Exploring the role of social belonging and cultural mismatch: First generation college students

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoi Tibbetts ◽  
Judith Harackiewicz ◽  
Janet Hyde
Author(s):  
Genia M. Bettencourt ◽  
Koboul E. Mansour ◽  
Mujtaba Hedayet ◽  
Patricia Tita Feraud-King ◽  
Kat J. Stephens ◽  
...  

Institutions increasingly use first-generation categorizations to provide support to students. In this study, we sought to understand how students make meaning of their first-generation status by conducting a series of focus groups with 54 participants. Our findings reveal that students saw first-generation status as an organizational and familial identity rather than social identities. This status was connected to alterity and social distance that was most salient in comparison to continuing-generation peers. Our recommendations include reexamining the role of first-generation-specific programming on campus, creating opportunities for meaning-making, supporting students within changing family dynamics, and exploring the interaction between first-generation status and other marginalized identities.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document