Diane L. Cooper

Students' Technology Use and Its Effects on Peer Relationships, Academic Involvement, and Healthy Lifestyles

The purpose of this study was to explore students’ technology use and its relationship with their psychosocial development. Previous research explored students’ computer use in conjunction with their cognitive development. This study examined the effects of computer use and other technologies, such as instant messaging, handheld gaming devices, and MP3 players, and the impact they have on students’ peer relationships, academic involvement, and healthy lifestyles. Results show both positive and negative effects on all three constructs of psychosocial development, including differences based on gender and race.

Professional Association Involvement of Student Affairs Professionals.

This study explored the level of involvement in associations by professionals in the state of Georgia at different stages of their student affairs careers. Involvement in associations decreased as the level of the professional’s position increased.

Comparison of Freshmen Perceived Needs Prior To and After Participation in an Orientation Program

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the perceived needs of incoming freshmen on a newly created instrument, The Freshman Survey. The instrument contains four scales with items related to personal/emotional, social, academic, and career needs. Freshmen indicated higher pre- and post-orientation needs on the academic and career scales. Females indicated higher pre-orientation needs than males on the personal/emotional, social, and career scales. Blacks/African Americans had higher pre-orientation social and academic needs than Asian/Pacific Islander students, which were also higher than White/Caucasian Students. Implications for uses of the instrument are also included.

Career Paths and Expectations of Recent Doctoral Graduates in Student Affairs

Personal issues and career development processes of individuals working in student affairs who have recently completed a doctorate were explored in this study. Results indicated that almost 70% were employed at the completion of their doctorate either by accepting a new position or remaining in their current position. New doctoral graduates obtained a position at a significantly lower level than they expected; however, a significant positive correlation between expected and actual starting salary range indicates graduates were able to accurately predict their starting salary range. Over 75% of respondents were still employed in their first post-doctoral position at the time they completed the survey. Implications for student affairs graduate programs are discussed.

Ethical Elders: Campus Role Models for Moral Development.

Dana is a graduate assistant in the second year of a masters program in student personnel. In a class discussion of assistantship issues, Dana reveals that he has decided not to enforce the universitys policy of “writing up” all underage students who are in a residence hall room where alcohol is present. He says that in his opinion the punitive nature of the policy, which imposes a

Parent misperceptions of incoming student use of alcohol and other drugs

200 fine, flies in the face of any opportunity for learning and drives the targeted behavior further underground. Dana says that the residence hall supervisors know about the decision and that they have discussed the possible ramifications and consequences. As an educator, what is your responsibility to both Dana and to others in the campus community? What are the obligations of others? The purpose of this article is to explore the layered dimensions of learning in the context of everyday ethical dilemmas and to examine the ways in which student affairs educators, classroom faculty, and institutional leaders can serve as ethical elders on campus. We believe that educators are obligated to serve as ethical role models, especially for students and younger colleagues who aspire to serve as educators themselves.

“People are Messy”: Complex Narratives of Supervising New Professionals in Student Affairs

College student drinking has long been a concern of college administrators, faculty, staff, and parents of students. National binge drinking rates among college students are over 40% (Wechsler et al., 2002). Annually, problems associated with this high-risk use of alcohol include 500,000 unintentional injuries, 70,000 sexual assaults, and 600,000 assaults among students between the ages of 18 and 24 years (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism [NIAAA], 2002a). In addition, the NIAAA reports that alcohol is a contributing factor for the almost one third drop-out rate of first-year students. Although most campuses have established education and intervention programs to address these issues, drinking continues to be a concern especially among first-year students. Some research indicates that student drinking increases after arriving on campus (Baer, Kivlahan, & Marlatt, 1995; Harford & Muthén, 2001; Leeman & Wapner, 2001; Leibsohn, 1994; Lo & Globetti, 1995), whereas Wechsler, Davenport, Dowdall, Moeykens, and Castillo (1994) note that there is a continuity of drinking behaviors between high school and college. Leibsohn notes the frequency of use increases but not the number of times students report getting drunk. Others have found that this reported increase in drinking during the first year decreases over subsequent years (Turrisi, Padilla, & Wierma, 2000; Wechsler, Dowdall, Maenner, GledhillHoyt, & Lee, 1998). Regardless of the timing of the increased rates of use, first-year students are particularly at risk as they make the transition from high school to college. Schulenberg et al. (2001) note student drinking rates during the first few years of college surpass those of their peers not in college. In addition, this rate of alcohol use can negatively contribute to the transition to college. These trends in college student drinking do not appear to be changing (Wechsler et al., 2002). However, parental involvement is changing on many campuses and could assist with this unyielding problem. Hover (2004) notes that over the last 20 years colleges and universities have established more ways to connect with parents and keep them involved. This has been done through the creation of parent relations offices, parent committees, parent associations, and parent orientations. This increase in parental involvement could be an important component in alcohol and other drug prevention and education. The theory of individuation-connectedness addresses changes in the adolescent–parent relationship as young adults establish their own identities. As the relationship transforms from one of unilateral authority to one of interdependence, the young adults will develop as Parent Misperceptions of Incoming Student Use of Alcohol and Other Drugs

Perceived Adherence to the “Joint Statement on Rights and Freedoms of Students” on College Campuses

This study explored how supervisors in student affairs narrate their experiences of supervising new professionals. Utilizing narrative inquiry methodology, data were obtained through in-depth interviews of 13 supervisors and analyzed using thematic and narrative analysis methods. Implications for graduate preparation programs, professional practice, and future research are discussed.

Student Development through Involvement: Specific Changes over Time.

The authors present perceptions of how the concepts outlined in the “Joint Statement” are practiced on college campuses across the country.