This study surveyed 399 incoming first-year students at two colleges in the Midwest on their use of social network sites before college entry and its impact on various dimensions of the first-year experience. Significant correlations were found for two pairs of variables: (a) students who used social network sites before arriving on campus…

The essay examines the variety of research methods and measures used in the first-year experience and students-in-transition field over the past 25 years. Interrogating the extant research, Kinzie explores whether the methods and analytic processes most commonly employed are adequate to advance our understanding of complex issues in the field. The…

This study explored factors related to college adjustment in nonresidential first-year students. It was hypothesized that stress, family functioning, and coping strategies would predict academic, personal-emotional, and social adjustment in addition to institutional attachment. The sample comprised 167 first-year college students (ages 18-23)…

This paper reports on one aspect of a larger study designed to re-examine the Laanan-Transfer Students' Questionnaire (L-TSQ), an instrument exploring adjustment following transfer to a four-year institution (Laanan, 1998, 2004). In particular, it reports on nine new constructs added to the L-TSQ, which expand the understanding of transfer…

In this study, the authors examine the differences between two groups of students--those enrolled in either an independent section of a first-year seminar and those enrolled in a first-year seminar embedded in a learning community. In particular, the authors focused on the extent to which course/program outcomes were being met, as reported by…

This study compared two approaches to a first-year seminar, special academic theme vs. college transition theme, to determine if one approach was more effective in terms of one-year retention rates, first-year grade point averages (GPAs), and student perceptions of the course experience and outcomes. Participants included 177 first-semester,…

A newly developed measure of the quality of students' involvement in cocurricular activities was used to assess the relationship between quality of involvement and adaptation during the transition to university. Results indicated that the higher the quality of students' involvement, the better their adjustment to university. The relationship…

The present study compares college adjustment among emerging adults beginning college in 2000 (before the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks) and in 2001 (three weeks before 9/11). A prospective longitudinal design was used to follow 41 students throughout their first college year. Participants completed questionnaires about symptoms of anxiety…

The senior-year experience represents a critical period as students prepare to make the transition from their familiar academic surroundings to post-college life. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a professional development curricular strand that has been infused across an undergraduate curriculum. This curricular…

This study investigated the relationship between residence hall climate and students' adjustment to their collegiate environment. The questionnaire was administered via the web to first-year students living in coeducational residence halls at a public university in the southeastern United States. The residence hall climate was examined in two…

A self-report questionnaire on academic achievement, birth order, and family structure; the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire; the Parental Authority Questionnaire; and the Coping Humor Scale were administered to 257 first-year college students. Researchers examined the relationships among (a) authoritative parenting style, (b) family…