
G: Um, um one class specifically that I really enjoyed um there are a lot of um just not
necessarily hands on but we discussed we have like class discussion in class and I think
that’s really good and she always kind kind of finds like a fun way or a fun spin on it.
We’ll play like some kind of trivia game or and I think that’s beneficial in learning.
MS: Ok. How would you define prosocial instructor behaviors?
G: Mmm, prosocial instructor behaviors.
MS: Mmmhmm like positive.
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G: Like how would I define what they do?
MS: Yes, mmhh.
G: I mean I think it’s really good what they do. That they should be doing more I feel
like a lot of my instructors don’t do that it’s everyday mundane monotone talk I don’t
think that’s really prosocial at all.
MS: Um, ok. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed prosocial
behaviors?
G: Would that go back to the um ok. One of my other instructors that I was taking a class
in um started doing um a master’s program for um the bachelors program that I’m in right
now and she you know took me aside and thought that I would be a really good candidate
to go into the master’s program and I thought that is that is very prosocial behavior.
MS: For sure. How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
G: Mmmmmm [pause]. Probably when they don’t communicate with the class enough or
they’re not giving any um I guess like more like experience talk it’s just they’re like
following a book and that’s it. Instead of like giving their own examples or like how they
got to where they are you know that kind of thing. Yeah.
MS: Um so, on the next one. What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you
consider to be instructor misbehavior?
G: [long pause]. Verbal hmm ok verbal behaviors um probably when they don’t
encourage or give positive feedback enough and communication of course is key uh and
then nonverbal I would say mmmm. I’m trying to think of a good nonverbal behavior
[pause]. I guess just not giving enough class assignments to discuss in class besides just
reading yeah. So not enough substance.
MS: Ok. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
G: [long pause]. There’s lots of them just trying to think right now.
MS: Ok. [long pause].
G: Oh my gosh. Probably when I try to discuss internships with my internship teacher or
professor and um she flat out told me that I probably wouldn’t be a good candidate for a
specific internship even though she had no idea who I was and how hard I could work
and so I guess that could be misjudgment.
MS: Yeah yeah. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors? Can you add on
any others?
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G: Mmmm, [pause], I just had one.
MS: That’s alright you ention misjudgment.
G: Yeah misjudgment and not paying attention to like every single student that you have
in there I know that it’s difficult when you have say like 500 students but still I think
that’s when you’re in the major classes and you’re not they are not that big like 30
students at the most I still think that you should be paying attention to each student
equally as well. I find that I find that some of them pick their favorites and it’s just we’re
all adults and we all need to be learning in the same way as well.
MS: Mk. How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
G: Mmmm [long pause]. Probably like 10 yeah.
MS: Ok. Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
G: Mmm, like a hand full of times. I could probably yeah come up with at least five
things for each one. Yeah for the semester.
MS: In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
G: It’s kind of discouraging you’re paying all of this money to go to college and you
expect to have you know um a good professor you know and I feel like they should be
catering to you you’re there to learn. So, I definitely think it has a really big impact
especially when like staying in school or going back to school. I’m in that situation right
now. I can’t go back to my last college because of a certain incident so that’s why I’m
here. So you know.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
G: No not really I don’t think so. No haha.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Jasmine
Date: July 20, 2015
Interview Time: 14:36
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
J: Well, I’m a mother, I’m older hehe. Not going to tell you my real age. I’m from
Houston and I don’t have time for hobbies.
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
J: Um debt haha. Um and honestly just wanting to give my children a better so it’s like I
give you better life or we are basically homeless it’s a lot on me to really pursue and keep
going.
MS: K cool how many kids do you have?
J: I have three.
MS: Awesome. How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own
words?
J: Mmm, I guess it all depends on the student but I think student-to-student
connectedness um it depends on their personality intellectually and how they function
with other people. Some are higher than others um.
MS: For sure. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
J: Umm my group project that I’m working on definitely um we’re staying connected via
email and text so I just communication is in um our phones. Just to stay connected.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your classmates?
J: On the first day. Um my classmate we’ll my partner also on my project he sits next to
me and we’re doing the get to know your peers and he was just very open.
MS: Have yall maintained that openness?
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J: Right, yes.
MS: Awesome. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If
not, why?
J: I actually do. Because I’m walking into an environment where I don’t know no one I
don’t know the material so for me I have to I have to bond I have to know where you are
cause you might know something that’s going to help me get to where I need to be and I
really believe in utilizing every effort you can haha. So..I work on gaining friends haha.
MS: Ok. Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
J: Mm well definitely first of all it builds social interactions. Um. Im big on networking I
run a small business out of my house so getting to know people you know on a school
level professional level is always a plus for me.
MS: How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist, if at all?
J: My current project in my summer course haha. I’m just I’m not feeling like the the
heavy weighter so it makes me motivates me to do my part. So you know I can’t never
been the type of person to just kinda leave everything on anyone so if I can’t do one thing
I want to do something just as equal so you can know I’m here so.
MS: Great. Ok. How would you define family support in your own words?
J: Family support um it depends on what you consider support meaning for me family
support is the backup emotionally if not anything else um. Family support is one of those
things that will drive you when nothing else can.
MS: Ok. Um. Can you give me examples of family support?
J: Um... [pause]. Just knowing your parents are with you want to see you get out of
college just as bad as you want to. Knowing that they want to see their grandkids have a
better life. I speak on parents because that’s my family support issue. I guess you can say.
Um and just knowing that you’re brother cares if his nephews are in sports you know just
just a lot of knowing that those blanks are being filled. That are not not left wide open.
MS: Ok. Uh. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family
members)?
J: I’m looking definitely for my parents um. I’m looking for my brothers I’m looking for
my sisters just that immediate family that you grew up knowing have your if you’re not
ok I’m not ok. So.
MS: Ok. Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
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J: I would have to say my brother. You know um I’m a single mom with 3 by the way
and I have 2 boys and he called me recently about a month ago and is like hey you know
I know you have been wanting to get them in sports I’m going to be a coach so ill come
and get him every day and make sure he’s in sports you know. Cause I know you don’t
have the means to do it and that just really meant a lot to me so that’s very supportive of
him. I know I’m a beautiful mess girl. Hehe.
MS: Ok. Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
J: I do. Um. I used to say to an extent but I’ve learned that people can only do what
they’re going to do. Everyone is who they are. And if I need them I know how to pick up
the phone and they’re there so that’s what works for me.
MS: Ok. Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why
not?
J: Most definitely, most definitely. Um the hardest part of my life was acting like I didn’t
have a family and oh I’m going to do this all by myself and like no one can make it alone.
You can’t even survive in class without talking to your peers. Let alone in life so.
MS: Um, how does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in
college, if at all?
J: I’m the only one in my family in two generations to go to college. So that means
something and I kind of feel like everyone is watching. I’m on stage so I came to perform
[laugh].
MS: Awesome. Ok. We’re going to switch gears now. What type of prosocial behaviors
do your college instructors use in the classroom?
J: I like when they the professors are very open and just the eye contact the being open
the flexibility is really important and I can appreciate them and in a professor.
MS: Then, can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed positive
behaviors?
J: Ummmm….[pause] I’ve almost went into preterm labor in class. Hehehe once and I
was pregnant with my I remember with my daughter and I just he said you keep making
some weird faces I said I don’t know if it is gas or what. He was like want me to call
someone. Before I knew it I wasn’t in labor officially but I was very close. He was very
compassionate to getting to me a vehicle and I didn’t drive that day just making sure I
was ok. That to me was like I don’t know if he was scared or what and it meant
something and I went back to him after I had the baby. It was very nice hehehe.
MS: How great! How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
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J: Racial topics. Um I I’ve had a professor before you know make you know generic uh
inferences about certain race class and then talk about by saying well it’s just facts if you
look at the facts you’ll see and I thought that was very inappropriate. And um I remember
I remember her asking you know I don’t know if she was just my demeanors were strong
but I remember her asking did I offend you and I remember telling her um I respect you
too much uh to answer that cause I think the fact that you have to ask me you already
know the answer so I tried to stay away from race in class with professors. Cause I don’t
think it’s uh a topic that needs to be discussed from an emotional standpoint so that’s bad.
MS: Ok. What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be
instructor misbehavior?
J: Rolling of the eyes, if you have you know certain family situations or I mean I’m all
for hey I’m a clean cut you know you make your grade kind of thing but I think everyone
any time I work as a care assistant any time you’re job consists with you working and
dealing with other people you have to put compassion in your personality that you wear
and that’s just bottom line. I would just add that lack of compassion and yeah that’s it.
MS: Ok. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
J: They’re pretty pretty good I just can say that one time about race kinda stuck with me
and it was like did she just say that so but other than that I’ve I’ve had some great
experiences.
MS: How long ago was when you took that class?
J: About a year or two ago on this campus hehehe. So yeah.
MS: Let’s see. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors? So you mentioned
lack of compassion, rolling eyes, what else do you consider?
J: They have a life too so I don’t you know I use to have professor who would always be
like 15-20 minutes late in the evening but she taught downtown before she came here so
hey just like I’m the first I won’t ask for what I don’t give. Just like I want her to give
compassion I want to give compassion. I think it’s a give and take situation to be in with
the semester honestly hehehe. So hehehe. I really have nothing bad to say.
MS: Ok. How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
J: Ummm I say just one. Just one.
MS: Of that instructor, about how frequently did the instructor misbehave?
J: Umm I just think she may have left her Wheaties that day because she was very
thorough I mean I took a lot away from her class and um I didn’t charge it to her her
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teaching style you know or her her knowledge of the course. Just that once but I kinda got
past it.
MS: Ok. In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
J: Umm. I didn’t come to the next class I was kind of like I’m about to drop her but I
needed the grade so it kind of overrode my personal feelings so but it can definitely affect
a person it was to a point where I felt I didn’t want to take her class so that would have
been on me in the long run so.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
J: Nope hehehe.
MS: Ok [laugh]. Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Timothy
Date: July 21, 2015
Interview Time: 18:36
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
T: I’m the only child, I am older. Um I like to hang with friends and family. I like to
cook.
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
T: Ok um I would my own power. Yes, that’s it.
MS: Ok. Can you describe why this influences you to persist?
T: Yeah because I was working and so I was work with minimum wage so I see all the
people they were in college and they were given a better job. [pause]. At first to go back
to school.
MS: How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own words?
T: Yeah I mean it’s important for me cause it’s my communication skills and I get a lot
of I mean information from my friends and sometimes they can give you some advice
some advice to help.
MS: Ok. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
T: Yeah uh I I met one from Russia he’s from there so I met him at this school so we
have a good connection thank god so he teached me his experience. And and we start
together yeah because I’m a little older so it’s hard for me to start meeting people so he’s
my age so yeah it worked. Yeah.
MS: What campus was that at?
T: It was uh on uh Spring Branch campus.
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MS: Oh my that’s far. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so,
why? If not, why?
T: Uh. [long pause]. Not really. Yeah I mean it if uh it depends and the teacher if they are
uh open then im open so some people might not be it depends on the person. It depends
on the person. Yeah.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
T: Yes, I do believe that’s important. You share ideas. Yeah.
MS: Ok. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist, if at
all?
T: [long pause] Yeah. I think it they uh I mean it’s uh it’s improve your uh attention to uh
teamwork teamwork in the class or like to build your teamwork. Like in my class now I
volunteered last week so I improve my teamwork.
MS: Great. Now switching gears. How would you define family support in your own
words?
T: Yeah, uh. Family support is important because uh that’s the point that someone should
that shape like your family shape you in one way and a bad way every time they see you
what you’re doing what you watch and what the the path they have to follow so they
shape you to be in a good way if they fail to do that [pause] you will not be with the point
that you suppose to reach. Yeah.
MS: Yeah. Can you give me examples of family support?
T: Yeah, family support um it’s a lot of work so maybe they can help you with they make
connection with the teacher they see you work every week at they support you here if
they are let’s say you went to college they will can help you with your homework yeah.
MS: Yeah great. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family
members)?
T: Yeah, I mean it depends on how they are the leader or let’s say in my opinion this
country the mom should take care of the family. You could a father is very he is the one
working making the money but at some point he should take care of he contacted the
teachers of the student doing so at that point he can advise the student. Yeah.
MS: Ummm, can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported
you?
T: Yeah, we’ll back home she is to wake up every morning so we can study before we go
to school. So I mean we’re with you what she does is yeah.
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MS: Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
T: Uh, yeah right now I adult so I can pay for myself but at some point everybody need
advice so I’m open to advice. You know sometimes she you don’t see things you see it
one way but other people it just it’s good for us because of opinions you’ll have a better
view. Yeah.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
T: Yeah I mean it depends on the age if you are an adult I feel it is better to take care of
yourself but if you’re in high school middle school the family should take the lead but if
you are adult you should take the lead as support. Ask advice because they have better
extras of life if I make a mistake they will the adult advise should be a supplement not as
a but if you are in high school they should be the you’re the idea should be supplement
not the lead that’s what I believe.
MS: How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in college, if
at all?
T: Uh, yeah [pause]. I mean their advice to uh I mean at some point you they push you
because they have a lot of expertise in life somethings will so they tell you to be
persistent and give out advise that life without them family doesn’t is drove get a better
view some more some more and then you will see a great deal so. They tell that you have
to be persistent and have a a long view.
MS: Great. What type of positive behaviors do your college instructors use in the
classroom?
T: Mmmm. In the current class im taking?
MS: Any class.
T: In some class they try to make you work hard so that you can adapt to any situation.
And they don’t let you to get the grade you have to earn it so that’s it’s it’s good you get
to build that kind of teacher as your life. If you get a easy grade, it’s good for a while but
might not for the long run because when life gets harder, you will get despaired.
MS: How would you define prosocial instructor behaviors?
T: Yeah, I mean. I do believe that instructors should be always fair uh and he should be
he should have positive behaviors he should encourage people he should never try to
down students when they make um as humor he should try to push them to improve
themselves. He should not only teach in the course he should shape them not bad.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed positive behaviors?
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T: Yeah, let’s say I I took a uh one physics lab last semester so the professor has kind of
cool he friends with all of the students. I mean he showed you everything that suppose to
be so he tried even he went beyond the physics he teach us everything. Basically the
course was short he can but he did the best that he can. I really liked that yeah.
MS: Great. How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
T: Instructor misbehavior. I mean some instructors mmm mmm. They aren’t they don’t
try to help students. And let’s in my opinion if I were a teacher, I would try to to help
students. Not to some level he can help them understand the course might be hard to he
care this way to get them yeah. Some teachers can just teach the class they yeah in my
opinion I would do it like this. Let’s say if they’re some woman so I will try to help them
let’s say if the book is too big and they can’t all read because everybody is working part
time they have kids, so I would try to make a review so you guys can read this but some
teachers even but not all they feel like they feel good when the student gets annoyed. I
mean just to the point to try to help so they can appreciate it.
MS: Good. What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be
instructor misbehavior?
T: Misbehavior. Yeah I mean some professors don’t respond to emails I mean some um I
don’t know some teachers they talk outside of the classroom yeah so I don’t need that but
technically that’s not supportive. Some students may find that may not like cause what’s
fun for others may not be fun for the other people so. What I like is better to be in a safe
place just to try to someone give some advice about your experts but not beyond that.
Yeah.
MS: Alright. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
T: Uh no. I don’t have really one not a specific one.
MS: Ok that’s alright. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors? Do you
have any others you want to add?
T: Mmm, no I really no.
MS: That’s ok. How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
T: Mmm, I mean it’s not misbehaved I mean I think misbehaving is a strong word. Uh
yeah mis uh I mean [pause]. You don’t uh some at some point let’s say in a week if you
want five minutes they are trying outside so I don’t consider that as a misbehavior but
you know uh they don’t appreciate the point so. So yeah.
MS: Ok gotcha. In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at
all (e.g. learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
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T: Mmm I mean they supporting when they do it like that when they help adjust to the
class. I mean everyone what they. I had a history teacher I mean she’s speaks from the
class to the at some point in my opinion I like teachers to not speaking all the way. But in
history uh its what’s the point? Conversation is good but in history I like to make points
and I like the instructor but that’s uh everyone liked her but she talked too dry. Yeah but
it’s ok. Yeah.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
T: Uh, no thank you.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: ZaZu
Date: July 21, 2015
Interview Time: 17:28
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
Z: Man, I mean I’m ex military. I uh I used to be in the army. Now I’m a student. I don’t
work. I play golf for my main college and I like to hang with friends and family. Other
than that golf is my life.
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
Z: Um, man. [pause]. Why who who influences me. Well, my father influences me as
one. Uhm being the only person to actually go to a four year university is astonishing
enough in my family so. Continuing my education and tryng to get my bachelor’s degree
um. That’s about it. Factors.
MS: Ok. How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own words?
Z: Student-to-student. Hmm. Uhm. I guess different backgrounds relating to one another
uhm same beliefs on the classes uh. For instance, statics and psychology you have some
people that just love the stats class and you have some people that don’t and try to help
each other out.
MS: For sure. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
Z: Uh, student athletes maybe. Yeah. Uhm so we all take uh two or three of us try to take
the same class cuz we’re on the same practice schedule and it’s in the am and we try to
get together and try to get our classes going well cuz we have the same advisor so we try
to get our class at the same time so we have you know people to rely on.
MS: Ok. Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your
classmates?
Z: Not really, no I’m not too much of a social person yeah ok. Hehehehe.
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MS: Ok. That’s fine. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so,
why? If not, why?
Z: Uhm, yeah I do feel connected um. Not in my current class cus it’s so diverse and we
have high school people in the class but definitely feel connected at my university we
have a lot of the same things going on in our lives. We’re trying to graduate we’re
everybody is on a different degree plan so um yeah. I feel sort of connected.
MS: Ok. Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
Z: Yes, uhm. Well going back to me not being so social but to my peers and my my
teammates you know um they’re connected with them cuz I think you need some kind of
you know you need some fall back when youre parents aren’t there especially when
they’re five or six hours away. You know you need peers and uh somebody that can help
you and just for support hehe.
MS: For sure. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist,
if at all?
Z: Hmm. [pause]. I guess in an academic standpoint um one of my teammates is from
Australia and he really gets on my nerves cuz you know he’s always on his laptop doing
essays, he’s in like AP honor roll classes, the dean’s list class like that. And I’ll just be
watching tv and it’s a dorm room it’s a dorm a bathroom and a dorm. He’ll come over
and I’ll be watching tv and he’ll be like man you’re not doing homework? And I’m like
nah I don’t have I don’t have 5 papers due this week you know so yeah. So I can see that.
He helps me out a lot getting on my grades. Hehehe.
MS: That’s good. Ok let’s switch gears. How would you define family support in your
own words?
Z: Um, family support well, I’ve always had my mom and dad with me. Um, my mom
was gone for quite some time business wise but she was always there and she always asks
and tells me you know I’m sorry I couldn’t be there but she is always there for me you
know every time I need a call her or just speak to her 5/10 minutes she’s always there.
My dad you know he’s the hard one and uh he’s been there supportin me and you know
just going to my golf tournaments wanting to know what’s going on calling me, checking
up on me, seeing if I need anything, if I need any groceries, you know I find that’s
support.
MS: Ok. Can you give me examples of family support?
Z: Uhm, [pause]. one is fundage is a problem, fundage, funding. So yeah um yeah. Uh
besides that some when I think about that I’m going to talk about. I’ve had a job and
other jobs where I held golf clinics junior golf but actually having a job was last summer
and he keeps keeps wanting me to put an ad on Craig’s list college golf or 30 minute
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lessons for $20. I’m like no I don’t want to do that. Hehehe. I mean he definitely wants to
help me.
MS: Cool. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family members)?
Z: Uhm, mom, dad, um my grandma, grandpa, mom’s side, um, my grandma my dad’s
side even though she’s she just getting done with chemo right now so she should be back
to health. Uh my cousins on both sides. Uhm I have lots of cousins. On my dad’s side it’s
the Black side so it’s a different type of when we gatherings everyone is capping on each
other you know grinning on each other, making jokes, and my dad gets it but at my
mom’s house is just so leaned back and relaxing so.
MS: Cool ok. Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported
you?
Z: Umm, yeah. My cousin, at a golf tournament uh a few years ago and he was he was
suppose to go to a football camp and I don’t know why he didn’t go but yeah. And uuh I
asked him to caddy for me for a tournament and he said yeah. And then in 105 degree
heat during the summer and he knows nothing about golf so for him coming you know
support me caring my bag, that was nice. It was.
MS: Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
Z: Yes, I feel support from everywhere my family because everybody wants me to
succeed um nobody wants to see anybody in our family fail I mean even though I said we
cap on each other we make fun of each other. That just love. But um yeah definitely feel
supportive they help me a lot like I said my dad being the only person in college. It just
makes me makes me graduate even more.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
Z: Yes, I think so uh you need some you need some moral you know you need goals and
they help with that you know as you’re growing up I know people that haven’t had their
family they never seen their mom and dad and you know they turn out pretty good so.
You know.
MS: How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in college, if
at all?
Z: Uhm [pause] big time. Um, how can I put this into words? [pause]. How does being
supported? Um I guess well they used to be on top of me so much more my freshman
sophomore year you know what’s your grade, what did you make on this test, but now
you know it’s just very short how’s school? Its good. Made such and such grade that’s
good to hear but hehe. You know just real short sweet now but back then they just then
they wanted my password they wanted the username they wanted email teachers like you
can’t do that. hehehe.
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MS: Umm let’s see. What type of positive behaviors do your college instructors use in
the classroom?
Z: Um, that’s a good question. [long pause] Um. Connecting students, um I like what my
professor now does I mean I haven’t had this much help with my current project, it’s
awesome. I told my mom about it earlier you know I come to class and I mean I’ve had
good teachers but the past uh class I had she was she was so rude to everybody you know
being in Laredo uhm you know lots of Mexicans and you know accents and she would be
so rude to them. Speak up I can’t hear you I can’t understand you it’s just like wow, why
she actin like that. It’s not suppose to be it’s you not suppose to be like that you know.
It’s suppose to make you feel comfortable go up there handle your business and get out of
class. She just made that class like ugh.
MS: How would you define positive instructor behaviors?
Z: Um, connecting with the students, I said that, um, giving them your email, making
them feel secure, uh feel comfortable, messaging you, you know what my teacher did for
me.
MS: Ok, uh. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed prosocial
behaviors?
Z: Um, [long pause]. Nah. No uhehehe.
MS: That’s ok. Um. How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
Z: Uh, going back to the previous teacher her just being rude to students. Um you know
just I couldn’t believe how rude she was because I have never met a professor like that.
I’ve had professors talk a lot about sex even though it would be an English class. It would
be like a 45 year old white guy talking about sex. It seemed innocent at the time and that
was at another school and he would talk about sexual assault and stuff. And and it was
like American English you know hehe. Yeah.
MS: So then, what types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be
instructor misbehavior?
Z: Um, yeah. Well that’s that’s a big deal he would make you know sexual innuendos
just I don’t know it just really weird I just go about his business in his class I mean it was
a good class very interesting but he would just he would just ramble sometimes I don’t
know if he just had something mental going on. Yeah so.
MS: Ok yeah. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
Z: Um, no I don’t have any others. I think my professors have been pretty [pause] pretty
cool about everything.
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MS: Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors?
Z: Um, [pause]. No. yeah that’s it.
MS: How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
Z: Two. Hmmmm.
MS: Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
Z: Uh. Like out of 1-10.
Z: Like throughout the semester.
Z: Oh um. Well, the English professor I know that yeah it was more humorous more than
anything I mean people would just find it you know nobody was insulted by it you know
they would just like I guess put it on ratemyprofessor you know easy grade but also had
titles you know gets off topic real easily be prepared, stuff like that. But the other time
you know the other teacher you know quite a bit I can’t put a number on it. Just really
uncomfortable and yeah.
MS: In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
Z: Um, it definitely affected me motivational wise. Um I mean cuz Im not the smartest
kid in class but you know a B a B for me you know I take it and run with it but you know
her class it just they gave me no ambition at all you know it was Tuesday and Thursday
class 3 o clock right after lunch and you know I knew when I walked in there she was
going to give me this look. She didn’t like me, I don’t know why she didn’t like me but I
just couldn’t stand it. I couldn’t go in there you know with a positive mindset you know. I
never learned something today I never learned like that.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
Z: No. hehehe.
MS: Ok. Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Olly
Date: July 22, 2015
Interview Time: 11:16
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
O: I’m really into soccer, um let’s see. Hehe that’s really what I love to do and that’s me.
I like to travel and my favorite um subject is science like any science class.
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
O: Um my teachers usually because they push us to go further in uh education. Yeah.
MS: Cool ok. How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own
words?
O: At my current college?
MS: Yes.
O: Very connected because everybody knows you because it’s a small school.
MS: Ok. Uh. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
O: Um, any time we walk around in the hallways it’s like everyone knows everybody so
we just say hi when we see each other in class we know each other’s names.
MS: What about assignments or classwork?
O: There’s never problems with classwork or assignments because we all know each
other. Lot’s of us went to the same high school so we know each other now in college.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your classmates?
O: Outside of school or in?
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MS: Uh in school.
O: So like probably at the beginning of the year when we come back people are usually
like confused who to sit with or where to go but I just sit at the same area of the room I
usually do with people I know, my friends. You know?
MS: Great. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If not,
why?
O: Um like yes because we know a lot of people as I said from high school which is just
down the road.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
O: Yes because if you’re not connected to your peers then it’s really hard to know the
person in the first place because no one wants to try and start a conversation so it’s really
hard to know the person and then to do a group project with them. It takes a longer time.
MS: Ok. Um. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist,
if at all?
O: Because when we see each other getting like good better grades or something then it
like motivates the rest of us to try and like be as intelligent as that person.
MS: So like a healthy competition?
O: Yeah.
MS: Good. How would you define family support in your own words?
O: Very supportive. Yeah.
MS: Ok, and what types of support?
O: Like since like beginning like the beginning of middle school I’ve been told to go to
college to become successful and stuff like that. It’s a constant push but not like a force
push but like a friendly push. You know?
MS: Yeah. Can you give me examples of family support?
O: Um, well like my mom will always give me talks how like how what im suppose to
do in college, she’ll ask me what I want to be and then whatever I want to be she will go
off of that and will like tell me stuff about it and what she thinks she kind what she thinks
I should do.
MS: Just out of curiosity what do you want to be?
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O: A petroleum engineer.
MS: Great! My husband hires petroleum engineers hehehe. Who do you consider to
provide family support (i.e. which family members)?
O: Um, so my mom, my brother, and my sister. Mhmm
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
O: So uh at first you know how every kid has a dream to do something. So I started a
youtube channel and my mom was fully supportive of that. I think I think I stopped doing
youtube like a year ago but I did get a good amount of followers but after I stopped my
mom just kept on pushing me to become what I wanted to become next.
MS: Cool so then let me ask you..Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why
not?
O: Yeah. Completely.
MS: How come?
O: Um because they are always ready to help me no matter what I want to do.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
O: Yeah because when you feel like giving up like once in a while there always there to
like help you and if you’re just alone then you just give up because you don’t have the
strength to keep going. You know?
MS: Um. How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in
college, if at all?
O: [pause]. Uh, probably not my mom but my brother like he’s going to UT-Austin so it
helps me um like motivates me to be like him more like be better than him. He always
tells me to be better than me because he doesn’t want me to be like you know.
MS: I assume yall are close then?
O: Yeah.
MS: What type of positive behaviors do your college instructors use in the classroom?
O: Um ok let’s see. [pause]. So like some college teachers or cause I’ve only had a few
so. Let’s see. They usually like when I’m answering a question they usually keep on
pushing me to get the right answer and that usually helps because I don’t want a teacher
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to tell me I’m wrong. I want to figure out why I’m wrong and why it’s that answer. You
know?
MS: K. How would you define positive instructor behaviors?
O: Um, never giving up on a student. So like if I need help usually my professors tell me
to stay after class and help me. This is coming out of their own time so it’s like you don’t
really see that in a lot of teachers but they do that here.
MS: Good. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed positive
behaviors?
O: Um, probably telling me to come like before an exam or something if the teacher
knows that I need a little extra help like we went back all the way from beginning and
reviewed like the whole week and then I ended taking my exam and got an “A” so.
MS: Um. How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
O: [pause]. When you get um a question wrong they just like tell you it’s wrong and
move on to the next person instead of talking and helping.
MS: Ok. What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be
instructor misbehavior?
O: [Long pause] Uh, when they don’t um when they come in late, when they just don’t
act like they actually care about the class, and when they go through a PowerPoint and
not actually like you know give substance.
MS: Yeah. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
O: Uh cursing in class. Yeah hehe. In one class it was like not normal so when you hear
that it’s just like ok.
MS: Shocking?
O: Yeah. The teacher got fired that same year. Hehe.
MS: Um. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors? So you talked about
coming to class late, the cursing, what else would you add on?
O: Um [pause]. when you ask for help and you’re going through a question or something
and you still don’t get it after an explanation they like discourage you instead of
encourage you. So like why don’t you understand it? Ya.
MS: How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
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O: Two.
MS: Two. Ok. Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
O: Um pretty much like every day. Yeah.
MS: In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
O: Uh I stopped caring about that class and just do my other work in that class. Yeah.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
O: No.
MS: Ok. Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Alicia
Date: July 22, 2015
Interview Time: 11:37
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
A: I feel like I’m a really happy person and I love everyone. I’m close with my family
and I have good friends. I’m into the nursing club on campus and uh that’s really just like
me.
MS: Ok, thank you. What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these
factors influence you to persist in college.
A: My parents. Um, my one my dad is didn’t graduate high school. My mom is a nurse
and um I’ve seen her struggle alot and I don’t want that to happen to my kids. Hehehe.
MS: Ok. How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own words?
A: It’s um working professionally as a student at the same time keeping a level of
friendships where like they kind of relate through the same time productive towards your
goals.
MS: Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
A: In my current summer class?
MS: Yes or any class you have taken in college.
A: Ok so I started the nursing program this year I have three people that I am very close
with now and I would say that they help me st st um they help me through all of my
struggles through the first two semesters and I feel like that is really helpful and in any
other courses.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your classmates?
A: Specific time ok connected. [pause] Um. Oh well they start opening up about their
family problems to me and I felt like that was really big like leap from our just classroom
friends and I felt like we connected in a more intimate how would you say it? Yeah.
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MS: Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If not, why?
A: I would say all of my classes but most of them yes I would.
MS: Ok and how come?
A: Um [pause] because we kind of shift from like we are in one batch but we take
different um sections so sometimes you wont see each other sometimes we will and you
know going to the two classes consecutively is more is more than just going to one with
another person.
MS: Ok. Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
A: Yes, it is because no man is an island hehe. And you have to have friends to support
you no matter.
MS: Ok good. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist,
if at all?
A: I have this one friend whose really studious and she makes schedules all the time and I
feel like she can influence me that now I am making my own schedule an hourly schedule
a weekly schedule and it helped me get through the first two semesters. Mmmhhmm.
MS: How would you define family support in your own words?
A: Family support? Is your family just listening to you giving you advices. And to just
being there even though like even through the hard times mmmhhm.
MS: K. Can you give me examples of family support?
A: Um there was a time when I failed an exam and um I know my dad always wants me
to be an “a” student but even though I talk to him about it he was like it doesn’t matter if
you get a “B” or a “D” or a “C” as long as you’re passing as long as you’re going to
make it through.
MS: Ok that’s a good example. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e.
which family members)?
A: Ok. We I live in an extended family so I have my grandmother, two siblings, my
stepmom, and my dad. And I also consider my mom who lives in Wisconsin. Hehehe.
Yes.
MS: Um. Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
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A: Yes, um. [pause] within this week actually um my bank account got overdrawn
because I stopped working so my mom and her husband sent me money which I didn’t
expect and they were like ok so here use it for your school hehehe.
MS: Awesome! Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
A: Yes. They are always there for me.
MS: That’s good. Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or
why not?
A: Um, yes because family support the first group of people that you like interact with
even as a child so once you grow up you would still want to reconnect to them and still
feel that you had a strong foundation and you can get through life with them.
MS: Cool. Yeah. How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist
in college, if at all?
A: Um, uh there were times that I felt like I was going to give up but then they like you
can do it you can keep on going right one more time. Those kinds of advice really help
even though they are just subtle. Yeah.
MS: Ok. What type of positive behaviors do your college instructors use in the
classroom?
A: Positive behaviors like relating to students, being friends with them, like not just being
someone talking in class and not really interacting you know hehehe. Yeah [pause].
MS: How would you define positive instructor behaviors?
A: Uhm, well first of all you have to be professional and fair like with everyone but also
um like I said being not friends but you kina um how would you say that? Yeah like
having a relationship yeah.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed positive behaviors?
A: [pause]. Yes, um it was a time I was in my clinical um rotations cuz it was nursing um
my one of my professors she helped me through with this patient because it was my first
time I really didn’t know what to do. She was there guiding me through everything and
she wasn’t judgmental and I didn’t I didn’t suppose to know by then but she just helped
me and I liked that. mmmhmmm.
MS: How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
A: Misbehavior probably like inside jokes. I don’t like inside jokes in class. Um [pause] I
have a classmate who they would just exchange jokes and they would be laughing their
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heads off and im like well you have 40 other students in class which means talk to us.
Yeah hehehe. Yeah.
MS: Alright. What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be
instructor misbehavior?
A: Mmm…misbehavior like going out drinking with your students yes. And um verbal
would be parading them in class or singling them out in class.
MS: For sure. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
A: Uh, yes I had a friend who cried in front of the class because the professor was just
like yelling at her for being late. And she didn’t she missed the first half of the class and
got thrown out because of that. hehehe. Yeah.
MS: Oh my word. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors?
A: [pause]. Hmmm. Misbehaviors mmm. I would say that’s all I can think of.
MS: That’s fine. How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
A: Ok I would say 3.
MS: 3? Ok.
A: Yes.
MS: Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
A: mmm. Not very often they would probably like one of them would be um twice per
semester not that much. Mmmhmm.
MS: In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
A: Uhm, it kind of motivates me cause I don’t want to be that student right in front of the
class so I show up in class prepared and for learning, I don’t know if it’s good for
learning because I hear some of my classmates complaining that they don’t really learn in
class and that they learn from reading the book themselves so. I kinda do that too study
by myself instead of listening in front of the class.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
A: Mmmm. No I don’t I don’t hmm no I don’t think so hehehe.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Polly
Date: July 23, 2015
Interview Time: 50:05
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
P: I’m really outgoing, I love to be outside, I work at a church, and I have one sister that I
am really um close to you know?
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
P: Um, [pause]. Uh not much really I mean it’s just a general interest like I mean. I
wouldn’t say there is anything in particular that’s driving me besides myself. I mean
that’s something that I really want. And passed that I wouldn’t say there’s anything else.
MS: For sure. How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own
words?
P: Um, some classes I guess there’s more student-to-student interaction. Um, and some
it’s not so it’s kind of awkward I guess. Uh just because all mainly because uh for me if
there’s the teacher trying to create a discussion if I don’t know these people to any certain
level the discussion isn’t going to go anywhere cause at least in my opinion I don’t have a
connection with them so I won’t be as likely to share per se um, but when I when I do
feel like the teacher’s making an effort and the other students are making an effort to get
to know one another and um I think the discussion goes a lot better or group work goes a
lot better or whatever however the class is structured goes a lot better when the students
are able to know one another, not on like some super deep level but just I mean truthfully
just getting to know students’ name is already significantly deeper than just sitting in
class with other people. So. I mean.
MS: Let me ask you this…are yall in cohorts in your program or no?
P: Yes and no I mean it’s like I would say there’s like at least 5ish people that I can say I
I I’ve seen in previous classes or I know that I’ve had in previous classes but past that I
wouldn’t be able to know. I haven’t necessarily made a connection with them I may or
may not remember them just cause that class isn’t setup to talk to one another I might not
even realize we were in a class before but so somewhat but yeah.
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MS: Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
P: Um, one of the classes I’ve took was a summer mini and in that one I mean it was only
3 weeks long or however long it was and um it was interesting how that class vibed
together um because we weren’t we never did group work it wasn’t ever group work
class but I guess I don’t know if it was the way we sat or the short period of time or how
the discussion looked but everyone seemed to get along really well and fed off of each
other really well and so for that um I mean I would I would probably say that the teacher
because of the natural she had brought to the class that affected how we students
connected in interaction with one another. Um and so it couldn’t been like a really good
class heheh.
MS: Was it big or a small class?
P: Uh…maybe 30. I mean at most um but yeah it was it was interesting cause I’ve never
had a class that I guess interacted in that manner like I’ve had class discussions that
interacted but sometimes there’s awkward tension. This one there wasn’t it was fluid
everyone generally listened. I don’t know it was interesting.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your classmates?
P: Um, right. I mean no the class i just took with um [pause] Dr. Seuss, I thought that
was a really good class as well I think because she was modeling different um I mean
most of her stuff was behavior which she was modeling however um due to the different
behaviors that she did it has us interact with one another and get to know one another um.
And she’s constantly putting us in groups which to an extent drove me crazy but it was
good because I mean I did get to know the class um which was nice because I may not
have got to know them especially if they are quieter I don’t necessarily will say anything
so it was neat in that in that regard um.
MS: Cool. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If not,
why?
P: Uh I wouldn’t say all of my classes. Some of them yes uh but like I said in the
previous two classes there’s been a flow or vibe in the class that is I would say mainly
produced by what the teacher has done um and some of them not really. Um I had one
class here it was a my multicultural class and I was so awkward because um the class was
a good group of students um and I think we would have gotten along really really well
um but the teacher she was really nice but she would just like cause it’s a sensitive class
because of the topics involved but she would just kind of open the class and then ask a
question and then kind of just sit there and we would all talk and she wouldn’t really go
anywhere with it it was just kind of like that’s it like and we were all like what are we
supposed to be thinking? How or what I mean is what are where are you getting at with
this? It was very awkward. We thought and talked a lot in the class but from the teacher’s
side she literally just opened the question and we discussed and stopped and we would
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look at her. Yeah so it was it was weird cause we we wanted to become kind of holistic
and kind of more fluid with as a class but we all just felt kind of awkward because we
each had our separate opinions and the teacher just sat there and was like ok. I mean I
mean not that there’s a right or wrong and and in that class per se but I mean there wasn’t
really much guidance or I don’t know it was very weird and to the class most of us I say
would say we liked each other we got along, but it wasn’t I don’t know it was just weird
it was just statements being said and that was it and so it was very very odd. But um
that’s the only time I felt I guess a true disconnect everything else I felt either relative or
really connected like those two classes I spoke about but.
MS: Good. Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why
not?
P: Uh I believe it depends on the subject for me at least. Cause I’m someone who likes to
work on their own for the most part. However I do like to to listen to people’s ideas and
opinions and thoughts on things um so connected in the sense that it’s a really good
discussion there’s a good flow. Yes. Connected in when we’re constantly in group work
no. that drives me crazy. But cause the class that I had over summer mini I don’t think we
did group work but we were a very connected class and we fed off of each other’s ideas
and thoughts and stuff like that and I appreciated that because it wasn’t nonstop group
work. There might be group discussions like small group discussions but past that there
wasn’t a paper or assignment or nothing nothing like that um and so it was nice just to
have small group discussions within our own table or whatever. Um so it just depends on
the connectedness for me.
MS: Ok that’s good. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to
persist, if at all?
P: Um, I have a similar for instance I mean just within the the school of education I’ve
noticed there’s a lot of um older women and men coming back to school. I’ve always
found that impressive. I was at Mickey Mouse University for a semester and there was uh
a couple that was in their 70s and a lot of my one of my uh science classes and I was like
Oh my gosh, like I was just so impressed by that, just because it’s something that they
really desire uh because they might not have had the opportunity didn’t have the money
didn’t whatever that I’ve had and they weren’t able to at the time but you know want to
now they might not have even needed they might be completely retired and have no
desire to go back to the work force but it was just the fact that they were able to
accomplish that and you know I have a one of my friends has like 4 kids and she’s a
single mom you know it’s just a lot going on so I think that these people who um you
know have all of this going on in their life and they are still here they’re still doing class
and I mean like I worked full time but uh I don’t have kids hehe like it’s not I don’t have
that much strain on my life. Its busy don’t get me wrong but certainly nothing compared
to some of the people that I’ve been in class with so I think that’s inspiring and so I watch
them when I at our for me when I try and complain about my life I’m like ok shut up
heheh. It’s ridiculous cause I see people who are struggling with significantly harder
things than I am and they are still here and there doing great and getting good grades and
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so. Um. So I appreciate watching that and getting to know those people through this
experience.
MS: So, how would you define family support in your own words?
P: Uh, for me family support is is tricky because I’m someone who I do want them to be
honest with me um however I do also want them to support decisions I’ve made so for
instance um, I hehehe since I have started college I’ve switched my major 4 times k. so it
was chaotic and crazy and I’ve been to 3 universities and junior college and so um
[pause]. Lots just happened and um and not bad just been chaos and so my family has
supported me in each one of these transitions um and so which is nice and it’s good but
for me um. Once I had I honed in on education it’s obvious it was the right fit for me and
so um my my family kind of gets annoyed with me know because it’s all I talk about now
at home but um they definitely see it’s the right fit for me and so originally I was a
business major and I’m so not an office worker like I’m not good at that and um. And so
once we realized where I was at it was easier um to help me let’s do this can we do this?
Can we check on that? I have a friend who her whole life she’s always talked about doing
um physical therapy and she got married this past December and now all of a sudden she
wants to be a teacher. And so and she’s graduating this august and doing alternative
certifications and its driving me crazy because um I said well why are you why are you
doing teaching never once even thought about it or mentioned it? She said well cause I
want I feel bad that you know my husbands the only one making money and um and our
relationship well it’s like get a part time job or something doesn’t change your career just
cus you want to get a job faster just bothered me. And you know I was telling my family
about it I said the reason it bothers me so much is that the her familys just ss supporting
her without saying this is not something you’ve ever talked about like I’m not saying she
can’t do alternative certification until she goes to you know uh physical therapy school or
whatever it’s called but just the fact that she’s dropped it completely and just bothers me
because it’s not really where her heart is. And so for me family support is also
recognizing that and not letting you just drop out yeah. I mean it’s its recognizing that
this is something you’ve always talked about you know it might not be as accessible as it
was a year ago but just cause you got married that shouldn’t change anything. You know?
Cause I got married I got married two months before her but I’m yeah I mean like I still
want to do I mean and and so for me family support like I told my husband I said I would
be so mad at you if you let me do that because knowing that I have a passion for teaching
in education working with kids, it’s that would drive me bonkers if for whatever reason
you you know I I just I don’t want to change because it was easier way to get out of
school, get a full time job, that would drive me crazy. And so I think family support is
also recognizing that and helping you stay on the path that you are meant to be on.
There’s a reason that you’ve talked about it your whole life. You know what I mean? The
odds of someone just waking up one day and realizing that it’s not for me that doesn’t
happen to many people. And so I just stuff like that and I think family support comes into
play that ordeal.
MS: Ok great. Can you give me examples of family support?
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P: Uh I think just decisions that are made. Uh within like my husband and I uh we live in
a house that I was born and raised in and so and we’ve been this whole thing I mean it’s
an old house just deciding do we want to sell it do we want to keep it. How do we want to
remodel this? You know all of that and so um because we’ve never owned a house before
you don’t know everything about owning a house and so I do listen to my my mom my
sister’s advice in talking to them and well we want to stay we want to move. No matter
what we do they’re pretty supportive uh well I would say they are very supportive but
part of that is also helping me lay out a plan kinda like a calendar how to achieve
whatever it is um because I’ve never remodeled a house. Hehe because I’ve never bought
a house I don’t necessarily know every step that’s involved in taking that on um. And so
you know my sister’s like well you need this much money as a down payment and
closing and this this and that she’s like why don’t you save this much money this month
and we’ll do it well start looking this month and so um for me family support is is helping
me through those things that I’ve never done before. Because why I mean why would I
have bought a house before this nots like an everyday thing and so. Um helping me figure
out how to to line that up so I think decisions is a big one. Um. And every aspect I mean
not just those ones but I mean just hehe little small ones when I was getting married the
little things that you do for a wedding. Yeah I mean. Hehehe. Those little things you do
for a wedding it was nice to talk with family I mean sometimes it’s frustrating sometimes
family support is like oh my gosh I wish you didn’t support me so much but it’s nice
when at the end you realize that you know sometimes they are right you know. They do
have experience with this or whatever um so for my biggest thing is just decisions. Um
about life. Things that I haven’t experienced yet and trying now to make decisions about
those so.
MS: So then let’s see. Who do you consider to provide family and support (i.e. which
family members)?
P: For me personally, it’s my husband, sister, mom, and I mean I have what’s called my
church family that I work cause I work at my church um and so my my staff members
that I work with are very supportive of me and what I do. Yeah they are my family um
and so uh. When stuff is happening you know I either hear the truth or they’re just like its
ok we’re going to get through this whatever um and same with my friends that I’ve
known since high school. Like junior high really. And so I have them as well that I can
just talk over things with um. So I’m I guess my support systems kind of tight knit just
because I don’t like telling everything about my life to everyone hehehe but I mean the
three people mainly are my mom, my sister, my husband, or my main um support system
just because they’re the my immediate family.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
P: Uh, [pause]. I would say my mom the most. Um my when I was in high school I had a
really bad junior year and I had a sinus infection that lasted 3 months um I had swine flu,
I had regular flu, and I had bronchitis and so I was sick both of my junior year which was
really an important year for me because that’s when you take your SAT’s and you’re
finals you know TAKS tests and um for me I was on the drill team so we had a tryout for
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our final officer position cause I was an officer that year and so it was just there’s a lot
going on and I will never forget how sick I was. Um and I mean on TAKS test I was just
miserable I think I wrote one paragraph of the essay, turned it in, cause I couldn’t do it.
And uhm and so I my dream was lost to go to A&M and because I was so sick that year it
I was like five people out of the top ten percent and I was like it just ruined my world so I
was like oh my gosh I can’t get in now. And so I just had this huge melt down at my
house and my moms like no it’s ok we’re going to figure it out and get you into
somewhere cool somewhere nice that works for you. I was like ok um well it didn’t really
believe her because I didn’t have any desire to go anywhere else because I was like im
not going to college. It was this big drama scene it was awful. But so honestly when I
calmed down and realized life was going to be ok we went to uh up to Minnie Univesity
and um and I went to Minnie Univesity once when my sister was thinking about going
there. I walked around and fell in love with the campus it’s so beautiful campus. It’s just
gorgeous so I just loved it. I was so excited so I came home, applied, did the whole thing,
and um because Minnie Univesity their operating system is not connected with like
BlackBoard Barnes and Noble loop, they’re on something different um. You know I
applied did all that and one morning just comes in my room and like screaming. She’s
like you got in. I was like ok!!! And uhm and so I was excited and I you know I was
going well then my senior year came around and um I ended up graduating in the top ten
percent of my class and so um you know I definitely could have gotten into A&M had I
applied but it was interesting cause now I just I had completely shifted gears to go onto
Minnie Univesity um. Because my mom was there she’s like no don’t just give up on
college just cause you can’t get into one university, that’s absurd. And so she helped me
um and my mom’s never been to college so so she doesn’t really necessarily know all of
the ins and outs of of college but um
MS: Are you first gen?
P: No I mean my sister is.
MS: Yeah ok.
P: So I mean hehe. But uum uh so yeah so it was it was interesting cause she was just
really so happy for me. Um it was it was also kind of a hard thing because my parents are
divorced and um my dad was supposed to be paying for my school but then he said no.
and so then my mom who already paid for my sister to go to school was now stuck with
me so it was just a lot going on. Um but she still was very adamant about me going to um
a school where I wanted to go. Um I mean that wasn’t absurd like it was still reasonably
priced school so I went uh my freshman and half my sophomore year and I loved it
everything about it was fantastic. And um and then you know I came home, I got
married, and what not but it was the support system from her was the strongest just
because you know she knew my dream was to go to A&M and things happened and so
she just helped me kind of replan relook at things and you know she was there for me
every step of the way and so it was just nice having that because my dad just told me that
I should go to San Jac just because it’s cheaper even though he can afford it to you know
it’s just ridiculous. And so she was like that’s not where she necessarily wants to go and
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if we have the money why on earth would we just send her to San Jac yeah. Just because
you know and so so recently she was my that was the I mean relatively recently that she
was a huge support me within college. So.
MS: Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
P: Uh, yeah I do um. Definitely by my mom. My sister and I are complete opposites in
every possible area of life. We’re so opposite and so I know she supports me sometimes
it’s more just she’ll get there eventually kind of like uh she’s got to tell me I’ve done
wrong in life before we get to I support you type of thing but I know she supports me and
I know she’ll be there for me but she’s got to be the tough sister. She’s got to pull that act
before she gets to the support so I do know my family loves me they just show it in
different ways.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
P: Yes, um for me personally I I’m very very close to my my mom and my sister um and
so I I 100 percent think it’s um a good thing and a needed thing to be supported by family
just because and like I said had my mom not been there I don’t know if I would have
gone to Minnie Univesity. I don’t you know and so even though I might not always like
what they say when they’re trying to support me trying to help me in life. Um I do
appreciate it because at least I’m getting some sort of advice. Might not be the advice I
want to hear or might not be the support I want but is my family and so they’re just trying
to help me make the right decisions or whatever, and so I think it is uhhh an incredible
incredibly important thing to have support from your family.
MS: How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in college, if
at all?
P: It affects a lot, my sister because she’s she um she actually went here um but because
she was before me in college she knew how to apply, and do this, and FAFSA, and all the
ins and outs of how to do school, and so when I went to Minnie Univesity it’s so different
when you’re trying to apply for classes and all of that and so um. But my mom my sister,
and I went up there for orientation and got everything situated and it was just nice
because my sister was like well you have to do this, get this done, um and so. I don’t
want to say she’s been my motivation per se cause like I don’t know if I’ve had a person
that’s been a motivator but um she’s helped me along the way each transition that I’ve
had from each school you know will have you applied for that blah blah blah so she kind
of pushed me eve sometimes when I didn’t want to be pushed she’ made me.
MS: What’s your age difference?
P: 7 years yeah we’re different. Hehehe. It’s just different yeah. I mean we’re not like
best friends but um but she is my sister. And so she’s helped me a lot in those different
things um. And so she’s you know like having done this and she’s like we’re going up
there today. She’s my sister is definitely like uh I’m I’m probably most organized in the
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family but I just uh my sister is a like a get er done type of person and I’m kind of like go
like goin I just float through life. I mean I’m very organized but I kinda just take one step
at a time and I don’t have a lot of stress but my sister is very high stress and so she’s just
like a I don’t know it’s just very weird. Hehehe. You would not guess if you saw my
sister and I.
MS: What type of positive behaviors do your college instructors use in the classroom?
P: I don’t know if you would say that but their energy level, how they come into to class,
um I mean I appreciate when they say guys I’ve had a really bad day so bear with me or
I’m sick or something like that because if I don’t then I’m just assuming why are they so
mean? You know why are they so rude today whatever is going on. Um, but so energy
level for me is the biggest one um, as well as knowing who I am. So name recognition
and um because I’m the I mean uh when I first started college it wasn’t that important I
was in 300-400 class people so I don’t expect an instructor to know all of that. That’s too
many people but I do expect when I come to a smaller setting that they do recognize who
I am. Um and so because I have had instructors where its only 20 maybe 30 people and
they don’t know who I am. I’m like we’ve been together for 4 months and you don’t
know who I am. I don’t understand that. Yeah. I just think that’s bazaar because they
don’t recognize my name obviously they aren’t really here in my opinion here for
teaching because if they were they would care who they are teaching to because once you
recognize the name you’re more inclined in my opinion to get to know them and know
where they stand on topics or educational whatever. And so um for me its energy level
and and knowing your students. I’m not saying you need to know every detail about them
but just knowing a little about them. I think can change the course how you’re teaching
whatever the class is because not every class structure is meant for every class. And so I
uh as a teacher I feel that you should be able to recognize how you’re class is working
together and you you’ll be able to to teach better, and navigate better through your
lessons or discussions or however your class is operated. Um so.
MS: How would you define positive instructor behaviors?
P: Um [long pause]. Hmmm. Um feels the room and and uh and is able to pick up on on
students who have tension between one another, students who mix well together, um
groups that that work well on discussion, groups that work well in group work and um
and also their knowledge about whatever the subject matter is cuz some people this might
be their favorite topic so they know a lot about it coming some are like I have never even
heard of this word. So I think that the biggest thing is for the teacher is to feel the room in
all of those areas. Getting to know your students getting to know what they don’t know
and who they are um as learners. Cause I recently had an instructor who like she came in
and very nice but she started like saying well we all know that. I’m like no we don’t
heheh we don’t know that. And so and to me that’s more embarrassing to me because
then I’m like maybe I’m just the one that doesn’t know that you know. Or or um and
when they do say that I hate I will not ask a question like that in a class like that because
well obviously we’re all supposed to know this so I’m going to look dumb if I ask that
question and so for me I don’t feel comfortable in class like that cause I don’t feel like I
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can openly ask a question without being like well didn’t you know that already. So I do
think it’s important for the teacher to be able to feel the room genuinely and a difference
in areas so that they are there each semester.
MS: Cool. Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed positive
behaviors?
P: Um, yeah I had uh professor here who taught educational psychology and I I was like
kind of hesitant because like the topic sounded really weird and I was like what does that
mean and I got into the classroom and she sent us an email saying print this out the first
day. I printed it out and I was like oh my gosh this isn’t going to be a fun class. But once
we started and we met the professor, I loved her. I thought she had such a good energy
and she there’s just something different about her an unique that I appreciated um
because she did um get to know our names and kind of get to know us uh and she was
really sweet cause we had one strange person in our class. He’s nice but very very strange
and um even with him she worked well with him. Cause he was like nonstop talking like
and always wanting to answer questions like no one else could answer anything and so
she worked with him really well and so being able to see that cause I’ve also seen
instructors frustrated with situations like that but seeing her be able to appreciate him for
who he was and being able to work with that and work with the other students it was
nice. Her energy level was just it wasn’t just like bouncing off the walls it was just a nice
energy like it wasn’t she was positive when she came in, she genuinely wanted us to
know what was going on, and so and that was nice because no one knows educational
psychology before going in. You just don’t know that stuff hehehe. And that’s the thing
is once it got started it wasn’t actually hard I might have been had I had a different
instructor she made it relatable and understandable and so it was nice to have a teacher
who who knew how to teach hehehe. If that makes any sense?
MS: Yes, it does. How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
P: Um, well um. I’ve had teachers who just teach I guess just cause that’s a job. And I
hate it because um they don’t care about their students. I mean I don’t want to say they
don’t care but it’s a different um they don’t necessarily care to get to know the students
by name. Um or anything of that nature and the way they teach is very harsh for me. Like
it’s not um my thing is that like hehe there are people who are so ridiculously smart in
certain areas. That does not mean that you can teach that area. That just means you know
allow about that area. And so ive had teachers who know a ton about that area but aren’t
necessarily able to translate that into someone who doesn’t know anything about that
area. And so for me I don’t know if you would consider that a misbehavior but as a
student I’m in there and I’m not able to learn what’s going on because it’s so over my
head. Because I’m at a beginner level and you’re talking to me at an advanced level. Wait
I haven’t hit those levels yet. I’m trying to recognize what’s going on. I think being able
to to know you’re content break it down, and present in a way that you’re you’re you’re
students understand and are able to be with you and conversation is a huge thing. Because
when those teachers when they recognize their students are necessarily getting it and they
get frustrated and um and the energy they might have like this amazing energy coming
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into the class um but because no one is understanding it all they get frustrated and um and
it’s not that they get frustrated at us or themselves just a whole the combination of just
the general frustration and so. Um. That feeds into other areas and of of how they operate
their class and um. Cause I had one online class where whatever reason BlackBoard was
not operating and so I missed like several quizzes not purposely just my BlackBoard
would shut down and I don’t know if it was my computer or the actual system so um I
emailed the professor I said hey I tried to take the quiz or test or whatever. But it cut me
off and they’re like well I’m sorry you should have procrastinated. I’m like what how
does that work? Procrastination? Why do you give a deadline if I did it before the
deadline I’m sorry if this is the only day I could fit it in like so. So does that mean I can’t
take it again? Like or are you being where are we going with this? They’re like no. I was
like ok. And so like and I don’t know if it’s because multiple students had been emailing
them or what I mean because I’ve had teachers where because so many students have
(33:55) are horrific procrastinators and wait till the day its due oh I didn’t go to the
library haven’t even started anything that they just kind of blow up on everyone. I’m like
wait for those of us that are trying to do it yeah like don’t get mad at us we’re trying. And
so I’ve had had teachers where their frustration because of one little tiny something blows
up and it ruins the whole class and learning just goes out the window and I’m just like I
don’t want to work and turn it in. I’m done with this class so.
MS: What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be instructor
misbehavior?
P: Um, for verbal is is when well nonverbal I guess they go hand in hand for this one is
like I said the name recognition or you don’t say a person’s name instead you point or
you just agree and said yes go ahead versus oh go ahead Polly or go ahead whoever it’s
just a combination for that one but I also think how you you open and close a class. Um
like you know do you say good morning or good afternoon, do you greet the class, or do
you say today we’re going to hit the ground running. When you close a class do you say,
thanks so much for coming, you know we have a topic blah blah blah. So I think those
two are you strictly in that class to get the content out and not help your students learn
and recognize what’s going on or um are you in it to help your students understand the
topic and apply it to whatever they are doing. So um, for me opening and closing a class
really just sets the stage for a lot of different things. Um same with the first day of class.
Um, the astronomy class I had she hit the ground running teaching and I was like whoa,
hehehe. Like we didn’t go over the syllabus, she didn’t have a BlackBoard, like I was
going crazy, I was like how am I going to like I’m someone I know it’s weird but I like to
have paper cus then I can yeah touch it yes. It’s just I’m that way and I like organization.
The instructor didn’t have an email. I was like how on earth am I supposed to
communicate with you? I work full time I can’t come up here for your office hours? I
need to communicate! Well, I mean this she might have had one she just didn’t put it on
her syllabus and so um so I was like oh my gosh. Yeah because I’m like I cant come up
when you have a two to three office hour like I work and so I can’t. Can’t be off too
much like to be there. And so so um understanding how a teacher presents um the first
days is a big one because it does set the stage and the tone for the rest of the class. Um
and then from there on out uh it’s nice to have a relative structure for class going in
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knowing we’re going to have this this and this happen. Um because if not, I don’t know it
could be kind of stressful for me when I don’t like this whole unexpected stuff happen
um but I did have a professor who started this the class the same day. Greeted the class
and then ended the class the same way every single day and it was nice and the way the
way she did it I don’t know it was just it was different and it was it was a nice a complete.
It was complete lesson even if she didn’t finish her lesson, she still closed it in a manner
that left the classroom complete. Cus I’ve left classes feeling like what yeah. Like I mean
I have literally I was like is class over? I don’t even know they just stop talking. So I’m
like is that our hint. So I think having a nice closure um really affects how you operate a
class and how the students view you as a professor as well.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
P: This is fantastic. Yes. No. I don’t even remember this professor’s name this is at
Mickey Mouse though and he as a uh genetics teacher uh it was I had to take just to a
biology class and so well that sounds kind of interesting whatever yeah no. um I sit in the
class the first day and it was really quite. Have you sat at this campus? They are freezing.
It was really cold.
MS: Was it a large lecture or no?
P: Uh I mean not it wasn’t too bad not too bad. Um. But the classroom we were meeting
in was pretty much freezing everyday but so and um he he uh I don’t know he had a very
strong accent from somewhere so I don’t know if he had been in a country this long or
just had a strong accent I had no idea. But every morning he would come in and he would
complain about the air and then he could never figure how to use the technology in the
room ever. And so he would call IT and rip them a new one every class day in front of all
of us chew them out, get them down here. I mean it’s kind of funny cause IT people help
us and he was yeah um. And so he was like why couldn’t I do that? He would yell and I
will never forget this one. I was the first one there always and so I’m coming to class. I
turn on the lights one day I literally icicles were coming from the ceiling it was just
miserable. I have never been in a classroom as cold and he comes in and he’s just livid
he’s just screaming. And he ends up canceling class he’s like I can’t handle this. And um
it was awful so that area wasn’t necessarily directed at us it was directed at others.
However it was in front of us and it did show us how he interacts with other adults.
Because he definitely viewed those in the IT department or AC how that works below
him. It bothered me so much I was like no no no you should be thankful for them because
they are the ones that fix everything for you. And so he treated them poorly and then we
always had uh some sort of like like a my math lab but for this class I don’t know. But
um we homework and um if we had a question he would always ugh the class do you
have any questions from homework. Everyone had questions because no one ever knew
what was going on so he would pick a few and then when he would try to explain he
never explained like he just went in this circular motion an di was like k. and hehehe like
the the you know he would go back to did that help. We were like no. and he was like
well I don’t know how to help you then. I was like ok. So he was just he I don’t know if
he ever smiled or ever was happy he just seemed very mad all of the time at everything
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and so. I hated going to that class because um I think everyone got a “C” in that class I
think maybe one person got an “A” because they were a genetic major but um it was just
awful no one learned. No one we just took the class and because we all had to do it for as
a credit, um but it was just it was horrific. He was so rude to anyone and everyone he
met.
MS: Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors?
P: [pause]. Um for me once again is knowing the knowing your students. I had a
professor at Mickey University. I’m good at math, always good at math. I was in a
business calculus class and uh I was there was well it wasn’t hard I took calculus in high
school so it’s not too much off of that just more business terms. And so I sat in the class
and there as 30 of us in my first class started and by the the final day there was 5 of us.
So I was like ok hehehe. Like it was awful and um he was very rude to anyone who was
late no matter what the reason was and um he had to address it right then and there. Like
he couldn’t talk with them after class he was very concerned about it. He had to address it
right then and there. He had a similar tone to the other professor. If he had a question, he
hated questions, hated them. He was someone who was like this is common sense. And I
was like this is not, if you’re not good at math this is not common sense. I’m good at
math and the way he was teaching it was not common sense. It wasn’t the way I learned
it. He was like you have to learn it my way kind of thing. And so I think the highest grade
in the class was a “C” and um and so it was horrible and he didn’t care at all like he
didn’t care if anyone passed or failed. I mean he just he said that. And I was like then
why are you teaching? What is the point? Like he didn’t care, if he had office hours, I
don’t think he actually wanted you to come, he just posted them, because he had to and
so it was was very odd um. Because he knew what he was talking about you could tell he
was so knowledgeable in his content area but he he didn’t really teach. He just like did a
couple of problems on the board and class was over. I was like ok. Yeah it was awful and
so he just didn’t want to ever help anyone and he didn’t want to answer questions, he
didn’t want to talk to anyone, he didn’t want to explain anything, he was like if you don’t
understand anything you shouldn’t be here in this class. I was like this is an introductory
class, like this isn’t advanced. Yeah I mean it’s your lowest level business calculus this is
I’m just like wait hehehe you haven’t explained anything yet and so it was awful. Um for
me.
MS: How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
P: Um, I have had let me think. [pause]. truthfully those two are the only ones that are
standing out to me. I mean there are always here and there instances but I mean I
wouldn’t that’s just normal people behavior in my opinion. Those two really stuck out
because it was nonstop and it affect every single class.
MS: Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
P: Every class hehehe. Yeah.
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MS: In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
P: Yeah, every piece of the class um my interest level has definitely left. Um my my
desire to even be anywhere near that degree has left for fear of being in that a class that
has them again. Um and and truthfully you just get this petrified state where you don’t
want to move the wrong way because you’re scared they are going to say something or
offend you or you name it and um. Cause one professor I had was not afraid to tell
someone they were stupid. Like he wasn’t and so um for me I don’t want to be called
stupid like sorry I don’t know everything about genetics but I don’t want to sit anywhere
near that and so. There’s just uncomfortable tension that you sit there and pray that class
will end soon hehehe. And so you don’t have a clue what going on in the class because
you’re so focused making sure you’re you know you’re taking notes or just staring
watching that you are not even listening to what’s going on. Cause you’re so focused on
what you’re doing that um any learning that is done or um group discussion are not
effective because you’re not engage. You’re not genuinely in the class um. And so
because of those instructors there’s never discussion and there’s never group work or any
sort of collaboration at all just strictly lecture and um and he I mean and then and they
wouldn’t even ask question like and so I mean there wasn’t event teacher-student
discussion just this is it period. There’s no questions to be asked. And so um it just
became very awkward and you didn’t know how to behave in the class you didn’t know
if asking a question was appropriate or um and so it was just I don’t know. You just you
just hope it ends quickly and you get in and pass hehe. That’s all you focus on.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
P: Hehehe. I think ive already said too much so no that’s ok.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Elsa
Date: July 23, 2015
Interview Time: 24:13
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
E: Well, the number one thing that describes me is mom. Hehehe. I have kids and they
are my priority and then my husband and um school. I have no hobbies because I’m like
you know a mom hehehe. I don’t work but my husband is a professor at Lee College so
yeah that’s why I’m in school and about about me.
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
E: Um hmm. Well it’s it just to occurred to me I’m pretty sure I indicated in my survey
I’m post bac um. Um, so if we’re talking about persisting in college here it’s that I am
just bound and determined to get the program and finish it because I want to teach. I need
a job. I have four kids hehehe. Yeah um as long as I can get a position my mother-in-law
is uh a special ed teacher and so I have watched her for years and shes um elementary
which im not im intermediate/high school um. But still have that idea that side of it so im
well I don’t have and I worked middle high school students so I were you mainly 7th
through 9 but I love them so it’s really that drive that’s keeping me going. So.
MS: Cool. How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own words?
E: So here. It depends on the class. It really depends on the class. Um there’s some
classes that we all know each other and we care about each other and we know what’s
going on like my positive learning environments um. That was just amazing we we
became a cohesive group. My hybrid classes last spring um it’s very different. One of
them we were a class and we had that but we didn’t you know really connect my other
hybrid class there was no connectedness at all. It was like we were in the same room. Um
so you know to define it would be really knowing and caring about each other. Um,
having an idea of what’s going on and to some extent contacting each other out of class.
There’s a girl from my one of my spring classes my um ed psych class, she and I still
text. You know I’ve probably won’t see her unless she’s in one of my classes. We just
live very different lives. She’s undergrad, young, single, living that life. I’m you know
old and married. Hehehe.
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MS: Ok. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
E: Absolutely. Um, there’s uh a woman in my positive learning environments who will
also be in methods, social studies this fall, um. And she and I didn’t really get to know
each other until the end of class but its its you know it’s making that connections of
knowing a little bit about her interests and she knows that my weaknesses are Texas
history and she said there’s this book that she absolutely adored on the Native Americans
in Texas history books and she took a picture and sent it to me. I’m desperate to read it
but between two semesters yeah. Yeah. Hehehe. When I can breathe. Um there’s so many
books I need to read between semesters but um you know that’s a good example of that.
um, you know right now in my my you know four week class and my special ed class,
um you know I I’m sort of friends with the woman I sit next to but it’s not really
connected so it’s it’s very class dependent and honestly professor dependent. You know?
MS: Ok. Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your
classmates?
E: Um, one specific time when a classmates as a whole I would say most of my positive
learning environment class where we were very comfortable asking questions, sharing
about ourselves, when we would do our group presentations, it would be very open. And
um you know we would chat and we could give each other feedback. Really give each
other feedback. And it was totally accepted and we knew it was all you know. Working to
improve. So.
MS: Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If not, why?
Um, again not all of my classes. Um hybrids are much harder. Um, I don’t really like
hybrids. Um, and you know I hate online. I tried to take online classes this summer.
[shakes head]. It’s unique. Hybrid is ok but that’s it. So.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
E: I think it absolutely important.
Ok how come?
E: Um, and this is actually a different perspective than I had as an undergrad um 20 years
ago hehehe. And then I wanted friends and we all lived on campus and everything. Here
it’s very different because I’m in the teacher education program. It’s important because
we need to support each other. And because we’re all going out into the field at some
point. And we’re gonna need each other’s resources. So yeah. Hehehe.
MS: Um. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist, if at
all?
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E: Um, [sigh] it doesn’t because my because I have a long term goal. Yeah. It makes me
feel a lot better um and it it it really boosts my impression of the program so.
MS: Gotcha. How would you define family support in your own words?
E: Uh well there’s two different kinds of family support um. Well I guess more than two
there’s emotional support. Um, which is you know helping through the ups and the
downs. There’s you know trying to make time for me to do my classwork, there’s
encouragement and of course there’s also financial support. Um which is key and
honestly I hate to say this at age 39 but I get from my mother my dad. They’re enabling
me to go to college. I would not be here if they were not paying for my tuition, books,
part of my rent. Mmmmhhhm.
MS: Um. Can you give me examples of family support?
E: Um, well there’s the you know financially my my parents um. We actually just got
their old car that they were getting rid of um. They were getting rid of it um my father
spent weeks working on it to make sure it was perfect for us. Um it’s not perfect hehehe
but that’s just because it barely holds 6 people. Um but we need it. A car that’ll carry
everybody but then really you know there’s you know when I got accepted to the
program, I’m doing well, I’ll send a text to my mother-in-law and mother-in-law and
they’re just really positive and and very supportive and when we go and visit them on
weekends they live uh near Austin, north of Austin. When we go visit them which we do
about every 4-6 weeks. Um, they are just really supportive and as far as you know giving
me time to work you know. I kinda have to take the time, they’re not going to say oh Elie
go work but if I leave to go work, they keep the kids away from me. You know my
husband and I really just try to to balance um [pause] uh he uh. [pause] like the other
night I was exhausted cause I was not sleeping. And I had spent mm I I pretty much have
from when I drop off the kids in the morning until when 6 at night Monday thru Thursday
to do all of my work. Um, but the other night I was just so exhausted and he just he took
the kids so that I could go home and take a nap. Which is not giving me time for school
work its giving me time to take care of myself so it. Yeah. But it’s it’s a juggling thing
for him and I because he teaches um he teaches at Lee College and so he teaches two
nights a week so those nights I really do not have I mean. I’m me four kids, dinner,
playing, trying to keep them off of the tv the whole night, bedtime, at the end of that I’m
just wiped. So.
MS: Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family members)?
E: My husband, my mother-in-law, my mother-in-law, um and my parents. My brother
cheers me on but we almost never talk or text so it’s like when I got accepted into the
education program I sent him a text and he just responded, “yay, go girl or something”
but it’s really the other ones its really my in-laws um. Um. And um my mother-in-law,
mother-in-law, my mother-in-law passed away so and then my parents. So.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
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E: There’s the other night that I told you about um the other um thing was um [pause]. a
few weeks ago maybe it was the 4th of July weekend I had a couple of huge projects due
and on Friday, we went down Thursday afternoon, and on Friday which I had no class or
anything um, basically Tommy my husband and my mother-in-law specifically took the
kids so that I would have most of the day to work. You know, took them out to the park,
they you know kept the youngest away from me which is the hardest thing. He’s 3 um
and he’s very mommy attached. Very mommy attached! Yeah. Um, you know he’ll come
upstairs and be like nap time momma, I’m like it’s 9 AM. No. We’re not napping but
that’s also um just kind of on a side is until two nights until last night he was still nursing
in the middle of the night so there’s that. Last night was my first night no nursing. Yeah.
Well but he was only awake for minutes it shocked me. I expected him to be awake and
crying more and I expected this morning to be awful but he did really well. But when I
want to be alone to work um. He does not it’s he has to be out of the house to keep him
separate really or truly focused on a project you know doing a puzzle with my husband or
doing a puzzle or Legos with my in-laws or something. So.
MS: Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
E: Yeah I really do um. My kids are excited, my um my rising 7th grader is just like I
think mom this year is going to go a lot better for you and me because last year was just
awful. And trying to get his homework and him not doing his homework and because you
know you’ve been taking teaching classes so you understand more hehehe. Yeah so he’s
like, “so I think it’s gonna go better.” And he’s just so excited. He’s like, “mom can I
help you teach?” hehehe. Just yeah so they’re just really excited so I feel you know I feel
really supported and you know there’s the tension of juggling time with my husband but
he is very supportive and the kids are just fantastic.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
E: Well if you were married with kids, you cannot do college without support. Period.
End of question. If I did not have that support, I would not be here I would do a job that I
hate. Bring home some money.
MS: How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in college, if
at all?
E: You know again if I didn’t have the support, I couldn’t do this. So having their
support is essential.
MS: For sure. What type of positive behaviors do your college instructors use in the
classroom?
E: Um, positive behaviors. Can you toggle 15 and 16 ehehehe? Um, what type of positive
behaviors do they use? Um. It really dependent on how you define positive
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MS: So then let’s go… How would you define positive instructor behaviors?
E: I would say encour creating a classroom where people care and support each other um.
By demonstrating that caring um and also really and just demonstrating that they
understand that we have lives. Understand that you know we want to do well and they
don’t want to over load us. Um, you know it’s and modeling positive teaching behaviors
and really encouraging that which I’ve had [pause], in three four of my classes, four out
of the six classes I’ve taken here I’d say so.
MS: So then, what type of positive behaviors do your college instructors’ use in the
classroom?
E: The modeling is huge um and you know working to get people to work in groups um.
Group work is essential you know as much as it’s pain in the butt and if you get partnered
with somebody that’s hard to work with its makes it harder and I I think it’s essential and
they they do that. Um, most of them do that quite a bit. Um, and encouraging you to work
with it and using teaching methods. Constructivist teaching methods, helping you to be
able to you know construct your own knowledge you know.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed positive behaviors?
E: Um, [long pause]. In my ed psych class um, she did a lot of modeling of different
different methods to use. Um, and so I would really consider that positive and and just
honestly thinking about a quiz that we had that she was very encouraging and she did a
lot of review with us and um you know for that one she wanted us to pass. You know she
made it so you could earn up to 108 out of 100 points on it and you could do extra credit
because she wanted you to know the stuff but she wanted you to pass um. But um so
there was that preparation but to to do the quiz she had it she had us take the quiz in a
kinesthetic manner. She put the questions around um and like little plastic sleeves of each
of the desks. And we each had a folder and we open our folder and walk around and I
consider that a positive behavior because of the giving it you know teaching you a
method to use. Adjusting because there are people who are truly kinesthetic learners and
that really helps them to be able to do it. Right now I’m in a class with a kinesthetic
learner and she’s losing it because she’s sitting there in class um. And it it gives me an
idea of what I can do because I believe in getting people up and moving around and it’s
sometimes hard to do that. My kids are probably gonna think I’m nuts because one of the
things I’m going to do in my classes is not just moving part of the class is having them
get up during class and stretch their bodies. They’re going to think I’m a little bit nuts and
that’s ok. But I want them to move because even though who aren’t kinesthetic learners
that gets the brain going again so.
MS: How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
E: Well there’s a whole bunch of ways to define them. Really behaviors that would hurt a
student’s ability to learn or confidentiality.
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MS: What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be instructor
misbehavior?
E: Um, anything discouraging um. You know verbally just being like you say something
and they just move on or they say something critical. Um nonverbal you know just cues
of not caring so.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
E: No I really can’t hehehe.
MS: That’s alright. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors?
E: Well there’s you know breach of confidentiality um. You know talking about one
student in front of another. Actually an example of misbehavior it’s not strictly
misbehavior but he didn’t specifically say that he had permission to read large exerts of
somebody’s paper is an example. And he probably had permission but he didn’t explicitly
say that and that made me uncomfortable. So.
MS: How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
E: I guess I would count that one but yeah.
MS: Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
E: Once, yeah.
MS: In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
E: Nah.
MS: Nothing? Ok. Is there anything else you would like to add?
E: Uh, I think that’s really it.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Anastasia
Date: July 23, 2015
Interview Time: 17:15
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
A: Well, let’s see here. About myself. I have a daughter and she is my world. Im almost
done with school and I want to be a teacher. I would describe myself as a mother, a uh
daughter, um outgoing, um kind like you know, a fiancé.
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
A: Um, I just wanna um I guess for my daughter want to show her that no matter what
life throws at you you have well I have been through some difficult situations that no
matter what um what happens in life education is always a first and so. Um, when I was
pregnant with her I was in school and I just I never stopped I just want to show her that
education is the most important thing you will have in life and without that you can’t do
much. So, she is my focus and that I want to do my best for her.
MS: How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own words?
A: Mmmmhmm. Um lets see well like what I am like a student do together or?
MS: That could be one way or however you define it.
A: Yeah ok I would define it as um I would think maybe like collaborative work um you
know you’re not you’re not it’s not only your opinion you’re getting someone else’s as
well so um you get different thoughts and different ways to think um about different
ideas and concepts of what you’re learning.
MS: Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
A: Um well since we are you know we do a lot of group work in class and we are in the
same classes together um we can just connect in ways of um you know what our degree
is, what we want to pursue in life, and then um just like with work. You know we kind of
as of now start having um kind of the same ideas. So we should kind of connect on that
level.
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MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your classmates?
A: Mhmm. Um, I would just say uh whenever we talk in class about different examples
that we have faced um in the field. In our field of work. We can all just relate to that. You
know um whether it’s our internship or something our methods courses. It’s all happened
to us one time in life and our in our school time so I just feel like when they feel that, we
feel the same way.
MS: Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes? If so, why? If not, why?
A: I mean I feel connected um in all of my classes I mean we’re all in the same
experience, we’re all trying to get to the same goal in life and that is to you know touch
kids’ lives and so um. I feel in all ed classes you know we’re all connected in some way
and so. Yeah.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
A: I believe it is like I said before it’s you know we’re all trying to go to the same goal
and so you know later on in life you might need their opinion or you might need you
know a contact of some sort and so um just staying connected with them and staying um
you know just I guess connected and then um. What’s the word I’m looking for? Uh, all
on the same level. You know it’s always it’s always good.
MS: How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to persist, if at all?
A: Um, [pause]. I don’t know I’m in a class right now where some of my classmates give
some negativity about what we’re doing and it just kind of makes me um not second
guess but make me want to pursue it more because they get a negative aspect on it and its
I’m not getting that negative feedback I’m getting um more of like an excitement about it
and so I just feel like um what they’re giving me just makes me want to pursue it 10
times more because I wanna do my part on top of that I want to do their part for not
wanting to be where they are.
MS: How would you define family support in your own words?
A: Oh, um family support is a thing that is the most important thing in your college life.
Um with me like I said um education degree was not my first you know thing I wanted I
was in something else before this. Um, and I got support from my family and then when I
decided what I was doing wasn’t what I wanted to do um they were just behind me a 100
percent and like my parents, my fiancé, my daughter like they all understand what I’m
going through so they they support me in any which way ever I need I needed to be yeah.
MS: Can you give me examples of family support?
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A: Um, if I ever needed um like help with a project or if I needed to interview someone.
Or if Id just need time alone to study, do my homework, um they give me that time.
They’ll give me they’ll watch my daughter for whatever reason um if I needed like help
with school or um just really just in general you know anything that is school related you
know they’re there um. They give me advice if I have like a meltdown anything and this
is not what I need to do. They give me advice and say, “you’re almost there, keep
pushing on. At the end of the day you’ll see the light at the end of the tunnel and it will be
totally worth it.”
MS: Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family members)?
A: Um, I would have to say um my mom and my dad for sure. Um, they’ve been there
since day one and then um my fiancé when he came into the picture he we got engaged
and he’s like I don’t want to do anything until you’ve graduate like I want to make sure
that education is first before we even think about getting married or think about anything
else.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
A: Um, well when I was doing a different degree I was doing a degree in nursing um.
After taking my classes and that’s when I was part of my daughter and I had her in the
middle of my I was two years in the nursing school and then I had her and then I finished
out the semester and I was just thinking you know is this really what I want to do? Um, I
just didn’t have a feel for it anymore and so I talked to my mom and dad and you know
my they were very supportive, they were like, “whatever makes you happy, makes us
happy. We’re not gonna be disappointed in you in any which way.” Um, so that is what
really made me feel good about my decision and changing and that’s just that support
system really helped me really well.
MS: Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
A: Yes, I I absolutely do. Without them I don’t think I would be where I am right now
like about to graduate I know I feel like I would probably um, maybe, take in like a
semester maybe a year or two off just to kinda you know figure out what I wanted to do
but with them you know I I wouldn’t be here I would you know I wouldn’t be this far.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
A: Yes, without a support system, you know there really isn’t nothing to go off of yeah
so just feel like without them you know where are you going to go?
MS: How does being supported by your family affect your intent to persist in college, if
at all?
A: Um, let’s see. [pause]. Um, they just give me that boost of energy that I need they tell
me you know. When I do break down then I you know why am I doing this? I don’t I’d
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rather be doing other things. They are the ones that give me the guidance of words and
just let me know that “you’re almost done. Think of your daughter you know she’s the
one you’re doing this for.” Their words just push me into to just continuing, doing my
best in everything that I do.
MS: What type of positive behaviors do your college instructors use in the classroom?
A: Um, they always um they always um what’s the word I’m looking for? Like praise us
for everything we do. If it’s whether giving examples or you know giving our idea they
never um give us negative feedback, it’s always like “ok what else could we support from
that idea?” So the always try to make us um they always give us more um praise and
more um feeling like we are able to do something versus giving us negative feedback and
making us not a person just be in class.
MS: How would you define positive instructor behaviors?
A: Um [pause]. Um, I guess um always like upbeat, always um always happy, always
you know um excited to be there um. Like never let anyone down you know always give
them like positive feedback and not I guess what they can improve on versus what they
did wrong. Yeah.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed positive behaviors?
A: Mmmmm. They give us a month this past summer class the professor um always um
she just always like had a smile on her face, she was upbeat, she told us um, like her
stories and how we could benefit from them and we told her our stories. And then she
told us how we could change that to make it positive um. I don’t know it’s like they’re all
kind of the same. They’re all um they just kind of they don’t let us down. They just give
us good feedback.
MS: How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
A: I guess just not caring, um. You know they give us this like a assigned assignments
and due dates but they don’t follow the syllabus um. They you know they promise you
something but they don’t fulfill it um. You know you go through emails and you send
emails back and forth but they don’t agree to you know what they had said in the past
yea.
MS: What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be instructor
misbehavior?
A: Um I guess just uh like the looks they give us. Um that their tone of voice. Um I guess
they can just say well that’s not right. Um um yeah.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
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A: Um, I don’t think I ever had one that was like off the wall bad yeah. All my professors
have been really really I absolutely love them. Ive been lucky to have good professors.
MS: That’s really good. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors?
A: Um [long pause]. I don’t know.
MS: That’s ok. How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
A: Um mine haven’t but I know of other students that have um I would say they’ve had
like 3 in their you know career. Yeah.
MS: Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
A: Um, theirs was throughout the semester like they had to get a petition to get signed
yeah. It was bad.
MS: In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
A: Um, I would say you know just learning like you wouldn’t want to be in class um that
would affect you to think is this really what I want to do? Is this what they’re doing? The
way they’re teaching? Is this how I’m going to teach? Um it would just just negative um
just that negative um feeling I think would just be not good at all.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
A: Nope.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
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Interviewer: Meagan Sovine
Participant: Shelia
Date: July 21, 2015
Interview Time: 17:28
MS: The purpose of this interview is a two-fold – to complete my doctoral dissertation
and for my personal research interests. I will ask you a series of questions which there are
no right or wrong answers. Please feel free at any time to ask me questions if you are
unsure about what is being asked of you. There is no anticipated physical, mental, or
emotional risk to participate in this interview. This interview will likely last anywhere
from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Do I have your permission to record this interview? At any
time we can end this interview should you choose to do so. Before we begin I need your
verbal consent to participate in this study. Do you consent to participating in this
interview? Tell me a little bit about you (how many siblings do you have, adjectives to
describe you, age, gender, interests, hobbies, etc.).
S: Um, I think I am best described as outgoing, persistent, and able to get along with
people. I like to hang out at the beach, spend time with my boyfriend, and travel in
general. Like we just went to Florida so that was awesome.
MS: What influences you to persist in college? Please describe why these factors
influence you to persist in college.
S: Um, I haven’t thought of this. Let me think just to have a goal in life and I mean. Um.
Doing what my family did, well my family did not do so.
MS: So let me ask you are you first generation?
S: I am so.
MS: Me too great. How would you define student-to-student connectedness in your own
words?
S: Um, trusting in one another. [pause] Um like my experiences here at the college
student-to-student. [pause]. Um once I got into my education classes I felt really
connected um. I always met new people with the same degree and same interests I guess.
So but there was every now and they you would find people that you didn’t really
connect with but I felt it was pretty good.
MS: Ok. Can you give me examples of being connected to your classmates?
S: Um just being able to ask one another questions you know not um feeling like you
can’t reach out to somebody. Um. [pause]. Like knowing that its ok I guess to that they
understand there’s no dumb question or [long pause]. That.
MS: Ok. Can you tell me about a specific time when you felt connected to your
classmates?
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S: Um, a specific time is when one of my classmates was we were talking about our
degree plan and we had uh come across a problem and she broke down into tears over her
degree pushed her back a little bit so. I just felt connected I was able to help her and
emotionally talk to her about it. And let her know that there was still other options that
she could do.
MS: That’s good. That’s cool. Do you feel connected to your peers in all of your classes?
If so, why? If not, why?
S: Not all of them. But most of them.
MS: Why would you say that?
S: Um some of them I guess are just about where we are in our education was a little bit
different so it was kind of hard to connect on the same vocab like education vocabulary
with some of them. Um, but once like in my last class it was a lot of freshmen sophomore
in there so it was just kind of hard to connect with them because they haven’t had the
same experiences as I did.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be connected to your peers? Why or why not?
S: I do because it gives you more self-confidence knowing that um your thoughts and
your actions are happening with other people as well. You’re not alone.
MS: Do you have a cohort you go along with?
S: I do. Mhm.
MS: That’s awesome. How does being connected to your classmates affect your intent to
persist, if at all?
S: Jus knowing that I’m gonna have support. To go through it im not doing it alone. Um,
yeah just knowing that you have someone to go through it with together.
MS: Let’s switch gears. How would you define family support in your own words?
S: Um, family support in my own words would just be not so muchhhh to give advice but
to just listen to what I have to say because my family wasn’t they haven’t been through
what I’m going through so they don’t know how to give advice anyways but just to let
me vent to them. And um, to be there let me do whatever I needed to do, to get over my
bump that I’m on. So.
MS: I agree. Can you give me examples of family support?
S: I mean there’s emotional family support, financial family support. Um, [pause] I guess
that’s really it hehehe.
244
MS: Ok. Who do you consider to provide family support (i.e. which family members)?
S: In my family? Yeah, um my mom, she’s there I just vent to her she didn’t go through
it so she doesn’t really understand but she just agrees with what I have to say while I’m
saying it. And then um my boyfriend is my financial support. Um, I have not had to work
the entire time I’ve been at U of School and I have not had a worry in the world. So he
was my financial support and my dad has been my motivating support.
MS: Can you tell me about a specific time when a family member supported you?
S: Ok, um in one of my classes I was starting an extremely long lesson plan and it was a
group project. And I uh didn’t click with one of my group members and it was extremely
stressful because we have the same personalities almost we were both very dominant and
um. So it was one of my summer classes and I literally called her every single day after
class and probably vented for an hour. Um my dad every time I tell him oh I made an A
on this paper or I made all A’s this semester he’s just very motivating. Um his words
were you know great job I’m so proud of you. He would tear up because he was proud to
see me be successful. And then um I know my boyfriend he’s just supported me I mean
he didn’t add any more stress to me financially than um what I needed so.
MS: Do you feel supported by your family? Why or why not?
S: I do feel supported by my family just anytime I need a talk to them or I need
something for school I know I can go and get it and not have to uh stress about it. Or hear
the words that I need to hear at the time. So hehehe.
MS: Do you believe it is important to be supported by your family? Why or why not?
S: I do believe that it’s important because if you don’t feel the support, um, you may not
be as motivated to finish you may it may be easier for you to give up if you don’t have
the support.
MS: Ok. So then, number fourteen. How does being supported by your family affect your
intent to persist in college, if at all?
S: Um it does affect I planned to continue college knowing that I have my support
system. Knowing that they’ve pushed me this far will push me the extra to finish. Or to
continue. Yeah.
MS: What type of positive behaviors do your college instructors use in the classroom?
S: Positive behaviors my instructors use. Um, they were very er one instructor I’m going
to refer to she was very realistic um she taught what she needed to teach but she also
related it to the real world. Um, she always gave feedback, she never used negative words
in feedback. [pause]. And I guess that’s really all I can think of.
245
MS: How would you define positive instructor behaviors?
S: Um just to be m..uhm. A motivator, to be positive, to not really scare us but let us
know like it’s going to be a realistic you’re gonna have struggles. Um, and to just show
us that you love what you’re doing. Yeah.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor showed positive behaviors?
S: Ok. It shouldn’t be too hard but hehehe. Yeah. A positive time was whenever I was in
one of my SPED classes um my SPED teacher had a um one of his former students come
in and actually talk to us. And to see my professor get so emotional and just so happy and
even the little rants that he would go on they just showed like his positive he just showed
his affection I guess for his for his [pause] passion. You know yeah.
MS: That’s awesome. Ok. How would you define instructor misbehaviors?
S: Um, maybe some of the instructors would say like. We have to teach this but this isn’t
what it’s going to be like in the real world. So they would teach they had to teach but then
let us know that it’s going to be the complete opposite or it may not always be like this
um. Maybe um, coming off like a little too conceited about the knowledge that they
know. Dumbing making the students feel dumbed down um. That’s really it.
MS: What types of verbal and nonverbal behaviors would you consider to be instructor
misbehavior?
S: Oh I already ok. Verbal and nonverbal. [pause]. Misbehavior. Um just negative
feedback, um, making a student feel silly about asking a question, verbal and nonverbal
uh facial expressions sometimes when a student’s asking a question or reading along a
teacher will be like you know they’re making facial expressions, always sitting during
class, never really interacting. Ok yeah.
MS: Can you tell me about a time when a college instructor misbehaved?
S: Oh when, it was one of my education classes and um a student was it was about our
field experience and a student was asking questions and the teacher would just call her
out about her personal experience in front of the entire class, didn’t just pull her to the
side. Um, and then another one was when a student didn’t want to answer a question that
was asked of the class and she didn’t volunteer to answer it but the professor called on
her and she said she didn’t want to answer and um the teacher just pushed and pushed
and pushed for her to answer the question and wouldn’t move on with the class until she
gave some kind of answer.
MS: Oh wow was this the same teacher?
S: No a different one. Yeah this one was actually one of my methods classes.
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MS: Ok. Can you give me examples of instructor misbehaviors?
S: Um, [pause]. Let’s see here. Oh. Oh yes singling out students, um maybe just putting
off the the not really here for you I’m here for my paycheck. Yeah.
MS: How many of your college instructors have misbehaved?
S: [pause]. Probably say between mmmm seven seven to eight.
MS: Ok. Of those instructors, about how frequently did the instructors misbehave?
S: Um, a few of them throughout the entire semester pretty frequently a couple of them
allowed for us to give her feedback and uh well, one in particular allowed us to give her
feedback and was really open for our opinions and so as the semester progressed, she
progressed in her actions.
MS: In what ways do your college instructor’s misbehavior affect you, if at all (e.g.
learning, motivation, interest, etc.)?
S: Um, the misbehaviors affect me by motivation because of if they are the ones teaching
the next class I have to teach like take um it just kind of drives me to not want to take it
um or not look forward to taking it the next semester. Um, it affects me positive because I
learn what not to do to my future students. So.
MS: Is there anything else you would like to add?
S: Yeah just that professors especially in my classes should always model the behaviors
that um they want us to like do in our classrooms.
MS: Thank you for your time and input.
Meagan Bryand Sovine
[email protected]
Education ______________________________________________________________
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY-CORPUS CHRISTI – Corpus Christi, TX
Master of Arts, 2011 GPA: 4.0/4.0
Emphases in Instructional and Interpersonal Communication.
Thesis: ¿CómoAprenden? The Relationship of Perceived Instructor Immediacy and
Student Learning Styles with Student Learning and Intent to Persist among Hispanic and
Caucasian Students
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY-CORPUS CHRISTI – Corpus Christi, TX
Bachelor of Arts, 2009
GPA: 3.4/4.0
Minors in Art History and Public Relations.
McNair Scholars participant
Professional Experience _________________________________________________________
PROFESSOR (HOUSTON COMMUNITY COLLEGE-SOUTHWEST)

Instruct SPCH1311: Introduction to Communication.

Instruct SPCH1315: Public Speaking.

Instruct SPCH1318: Interpersonal Communication.

Instruct SPCH1342: Voice and Diction.

Instruct SPCH 1321: Business and Professional Communication.
ADJUNCT FACULTY (SAN JACINTO COLLEGE-NORTH)

Instructed SPCH1315: Public Speaking.
WRITING INSTRUCTOR (YES PREP-BRAYS OAKS)




Instructed 8th grade Creative Writing.
One-on-one tutoring.
Collected and analyzed data.
Writing club sponsor.
ADJUNCT FACULTY (OWENS COMMUNITY COLLEGE)

Instructed FYE 053: First Year Experiences.

Mentored at-risk students.

Advised students on degree plans.
GRADUATE TEACHING ASSISTANT (WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY)

Conducted quantitative research.

Instructed COMM 102: Interpersonal Communication and COMM 308:
Nonverbal Communication.