Validation and Invalidation: Advising Interactions as Contexts for Understanding Nontraditional Student Experiences in Higher Education

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dc.contributorWilson, Lucas
dc.contributorGrillo, Amy
dc.contributorJacoby, Jennifer
dc.contributor.advisorPackard, Becky
dc.contributor.authorAuguste, Elizabeth
dc.date.accessioned2016-09-02T13:28:08Z
dc.date.available2016-09-02T13:28:08Z
dc.date.gradyear2016en_US
dc.date.issued2016-09-02
dc.description.abstractNontraditional students, typically defined as students over the age of 24 years old, comprise almost 40% of all college students; often, they possess intersecting social identities, such as being first generation college students, parents, and/or community college transfer students. While advisors are important resources in facilitating nontraditional student success, advising interactions by nature are interpersonal and accordingly are susceptible to social identity threats. Drawn from two New England women’s colleges, participants were 12 nontraditional students, defined in this study as being over the age of 24 or as having children. Qualitative interviews focused on the advising experiences of nontraditional students in higher education, and the nuanced ways in which advisors positively facilitate and support as well as negatively discourage and hinder their success. Positive advising themes included: helped with course selection, considered student needs, provided validation, actively listened, shared personal connections, and provided constructive criticism. In contrast, negative advising themes included: advisors who exhibited indifference, lack of information, low expectations, invalidation, blocking, and microinsults. Beyond these themes, participants described a negative institutional climate for nontraditional students on campus. Implications focus on support for nontraditional student success in higher education.en_US
dc.description.sponsorshipPsychology & Educationen_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10166/3936
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.rights.restrictedpublicen_US
dc.subjectnontraditional studentsen_US
dc.subjectadvisingen_US
dc.subjectmicroaggressionsen_US
dc.subjectstereotype threaten_US
dc.subjecthigher educationen_US
dc.titleValidation and Invalidation: Advising Interactions as Contexts for Understanding Nontraditional Student Experiences in Higher Educationen_US
dc.typeThesis
mhc.degreeUndergraduateen_US
mhc.institutionMount Holyoke College

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