Running head: ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

Impact of Living on Campus on the Retention of African American College Students

Patrick C. Haught
Northern Illinois University

ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

Table of Contents
Introductory Section
Title Page.1
Table of Contents.2
Main Body
I. Problem to be investigated
A. Purpose of study..4
B. Justification of study.......4
C. Research Question.......4
D. Hypothesis...5
E. Definition of Terms.....5
F. Overview of Study...5
II. Background and review of related literature
A. Introduction.....6
B. Impact of Living on Campus.. ....6
C. Demographic Shifts.7
D. Perceptions of Campus Climate..8

ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

III. Procedures
A. Description of Research Design.........8
B. Description of Sample and Sampling Method.......9
C. Data Collection Plan and Description of Instruments......10
D. Description of variables...11
E. Internal Validity ..12
F. External Validity/Generalizability...13
G. Description of statistical techniques used....14
IV. Ethics and Human Relations
A. Possible Threats to Research Participants....14
B. Entry for Data Collection.. ..14
C. Research Participation Cooperation...15
V. Timeline....15
VI. References....17

ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

Impact of Living on Campus on the Retention of African American College Students

Purpose of Study
The focus of this study is to research the impact that living on campus has on the
retention of African American freshman college students.
Justification of Study
As competition to recruit and enroll students increases between colleges and universities,
it is critical that institutions make every possible effort to retain students beyond their first year.
Previous research has provided support to the notion that living on campus increases a students
odds of succeeding in college (Kanoy & Bruhn, 1996; Pascarella, 1984; Pascarella, 1985) and
that residence hall involvement increases odds of retention (Arboleda, Wang, Shelley & Whalen,
2003). While there is extensive information regarding the impact of living on campus, little
research has been conducted specifically regarding the benefits of living on campus for African
American college students. Considering that the number of African American college students is
increasing faster than ever before (Cook, 2012; NCES, 2013), it is important that we understand
how to best support and advocate for this student population. This study utilizes previous
research as a framework to determine the transferability of general findings regarding the impact
of living on campus to the specific subset of African American college students.
Research Question
The question which is posed in the study is: is there a difference between the retention
rate of African American students that live on campus and African American students that do not
live on campus during their first year of college?

ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

Hypothesis
The research hypothesis is that African American students that live on campus during their first
year of college will have a higher likelihood of returning to their institution for a second year
than those that do not live on campus.
Definition of Terms
For the purposes of this study, freshmen students are defined as those with fewer than 24
post-secondary semester hours completed. Sophomore students are defined as those that have
completed 24-48 post-secondary semester hours (Northern Illinois University, 2015). Retention
will be defined as a student that attended an institution for their freshman year of college
returning to the same institution for their sophomore year. On-campus living will be defined as
residing in a university or college-owned and operated residence hall, apartment, or residential
facility. Off-campus housing will be defined as residing in a house or university that is not
campus-owned or commuting from home. African American students will be defined as those
that self-identified as African American on their application for admission to their given
institution.
Overview of the Study
As mentioned previously, this study aims to determine whether living on campus impacts
the retention rate of African American college students between their freshman and sophomore
year. The survey sample will consist of 500 African American college freshman enrolled at a
large, public, state institution located in the Midwestern United States. Half of the participants
will be living on-campus, whereas the other half will be living off-campus. The primary
instrument that will be used in this study is a survey that will be administered towards the end of
the students second semester of their freshman year, as well as a follow-up survey that will be

ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

administered to the respondents of the initial survey midway through the first semester of their
sophomore year. These instruments will inquire about enrollment status and choice of residence,
with follow-up questions to gain further clarity from those no longer enrolled and those that
decided to return to live on campus during their sophomore year as to why they made these
decisions.
Background of Reviewed Literature
The search for literature regarding the residential experience and retention of African
American college students was primarily conducted through the academic database ERIC (via
EBSCO), as well as through Google Scholar. The search criteria consisted of various
combinations of the following terms: (a) retention, (b) on-campus living, (c) first-year, (d)
African American, (e) college student, (f) residence halls. The approach to the following
literature review is to highlight the general benefits of living on campus as well as the differing
perceptions of campus climate between Caucasian and African American students, and to discuss
the demographic shifts on college campuses that serve to present a need for further research.
Impacts of Living On-Campus
A wealth of research has shown that living on campus has a positive impact on various
aspects of the life of a college student. Compared to students who live off campus, students
living in the residence halls attain higher GPAs and are more likely to persist towards graduation
(Kanoy & Bruhn, 1996). In addition to the academic benefits, social and personal development
is higher in students living on campus. These students experience significantly more social
interaction with peers and faculty (Pascarella, 1984) and show higher levels of involvement in
the social, cultural, and extracurricular aspects of campus life (Pascarella, 1985). Research also
shows that student involvement in the residence halls and on campus in general aids in greater

ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

retention rates for the institution and allows for students to develop greater cognitive, social, and
leadership skills and abilities (Arboleda, Wang, Shelley & Whalen, 2003). These experiences
allow students to seek out leadership opportunities and build a social network on campus, which
in turn aids their personal identity development, sense of community on campus, and allows for
professional maturation (West Texas A&M University, 2013).
Demographic Shifts on College Campuses
While these results provide promising insight regarding the impact of living on campus, a
significant amount of this research was done during times when college campuses were much
less diverse than they are today. According to the American Council on Education, 717,491
African American men were enrolled in postsecondary institutions in 2000. By 2010 this number
had nearly doubled to 1,341,354 (Cook, 2012). The National Center for Education Statistics
[NCES] (2013) reports that between 1976 and 2011 the percentage of college students in the
United States who identified as African American increased from 10 percent to 15 percent; white
students, which made up 84 percent of students in 1976, make up 61 percent of students today.
The NCES (2002) also reported that demographic changes over the following decade would be
higher than ever before:
Nationwide, the number of undergraduate minority students enrolled in colleges and
universities will increase from 29.4 percent to 37.2 percent. The number of minority
students in the District of Columbia, California, Hawaii, and New Mexico will exceed the
number of White students. In Texas, the campus populations of minorities will be nearly
50 percent, and in New York, Maryland, Florida, New Jersey, Louisiana, and Mississippi,
minority student enrollment is expected to exceed 40 percent of the total undergraduate
population (p. 1).

ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

Perceptions of Campus Climate

It is important that departments of residential life take into consideration the impact of the
changing demographics in todays higher education system. Rankin and Reason (2005) surveyed
more than 7,000 students from ten universities to examine how students in different racial groups
experienced their campus climates. They found that students of color had a vastly different
experience than white students; they experienced higher levels of harassment and perceived the
climate as more racist and less accepting than white students did. Research by Pascarella and
Terenzini (1991) shows that these results are significant, as the climate in which interracial
interactions occur influences the learning and social outcomes achieved by students. Further,
Chang (2001) determined that a positive campus racial climate that encourages ongoing, crossracial interactions, when coupled with a diverse student population, improves educational
experiences for all students. These results imply that it should not be assumed that the positive
impacts of living on campus are true for all student populations. Student affairs professionals
need to be aware that perceptions of campus climates often differ across racial groups, and adapt
programs and services accordingly in order to meet the needs of all residents (Rankin & Reason,
2005).
Procedures
Description of Research Design
The research methodology for this study will be causal-comparative research. Causalcomparative research allows the researcher to determine the consequences of differences that
exist between or among a group of individuals (Fraenkel, Wallen, & Hyun, 2012). This
methodology is appropriate for this study because no variable is being manipulated; rather, the
researcher is merely comparing two sub-groups from the same population: first-year, African

ON-CAMPUS HOUSING AND COLLEGE STUDENT RETENTION

American college students. The only difference between the two subgroups is their choice of
residence (on or off-campus), a difference which existed prior to the start of the research.
Description of Sample and Sampling Method
The sample will consist of African American students in their first year of college
(though the study will continue into the following academic year). The researcher will survey
approximately 300 students with a goal of receiving at least 150 survey responses. The expected
demographics of the sample include an age range of 18 to 20 and a mixed sex distribution. The
exact sex break down will not be known until survey responses are compiled, but are expected to
fairly equal. Based on the nature of the study, the ethnic breakdown of the research sample is
expected and intended to be 100% African American. The researcher aims to limit bias by
utilizing one consistent location and targeting students from only one institution: a large, public
4-year university located in the Midwestern United States. To protect the anonymity of the
participants the identity of the institution will not be revealed.
The sampling method that will be utilized will be convenience sampling, in which
participants are selected based on their ease of accessibility. In order to obtain the sample, the
researcher will reach out to upper-level administrators as well as professors of psychology
courses that offer students research participation credit. The researcher will explain the purpose
of the study as well as the targeted sample population, and request that these individuals reach
out to their respective students to provide a background of the study as well the electronic link to
sign up as a participant. The final sample will consist of the first 300 students to register for
participation in the study.

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Data Collection Plan and Description of Instruments

The data collection for this study will involve a series of two surveys administered to all
participants enrolled in the study. The first survey will be sent electronically to all participants at
the end of the second semester of their freshman year and will include the following questions:

Are you living on-campus or off-campus during your first year of college?
o For those that respond on-campus:

What were your favorite aspects of living on campus?

What involvement opportunities have you taken advantage of within

your residence hall?

o For those that respond off-campus:

What factors did you take into consideration that led you to decide to
live off-campus?

Do you plan to live on campus during your second year of college?

The second survey will be sent electronically to all participants midway through the first
semester of the following academic year and will include the following questions:

Did you live on-campus or off-campus last year?

Did you return to the university for a second year?

o For those that respond Yes and lived on-campus the previous year:

Did your living experience influence your decision to return to school? If

so, in what ways?

o For those that respond No and lived on-campus the previous year:

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Did your living experience influence your decision not to return to

school? If so, in what ways?

o For those that respond No and lived off-campus the previous year:

What factors went into your decision not to return to school this year?

In addition to contacting participants electronically, all participants that have not opened the
survey within a week of receiving it will be contacted by the researcher via telephone with a
reminder to complete the survey.
With regard to the instruments above, legal limitations will make it difficult to check for
validity of responses. The Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act (FERPA) guarantees
students enrolled in accredited colleges and universities privacy of all records, unless otherwise
granted by a student (U.S. Department of Education). As such, there will be no way to utilize the
institution to confirm the accuracy of the data provided by the student regarding enrollment
status and housing assignment. With regard to reliability, however, the test-retest method will be
utilized to ensure consistency of responses. A set number of questions from the first survey will
reappear on the second survey (for example, the first survey will ask Are you currently living on
or off-campus? and the second survey will ask Did you live on or off-campus last school
year?) and participants whose responses do not line up will be excluded from the study.
Description of Variables
The independent variable if interest in this study is choice of residence (on-campus or
off-campus). The dependent variable of interest is first-to-second year retention. Other variables
that will be collected in the study will include (a) age, (b) sex (c) involvement level on campus,
(d) grade point average (GPA). The initial survey that participants complete during their first

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year will measure choice of residence, age, sex, involvement level on campus, and GPA. The
follow-up survey that participants complete during their second year will measure retention, as
well as choice of second year residence.
Internal Validity
A number of potential threats exist which may affect the validity of the information
gathered from the sample. These include instrumentation threats, maturation threats, mortality
threats, and collector bias threats.
Instrumentation threat. The instruments utilized for collecting data in this study pose a
threat to the validity of the data, because they rely on self-reported data. Unfortunately that is
mandated as a result of FERPA restrictions which prohibit institutions from providing the data
that is being sought out. In an effort to control this threat the researchers will make an intentional
effort to fully explain the purpose of the study to participants, in addition to guaranteeing their
anonymity, in hopes that this will help participants to recognize the benefits of the study and
encourage them to provide truthful and accurate information. Additionally, test-retest reliability
will be utilized in order to remove participants from the study whose responses between the first
and second survey are not consistent on repeated questions.
Mortality threat. Another threat to validity is mortality. It is very possible that there will
be students that complete the initial survey but do not respond to the follow-up survey, which
will result in a loss of valuable data subjects. This may be due to the fact that they have left the
institution, have changed contact information, or are no longer interested. The researcher will
aim to control this threat through regular follow-up with participants via multiple mediums
(phone, email, etc.)

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Maturation threat. If the researcher does in fact find that students that live on-campus
during their first year are more likely to return to their institution the following year, that does
not rule out that fact that other factors may have contributed to this retention. For example, it is
possible that retention rates have less to do with residential location and more to do with other
factors that contribute to students maturation and development over the course of their first year
of college. The researcher will aim to control this threat by ensuring that the survey instruments
are intentional in focusing on aspects of the students residential experience, and not just their
overall student experience.
Data collector threat. Another threat to validity is the characteristics of the researcher. If
the data collector makes their purpose too obvious it may encourage participants to act or
respond in ways that they would not naturally in order to support the research hypothesis. In
order to control this threat the researcher will be intentional in not explaining the hypothesis of
the study. Additionally, the researcher intends to administer the survey towards the end of the
school year when students are settled into a regular routine and environment in hopes that this
will prevent participants focusing more on their residential experience that they naturally would
and thus limit the potential for bias.
External Validity/Generalizability
Given the vast difference in the structure and residential culture of institutions across the
country and considering that this study is being focused on one university, it is unrealistic to
expect that the results of this study will be able to be generalized to all U.S. colleges and
universities. For example, some institutions mandate that students live on campus for anywhere
between one and four years, whereas some do not even offer on-campus housing. The goal of
this study is to gauge the larger benefits of living on campus in order to provide a framework for

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institutions similar to the one being studied: four-year institutions that offer, but do not mandate
that students live on campus. If the results of this study show that the residential experience truly
does contribute to student success and retention, these institutions may be encouraged to move
towards a first-year on-campus living requirement.
Description of Statistical Techniques Used
Frequencies and percentages will be reported for the independent variable, residence,
dependent variable, retention status, as well as all other categorical collected variables including
involvement level. These categorical collected variables will also be summarized using a bar
graph. A t-test will be conducted to determine if there is a significant difference between the
retention rate of on-campus and off-campus residents.
Ethics and Human Relations
Possible Threats to Research Participants
As this is merely a longitudinal research study examining the rates at which on and offcampus residents return to their institution after their first year of college, there are no know risks
to participants. There is potential that participants may be fearful of being identified due to
descriptions or participant group, however the researcher will make intentional efforts to
alleviate this by utilizing a very large sample and refraining from descriptive research in order to
prevent specific individuals from being identified.
Entry for Data Collection
The researcher will work with various administrators and university officials to identify
methods of reaching out to the first-year African American population on campus in order to
explain the purpose of the study and recruit participants. These may include emails sent via
listserv to students involved in the universitys Black Studies department (or its equivalent),

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African American Resource Center (or its equivalent), and student organizations. It is up to the
free will of participants to sign up for the study, after which they will receive the survey
instruments electronically. This will allow participants to complete the surveys at their own
discretion and in the comfort of their own surroundings.
Research Participation Cooperation
Participation and cooperation for the survey will be attained by providing participants
with the freedom and control to provide their data in accordance with their schedule and
availability. Participants will not be required to complete the survey in-person. To encourage
participation and accountability, the researcher will reach out to participants via multiple
mediums and follow up via telephone to those that do not respond within a week of receiving the
survey. Participants will be informed of the limited potential risks of the study prior to beginning
and will be asked to sign electronically if they are willing to provide their informed consent to
participate.
Time Line
The time frame to create the survey tool, collect data, and analyze and publish findings if
approved, will take approximately one year. Two months will be used to create the survey tool,
including an Informed Consent page and all research questions. The researcher will then work
with university officials over the course of one month to seek approval for the study and identify
target groups of participants and reach out to said groups. Once approval is provided, the
researcher and/or campus officials will provide a link to sign up for the study to the target
groups, which will be open for two weeks. The following month will be utilized for data
collection of the initial survey. The follow-up survey will be administered approximately four
months later, and will also be open for a month. The final two months will be used to analyze

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data and thank all participants and campus partners involved. If findings are approved deemed
consistent and accurate, the researcher will reach conclusion, and publish findings if allowed. A
detailed outline of the timeline is as follows:
a. January 1st February 28th: Create and upload online survey instrument
b. March 1st March 31st: Work with university officials to seek approval for study and
identify target groups
c. April 1st April 15th: Contact target groups with link to sign up for study. Aim to
receive responses by April 15th
d. April 15th May 15th: Administer initial survey and allow time to complete
e. May 15th October 1st: Utilize summer break to analyze findings from first survey
f. October 1st October 30th: Administer follow-up survey and allow time to complete
g. November 1st December 31st: Record data, analyze findings, send thank you letters to
all participants and campus partners

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Cook, B. J. (2012). By the numbers: More Black men in prison than in college? Think again.
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