A Study of Distress Among Chicana College Students
Two researchers (Castillo & Hill) noted a "dearth of information about the impact of specific stressors on Chicanas' psychological functioning [especially in college settings]..." [p.235] To expand the knowledge in this topic, they surveyed a sample of 573 self-identified Chicana college students who responded to a recruitment message that went to "two racial/ethnic Internet discussion groups and five Chicano student organizations." [p.237] They obtained 254 usable responses for a 44% response rate (39% with the e-mail mode and 46% with traditional mail mode). They reported the following points among others:
- "The findings are consistent with the literature that SES [socioeconomic status] is related to the experience of distress in Chicana college students...greater distress was associated with lower income. In addition, gender role attitude did not contribute to the prediction of distress and was contradictory to the existing literature that suggests that Chicanas struggle with traditional and nontraditional roles...[But] The instrument used to examine gender role attitude may explain this inconsistent finding..." [p. 243]
- "As expected, social support was significantly related to distress, and this result is consistent with findings in the research literature that higher levels of social support are related to less distress for Chicana students..." [p.244]
- "The findings from this study have implications for counselors and student affairs professionals in providing culturally relevant interventions for Chicana college students....practitioners need to be alert to the common stressors...such as financial stress and perceived support from family..." [p.245]
- "Our study's findings support the importance of maintaining close connections with family and friends..." [p.245]
The study has relevance for analysts in higher education in other ways as well (if we can assume that selection bias in the study's sampling is negligible). It supports the notion that there is a propensity for Chicano/a college students to limit their choices to institutions that are relatively close to their parents/family. It also relates to geographic transfer patterns of Chicano/a students as they move from two-year institutions to four-year institutions (which, in turn, relates to the issue of access).
Linda G. Castillo (Department of Educational Psychology, Texas A&M University), and Robert D. Hill (Department of Educational Psychology, University of Utah) document their study in an article ("Predictors of Distress in Chicana College Students") in the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development (Vol.32, October 2004, pp. 234-248). The article includes about two pages of references.
[Abstract done by Willard Hom, Director, Research & Planning Unit, System Office, California Community Colleges, 2/23/05]
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