1. The first in the family: Academic acculturation stress and first generation students Aimee Belanger*, Sharon Rae Jenkins, Ph.D., & Adriel Boals, Ph.D. *Ronald E. McNair Post-baccalaureate Achievement Program Department of Psychology University of North Texas Denton, Texas

2. Acculturation “When groups of individuals having different cultures come into continuous first-hand contact, with subsequent changes in the original cultural patterns of either or both groups (Redfield, Linton, and Herskovits, 1936, p. 149).”

3. Acculturation Stress Distress associated with the acculturative process

4. First Generation Students Undergraduates whose parents did not attend or did not complete an undergraduate degree Can experience acculturation stress when transitioning to college ▫Called Academic Acculturation Stress (AAS)

5. Why Do We Care? Approximately 45% of UNT’s student population is composed of first generation students. First generation students are more likely to leave college without earning a degree (Ishitani, 2003). By examining AAS, it is possible to understand what first generation undergraduates are facing and use the information to help them succeed.

6. The Present Study The purpose ▫To compare amounts of social support and psychological well-being in first generation students and later generation students Hypotheses ▫First generation students will report: 1. levels of social support 2. levels of depression 3. levels of satisfaction with life

7. Methods Participants ▫1,699 undergraduates from the University of North Texas

8. Methods Measures ▫Multidimensional Scales of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS; Zimet, Dahlem, Zimet, & Farley, 1988)  3 Subscales  Social support from friends  Social support from family  Social support from a significant other

9. Methods Measures ▫Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology - Self Report (QIDS-SR; Rush et al., 2003 )  Used to assess depression ▫Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction (Q-LES-Q; Endicott, Nee, Harrison, & Blumenthal, 1993)  Measures perceived quality of life

10. Methods Procedure ▫Participants completed these measures as part of an online mass testing session

11. Results NFirst Generation Mean (SD) Non-first Generation Mean (SD) F Social Support (friends) 1,69921.45 (5.7)22.16 (5.3)7.22** Social Support (family) 1,69820.86 (6.2)22.16 (5.3)13.74*** Social Support (significant other) 1,69922.09 (6.5)22.62 (6.0)3.69 Depression1,6476.87 (4.6)6.43 (4.2).16 Satisfaction with Life 1,69956.45 (10.7)57.61 (9.7).43 2X2 Analysis of Variance Bonferroni correction ▫α =.0083 ** p <.01, *** p <.001

12. Results F interaction = 8.00 p <.0083 F interaction = 8.58 p <.0083

13. Hypotheses ▫First generation students will report: 1. levels of social support  Social support from friends  Social support from family  Social support from a significant other 2. levels of depression  In males  In females 3.levels of satisfaction with life  In males  In females Discussion

14. These results indicated that the combination of being female and first generation had the strongest relationship with psychological well- being. Previous research suggests that women with early on-set depression have lower educational attainment (Brendt et al., 2000).

15. Applications Retention and counseling programs for first generation students ▫Aiding in academic acculturation ▫Realizing gender has an effect on AAS ▫Providing additional social support

16. Acknowledgements Dr. Adriel Boals Dr. Sharon Rae Jenkins Ronald E. McNair Post-baccalaureate Achievement Program Melissa Londoño Kelly Durón

17. References Berndt, E., Koran, L., Finkelstein, S., Gelenberg, A., Kornstein, S., Miller, I., et al. (2000). Lost human capital from early-onset chronic depression. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 157(6), 940-947. Endicott, J., Nee, J., Harrison, W., & Blumenthal, R. (1993). Quality of life enjoyment and satisfaction questionnaire: A new measure. Psychopharmacology Bulletin, 29(2), 321-326. Ishitani, T. (2003). A longitudinal approach to assessing attrition behavior among first-generation students: Time-varying effects of pre-college characteristics. Research in Higher Education, 44, 433–449. Redfield, R., Linton, R., & Herskovits, M. J. (1936). Memorandum for the study of acculturation. American Anthropologist, 38, 149–152. Rush, A., Trivedi, M., Ibrahim, H., Carmody, T., Arnow, B., Klein, D., et al. (2003). The 16-item Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (QIDS), clinician rating (QIDS-C), and self-report (QIDS-SR): A psychometric evaluation in patients with chronic major depression. Biological Psychiatry, 54(5), 573-583. Zimet, G., Dahlem, N., Zimet, S., & Farley, G. (1988). The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Journal of Personality Assessment, 52(1), 30.