African American Student Organizations As Agents of Social Integration

Journal of College Student Development, May/Jun 2003 by Guiffrida, Douglas A

In this qualitative study, 88 African American undergraduates were interviewed to understand the role of African American student organizations in facilitating social integration at a predominantly White institution. The conditions under which participation in these organizations aided students' social integration are presented. Results largely support Tinto's (1993) theory of student departure but indicate limitations of the theory when applying it to African Americans from predominantly White home communities.

African American college student retention rates at predominantly White institutions (PWIs) are well below those of White students at PWIs and African American students who attend historically Black colleges and universities (Astin, 1996; Benson, 1996; Patterson Research Institute College Fund/UNCF, 1997). According to Tinto's (1993) theory of student departure, which has been described as one of the most comprehensive and validated models of college retention (Boyle, 1989; Gillespie & Noble, 1992;Pascarella&Terenzini, 1991), college attrition can be attributed largely to a lack of fit between the student and the institution. In his theory, Tinto maintained that college students who perceive their norms, values, and ideas as congruent with those at the center of the institution are more likely to become academically and socially integrated into the college. Those who perceive incongruence between themselves and the institution will experience more difficulty becoming integrated and, therefore, are less likely to persist. Although academic and social integration are interrelated, he distinguished academic integration as relating primarily to the formal education of students. Social integration, on the other hand, focuses on students' personal affiliations with peers, faculty, and staff that occur largely outside the academic realm of the institution. Tinto proposed that, to varying degrees, some form of both academic and social integration were necessary for retention.

Tinto (1993) believed that African American students face unique challenges to becoming academically and socially integrated into PWIs because their norms and values may be incongruent with those of the White majority. Because research has indicated that African American students are often less academically prepared than their White peers (Alien, 1988; Cabrera, Nora, Terenzini, Pascarella, & Hagedorn, 1999; Donovan, 1984; Loo & Rolison, 1986; Nettles, Thoeny, & Gosman, 1986; Nora, Cabrera, & Pascarella, 1996; Smedley, Myers, & Harrell, 1993), early retention strategies focused primarily on assisting minority students in becoming academically integrated at PWIs. However, Tinto noted that social integration influences persistence decisions for African American students as much as for Whites and that incongruence with social norms often makes it more difficult for African Americans at PWIs to "find and become a member of a supportive community within the college" (p. 74). Research indicates that African American students who do not establish supportive communities at PWIs often experience feelings of discomfort, social isolation, and stress, which can lead to student attrition (Feagin, Vera, & Imani, 1996; Gossett, Cuyjet, & Cockriel, 1998; Lang & Ford 1992; Ponterotto, 1990; Sailes, 1993).

Unlike White students, whose social integration occurs primarily through informal associations with peers, Tinto (1993) believed that social integration among students of color at PWIs was influenced more by formal forms of associations, such as involvement in student organizations. The importance of student organizations, especially cultural student organizations, to minority student retention at PWIs has been supported in the literature (DeSousa & Kuh, 1996; Mallinckrodt & Sedlacek, 1987; McClung, 1988). Murguia, Padilla, and Pavel (1991), in a qualitative study of Hispanic and Native American students, found that participation in ethnic organizations enabled students of color to scale down the larger campus environment by forming smaller "enclaves" (p. 436). They argued that once integrated into an ethnic enclave, students felt more comfortable exploring and integrating into the larger campus community. Similarly, Padilla, Trevino, Gonzalez, and Trevino (1997), using data collected in small focus groups with Hispanic, Asian American, Native American, and African American students, found that ethnic organizations enhanced their college experiences by allowing them to "retain and nurture a sense of ethnic identity on campus" (p. 134). They concluded that an important benefit of involvement in ethnic student organizations is to assist students of color in bridging the cultural gap between their home communities and PWIs.

These studies are valuable in identifying cultural student organizations as important to the social integration of students of color at PWIs. However, there is much that remains unknown regarding the conditions under which this involvement facilitates social integration. Research by Padilla et al. (1997) and Murguia et al. (1991) indicated that involvement provided students of color with cultural connections at PWIs, yet the researchers did not define how this connection occurs within the organizations or the characteristics of students for whom this connection is important. Additionally, prior research has not focused on the experiences of African Americans in cultural student organizations, which may be distinct from other minority students. The purpose of this study was to understand, from the perspectives of African American students, the conditions under which African American student organizations facilitate cultural connections and social integration at a PWI. Considering the importance of social integration to college student retention, this information is important to student affairs professionals at PWIs interested in supporting and retaining African American students.