Catherine Mobley

Exploring Additional Determinants of Environmentally Responsible Behavior: The Influence of Environmental Literature and Environmental Attitudes.

It is often assumed that individuals who are knowledgeable and concerned about the environment will engage in environmentally responsible behavior (ERB). We use data from a large scale Web survey hosted on National Geographic’s Web site in 2001-2002 to investigate this premise. We examine whether reading three classic environmental books (Walden, A Sand County Almanac, and Silent Spring) is associated with the likelihood of engaging in ERB. Conceptualizing this activity as a formative experience and a source of environmental knowledge, we hypothesized that reading such literature would be a stronger predictor of ERB than sociodemographic characteristics (i.e., gender, education, and political orientation), general environmental attitudes (as measured by the New Ecological Paradigm), and concern about specific environmental risks. The results indicated that while reading environmental literature was a stronger predictor of ERB than background characteristics and the NEP, environmental concern was an even stronger predictor. We offer reasons for these findings and make suggestions for environmental education and future research.

A Mixed Methods Sampling Methodology for a Multisite Case Study

The flexibility of mixed methods research strategies makes such approaches especially suitable for multisite case studies. Yet the utilization of mixed methods to select sites for these studies is rarely reported. The authors describe their pragmatic mixed methods approach to select a sample for their multisite mixed methods case study of a statewide education policy initiative in the United States. The authors designed a four-stage sequential mixed methods site selection strategy to select eight sites in order to capture the broader context of the research, as well as any contextual nuances that shape policy implementation. The authors anticipate that their experience would provide guidance to other mixed methods researchers seeking to maximize the rigor of their multisite case study sampling designs.

Instrument effects of images in web surveys: a research note

This research note offers cautionary evidence, indicating just how little we know about how respondents react to and complete Web surveys. Researchers using or contemplating a Web-based approach need to be very clear that the line between the phenomena to be measured and the means of measurement is often quite fuzzy. This note uses data from Survey2001 to illustrate this point. Nearly 30,000 respondents completed part or all of Survey2001, which was hosted by the National Geographic Magazine’s Web site and queried individuals on a number of topics related to the impact of information technology on conservation, community and culture.

The Impact of Community Colleges on the School-to-Work Transition: A Multilevel Analysis.

The design of this study was to use hierarchical linear modeling to assess the impact of community colleges on the school-to-work transition and to assess the race, gender, and socioeconomic status effect on student outcomes (wages and use of training on the job). Data were obtained from several sources, including High School and Beyond, the Integrated Postsecondary Data System (IPEDS), and the College Board Institutional Files. Community college variables included full-time enrollment, percentage of faculty full-time, transfer rate, and the availability of career counseling and placement services. Results suggest that several variables, including the transfer rate and the availability of career counseling and placement services, were related to the effect of gender and class background on wages and use of training on the job.

Community Colleges and the School‐to‐Work Transition: A Multilevel Analysis

This study aims to illuminate whether the context of community colleges results in more positive outcomes for students. More specifically, the multilevel analysis aims to predict the race, gender, and socioeconomic status (SES) gaps in student outcomes, and how these are impacted by state coordination. Measures of state coordination include level of state funding, years of existence of state community college system, number of local institutions, type of governance board, degree to which the state is involved in program approval and centralization rank. Results suggest that state coordination has influence over wages in that a higher percentage of state funding was associated with a wider gender gap in earnings. Additionally, the variables associated with more positive outcomes in terms of the race gap in wages were program approval by the state and the presence of a coordinating board. This exploratory study demonstrates the potential of multilevel models in examining the school-to-work transition. Future research should be directed toward developing additional models of state coordination.

Motivations and experiences of older transfer students in engineering

Non-traditional students older than traditional college age (18-24) face particular challenges in the demanding engineering curriculum. In this qualitative study we explore the unique aspects of their motivation for studying engineering, prior experiences, and impact of family life on these students. We find that job opportunities were the primary motivation for most of the students to pursue an engineering degree and prior work experience in the field was a factor in major selection for many who chose electrical or mechanical. Proximity and cost were primary reasons for choosing the transfer pathway and the sending and receiving institutions, although reputation was more often cited as the reason to choose the receiving institution. Students with families received significant motivation and support from them, but also faced unique challenges, including commuting or living apart. These factors limited their ability to integrate into campus life and develop a support network with other students. These students cited a number of advantages of returning to school after years away, among them a laser focus on their goals, practical technical experience that their younger classmates lack, and general maturity.

What Matters When Explaining Environmentalism at the Watershed Level Who You Are, Where You Live, What You See, or What You Perceive?

This research was conducted in the southeastern United States, one of the most rapidly developing regions in the country. The study included two sets of predictor variables: environmental experiences and perceptions (i.e., observation of pollution and assessment of pollution’s impact) and residential factors (i.e., rural vs. urban residence and upstream vs. downstream watershed location); sociodemographic characteristics served as control variables. Sequential regression was performed on survey data of watershed residents to isolate the predictors of environmentalism. Observation of pollution and assessment of pollution’s impact on water quality were most important for explaining environmental concern, self-reported household-based behaviors, and self-reported likelihood of engaging in water quality improvement efforts. The sociodemographic variables were also significant predictors; the residential variables had limited influence on the dependent variables. These results indicate that stormwater educators should account for experiential factors and perceptions of pollution when designing strategies for encouraging environmentalism.

Looking upstream: Identifying and describing the entry points into engineering transfer pathways

Research on transfer students identifies the specific reasons why students embark on the transfer pathway. Our study adds to this literature with its focus on understanding the broader context of transfer pathways and the relative timing of the decisions to transfer and to major in engineering. Our goal is to identify the entry points into the transfer pathways and how the decision to transfer interacts with the decision to major in engineering. We focus on student intentions and the alterations to their planned pathways. To achieve our goal we analyzed 47 in-depth interviews of traditional-age engineering transfer students from three research universities. The results reveal four distinct transfer pathways characterized by different levels of intentionality and diverse decision making sequences. The findings have important implications for broadening the transfer pathway into engineering.

First-generation engineering transfer students: A qualitative study of social and cultural capital

We present the preliminary results of interviews with 18 first-generation engineering transfer students at two institutions. We employ a unique method for categorizing students according to generation status and then examine whether their experiences differ from one another. We then describe the different experiences of transfer students based on parental education status, with a focus on negotiating the transfer process, involvement in extra-curricular activities, the use of study strategies, and assistance received from families. Our early results suggest that it is useful to make finer distinctions between the various levels of parental education (i.e., use three rather than two categories).

Work in progress: Transfer students in engineering: A qualitative study of pathways and persistence

Our paper presents preliminary results of interviews of 28 transfer students in engineering at two institutions and is part of a larger mixed-methods study on engineering transfer students. The two institutions differ on a key dimension: one has many formal articulation agreements and the other does not. We discuss the reasons students begin their studies at the sending institution and describe their experiences with the applications and admissions process at the receiving institution. We describe the “culture shock” students experience when adjusting to the academic requirements and social culture of the new institution; we also highlight the transfer student capital and strategies students use to adjust to the receiving institution.