Bonds and bridges: The relative importance of relations with peers and faculty for college student achievement Sandra Dika, PhD Assistant Research Professor Office of Institutional Research and Planning University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez 2008 Association for Institutional Research Forum, Seattle, WA May 28, 2008 Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Background and Framework Influences on student achievement in college What students bring with them (background) What students do while in college (effort and engagement) Importance of relationships with institutional agents, especially faculty Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Relationships as Social Capital Bonding social capital – relationships with people in similar situations or of similar status to build solidarity Bridging social capital – looser relationships that provide access to external assets and information Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Research Questions Are there differences in bonding and bridging social capital based on membership in different student groups: first year, senior, male, female, first generation, continuing generation? What is the relative importance of bonding and bridging social capital for college student achievement, taking into account previous achievement factors and student study efforts, and does this differ by student group? Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez Part of UPR system (11 campuses) Over 12,000 students Bilingual Hispanic Serving Institution STEM focused (60% of undergraduates) High female participation in STEM 71% receive financial aid 35% first generation Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Sample and Instrumentation First year and senior UPRM students participating in the 2005 and 2007 administrations of the Spanish web-based NSSE (N=961) 61% women 62% first year 28% first generation Little reliability and validity evidence for Spanish NSSE but assumed to be similar to English version; more research necessary Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Variables BackgroundStudy EffortSocial Capital High school GPAHours/wk preparing for class Academically focused interaction with peers English achievementQuality of relationships with other students Math achievementInteraction with faculty members Spanish achievementQuality of academic advising Parental education levelQuality of relationships with faculty members Quality of relationships with administrative personnel/offices Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges Dependent variable: college GPA

Data Analysis Hierarchical multiple linear regression in three blocks Block 1: Five background variables Block 2: Study effort Block 3: Six social capital variables All statistical tests evaluated at the α=.05 level Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results – Frequency and Quality of Bonding with Other Students Bonding Social Capital Highest LevelsLowest Levels Academically focused interaction Seniors First year students First generation students Quality of relationships Seniors First year students First generation students Men Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results – Frequency and Quality of Bridging with Institutional Agents Bridging Social Capital Highest LevelsLowest Levels Interaction with faculty Seniors First year students Quality of relationships with faculty Women Men Quality of academic advising First year students Seniors Quality of relationships with admin First generation students Continuing generation students Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results - Correlations Social capital variables were positively correlated, particularly quality of relationships Most variables positively correlated with college GPA, especially high school GPA First generation students: Negligible correlation with parental education Quality of relationships with faculty members higher than standardized test scores Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results – Three Models (N=961) ModelFirst yearSeniorMenWomen First generation Continuing generation Model 1.27***.36***.32***.25***.19***.30*** Model 2.31***.36***.33***.27***.22***.33*** Model 3.36***.41***.37***.34***.31***.38*** Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges Study effort predicts an additional 0 to 4 percent variance in college GPA; social capital variables predict an additional 4 to 9 percent variance

Results – First Year Students (R 2 =.36) Six significant predictors: High school GPA (.31) Quality of relationships with faculty (.25) Hours per week preparing for class (.18) English achievement (.14) Math achievement (.10) Maximum parental education (.08) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results – Senior Students (R 2 =.41) Five significant predictors: High school GPA (.34) Quality of relationships with faculty (.22) English achievement (.21) Math achievement (.14) Maximum parental education (.11) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results – Men (R 2 =.37) Eight significant predictors: High school GPA (.34) Quality of relationships with faculty (.17) English achievement (.15) Math achievement (.13) Hours per week preparing for class (.13) Interaction with faculty (.11) Academically focused interaction with peers (-.10) Maximum parental education (.09) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results – Women (R 2 =.34) Eight significant predictors: High school GPA (.28) Quality of relationships with faculty (.26) Hours per week preparing for class (.15) English achievement (.14) Math achievement (.13) Quality of academic advising (-.10) Interaction with faculty (.09) Maximum parental education (.08) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results – First Generation Students (R 2 =.31) Three significant predictors: Quality of relationships with faculty (.34) High school GPA (.29) Quality of academic advising (-.11) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Results – Continuing Generation Students (R 2 =.38) Eight significant predictors: High school GPA (.33) Quality of relationships with faculty (.19) English achievement (.17) Hours per week preparing for class (.16) Math achievement (.12) Interaction with faculty (.12) Maximum parental education (.11) Academically focused peer interaction (-.09) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Discussion Importance of high school GPA as an achievement predictor seen across all groups Background variables explained notably less variance for first generation students (Hahs- Vaughn, 2004) Pattern of predictive influence of standardized test performance is not straightforward English vs. Spanish achievement Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Discussion Study effort predicted only 1-4% additional variance beyond background variables Significant positive effect for first year, men, women, and continuing generation students in final model Nature of measure may limit interpretation of these effects (5 hour spans of time, self-report) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Discussion Student-faculty interaction as key social capital factor in predicting college GPA (Anaya & Cole, 2001; Kuh & Hu, 2001) Quality vs. quantity of interaction with faculty (Lundberg & Schreiner, 2004; Sax, Bryant, & Harper, 2005) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Discussion Negative coefficients for bonding social capital, quality of academic advising, and quality of relationships with administrative personnel contradict positive correlations Multicollinearity apparently not an issue (VIF range ) Quality of academic advising – need to understand what is measured (who accesses academic advising more frequently?) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Conclusions Student-faculty interaction is an important element in predicting student achievement, independent of class rank, gender, or first generation status As important as high school GPA for first generation students Bonding social capital does not significantly predict academic achievement May predict other forms of engagement and non- cognitive outcomes Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Limitations Sample from a single institution Unexplained negative effects of certain variables Academic advising Academically focused interaction with peers Model not inclusive of all variables that may predict student achievement Other dependent variables not considered (retention, graduation, learning gains) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

Continuing Research Look at individual interaction variables to determine which are more effective in predicting achievement and other outcomes (e.g., discussions outside of class, discussing career plans) Test model with other dependent variables – retention, perceived learning and development (NSSE variables) Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges

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