Preliminary Documentation 1
Running head: PRELIMINARY DOCUMENTATION
Preliminary Documentation of Sources
The Pennsylvania State University
Jordan Shelby West
Preliminary Documentation 2
Preliminary Documentation of Sources
Harper, Shaun R. and Nichols, Andrew H. “Are They Not All the Same? Racial Heterogeneity
Among Black Male Undergraduates?” Journal of College Student Development, 2008,
49(3), 199-214.
Shaun Harper and Andrew Nichols article, “Are They Not All the Same? Racial
Heterogeneity Among Black Male Undergraduates,” studies the different experiences of Black
male students at three different institutions of higher education. With most research in the field
on Black male students focusing on populations from a larger public institution, Harper and
Nichols decided to look at a small liberal arts college that enrolled 1,866 undergraduate students,
a midsize religiously affiliated university with 5,727 undergraduate students, and a large research
university that enrolled 16,474 undergraduate students. The research that they conducted
produced findings that added new dimensions to all of the existing research on racial
heterogeneity among Black college students.
The data for this research was conducted by Harper and Nichols. They contacted
administrators in student affairs and Black student support service offices on the three campuses,
and asked for assistance in recruiting Black male students to participate in a focus group.
Approximately 39 students agreed to participate in this study, which consisted of a 90-minute
focus group. Following the focus groups, transcripts were written out and linearly arranged in
the NVivo Qualitative Research Software program, for pattern coding. This coding process
helped to assign certain words into particular groups, pulling together common ideas, feelings
and experiences. The detailed research and methods provided a strong and useful amount of
feedback for Harper and Nichols to use as valid research findings.
The findings of this research ultimately found that these men who participated in the
focus groups on each campus were all representatives from six distinct subgroups: (1.) student
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athletes, (2.) members of predominantly Black Greek-letter organizations, (3.) socially
disengaged men, (4.) campus leaders and activists, (5.). urban males, and (6.) men from suburban
and predominantly White neighborhoods. Harper and Nichols believe that the diversity in
subgroups signifies that inappropriateness of treating Black students as a monolithic group in
higher education research and practice. Among the participants, it was suggested that common
social interests, not the race they shared, were the foundations of their relationships with each
other. Many of the findings, particularly those surrounding stereotypes, were parallel to some
findings in past research. Harper and Nichols not only validated some research findings from the
past, but they also added to the research pool by examining Black males from different
populations that have not been given as much attention.
This research conducted by Shaun Harper and Andrew Nichols directly supports my
problem statement, “What is the Black male experience at a predominantly White institution?”
Harper and Nichols’s findings provide evidence that researchers still have not explored all areas
of the Black male college student, based on institution profile at a minimum. Their findings
provide a lot of answers to my problem statement and give me a foundation of research that will
help to guide me.
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Watkins, Daphne C., Green, B.L., Goodson, P., Guidry, J. and Stanley, C. “Using Focus Groups
to Explore the Stressful Life Events of Black College Men.” Journal of College Student
Development. 2007, 48(1), 105-118.
Daphne Watkins, B. Lee Green, Patricia Goodson, Jeff Guidry and Christine Stanley,
authors of “Using Focus Groups to Explore the Stressful Life Events of Black College Men,”
conducted research to study the stressful life events of Black college men through focus group
discussions and examined how these events impact their mental health and healthy behavior.
This research included the participation of 46 students from a predominantly White institution
and a historically Black college/university. The study used focus group discussions as the first
step in gathering information about the mental health of Black college men. Two research
questions were considered in this study: (1.) What are the stressful life events of Black college
men? and (2.) How do these stressful events contribute to their mental health and health
behaviors?
Participants from both institutions were recruited via e-mail, direct person-to-person
contact and “snowball sampling.” A totally of five focus groups met for one hour and all of the
focus groups were transcribed verbatim, taking approximately seven hours. Two of the primary
goals of the focus groups were to reveal important themes and to compare these themes across
different groups. Every participant was given a summary of the discussion to ensure that their
viewpoints were accurately conveyed. In addition to transcribing, note taking, tape recording
and memory based analysis were also used to provide the greatest amount of accuracy.
Nineteen different themes emerged from the findings of this research. Discussions at the
PWI were dominated by conversations about acceptance or “fitting in”; cultural conflict;
racism/discrimination; social support; and stressors overall. The focus group’s conversation at
the HBCU focused on their image, their lack of resources for advancement and their overall
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stressors. Students at both institutions affirmed that they experience similar stressful life events,
but participants at the PWI reported that their major stressors were “school-related” events, while
people at the HBCU reported stressors that were not school-related. Students at both institutions
expressed that they were not able to devote time to worrying about their stressors because they
have been socialized and mentored in such ways that makes them feel committed to being
successful. These students feel that their tasks must be accomplished, despite their challenges.
This research relates to my problem statement, “What is the Black male college
experience at a predominantly White institution?” Not only does this research clearly look at the
experiences of Black male students at both PWI’s and HBCU’s, but it also incorporates other
aspects of these student’s lives. This study incorporates the overall socialization of Black males
and how family and rearing have influenced their lives. When dealing with stress, it has been
explained that some students, institution dependent, may seek comfort from family, while others
may not. Overall, the influence of their raising was consistent amongst both populations and that
is very key and something to examine when looking into the Black male experience.
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Fries-Britt, S. and Griffin, Kimberly A. “The Black Box: How High-Achieving Blacks Resist
Stereotypes About Black Americans.” Journal of College Student Development. 2007,
48(5), 509-524.
The purpose of this study was to examine the collegiate experiences of a select group of
high-achieving Black students. Authors, Sharon Fries-Britt and Kimberly A. Griffin believed
stated that far less is known about high achieving Black students and consequently, less if known
about their academic, social and psychological needs and experiences. This study was guided by
two overall questions: (1.) how do high-achieving Black students view their academic
performance and academic struggles? And (2.) What coping mechanisms, strategies and support
structures do high-achieving Black students utilize to relieve the stresses associated with their
academic performance? This article examines the ways in which Black students are put in a
stereotypical “box,” which is referred to as the Black box, to demonstrate the idea of being
captured and confinement expressed in their stories.
Fries-Britt and Griffin describe this research as a sociological multi-case study, directing
them to give attention to the society people live in, social problems, roles individuals plays in
society and different classes that individuals fall in relative to their educational experiences.
Students were selected based on their race and engagement in the Honors Program at State
University to produce a sample that would provide the most insight into the study’s research
questions. A total of nine Black high achievers, six females and three males, participated in this
small sample study. All of the participants varied in age, ranging from 18-23 and year status at
the institution. These students also had very high performance rates at the high school level,
participating in AP courses, SAT preparation classes and private/public high schools. Each
participant met with one of the researchers and were part of a 60-75 minute interview. Surveys
were also conducted by the researchers to understand the student’s demographics. The data
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collected was compared to theories and other studies on student’s achievement and research on
the experience of high achievers.
The research was conducted in a way that allowed for the participants to provide genuine
answers without the influence of other Black high achieving students, peer influence. Many
themes derived from the findings of Fries-Britt and Griffin’s research. Student’s often reported
feeling as if they were still “the only Black person” in the classroom and a lack of minority
professors. There was also the idea of having to dispel stereotypes at the institution and in the
classroom that they felt were present. Overall, these students expressed feeling pressure and
stress because they had to work harder to achieve the same accomplishments as other students.
The feeling of having to prove to their classmates that they also belonged in the program was
constant.
This research influences my problem statement, “What is the Black male college
experience at a predominantly White institution?” I feel that these findings will contribute to
what I am looking to study because they present findings produced by high achieving students,
who are perceived to be the “non-traditional” Black students on campus. The feelings that
students expressed in this qualitative research provide a possible argument that regardless of
what a Black student’s status is on their campus, they have constant struggles and stereotypes to
overcome.
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Booker, Keonya C. “Perceptions of Classroom Belongingness Among African American College
Students.” College Student Journal. 2007, 41(1), 178-186.
Keonya Booker, author of “Perceptions of Classroom Belongingness Among African
American College Students,” studied African American college students’ perceptions of their
college classrooms as communities. Research has shown that students of color have college
experiences significantly different than their peers from a majority group. This study closely
examined two questions: (1.) In what ways do African American students experience a sense of
community within the university classroom? (2.) In what ways do interactions between African
American students and their instructors and classmates influence students’ sense of connection in
the classroom setting?
The research for this study took place at a university in the Southeastern United States.
The sample included 54 undergraduates recruited from two classes in the education and history
departments. Most of the students participating were first year students that lived on campus.
One third of the population self-identified as African American. Students were given a
qualitative open-ended survey that was used to explore their perceptions of the classroom as a
community. The data was then entered into a special software program to quantitatively
categorize the responses, by theme.
The results from this study produced major themes from the responses given by African
American students. The themes presented were: instructional style, interpersonal interactions
with faculty, affective states of connection and peer relationships. In particular, students felt that
the interpersonal interactions with faculty was most significant and that based on the level of
comfort these students felt from their instructors, the more overall comfort they had in the
classroom. Findings from this study were very similar to those found in previous research.
However, this research was able to add to the feelings, interactions and activities that African
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American students feel in the classroom. This study provided institutions with information about
the need to incorporate certain techniques into the classroom, especially as it pertains to the
inclusion of African American students.
This research supports my problem state, “Why is the Black male college experience at a
predominantly White institution?” This study was done at a PWI and, unlike many other
research findings that have focused on the entire campus climate, this one focuses more on the
classroom environment. Academics, being the main purpose and focus of any institution of
higher education, the importance of African American students feeling like they have a place in
the classroom is significant. This research supports the need to examine all aspects of the
college environment and understand how to better provide a system where Black students feel a
stronger sense of belonging.
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Riggins, Reginald K., McNeal, Cosandra and Herndon, Michael K. “The Role of Spirituality
Among African American College Males Attending a Historically Black University.”
College Student Journal. 2008, 42(1), 70-81.
Reginald Riggins, CoSandra McNeal and Michael Herndon, authors of “The Role of
Spirituality Among African American College Males Attending a Historically Black University,”
examined the role of spirituality of African American college males attending a historically
Black university. The research question that Riggins, McNeal and Herndon looked to address
was: how does spirituality among African American male college students affect their ability to
stay in school? Most past studies on similar topics have not looked at the relationship between
spirituality and academic performance.
The researchers conducted two sample selections to collect data. Thirteen African
American male students from a predominantly Black university were selected to participate in
this study. These students were between the ages of 19 and 26 who were pursuing degrees in
psychology, criminal justice, sociology, computer science and graphic design. The participants
were given a questionnaire that asked basic information such as age and year in college, and also
asked questions based on their demographics. The second part of this questionnaire asked
questions that related to the research. All of the interviews were tape and transcribed. The data
was coded and grouped into categories to find any common themes.
The participants in this study reported back feeling a better sense of guidance or direction
through prayer and having a sense of spirituality. This studied also produced findings that
somewhat contradicted previous research done on spirituality amongst African Americans,
which stated that men are not likely to express feelings of spirituality. Findings from this study
produced a theme that showed African American males are likely and often openly share their
spiritual beliefs. The three major themes that derived from this study were: prayer is use for
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guidance and coping, spirituality is used in a social context and social support from religious
institutions. According to the authors, the results suggest that is African American males
capitalize and embrace their spirituality they may continue their collegiate experience.
This research will add to the study I hope to conduct, addressing my problem state, “Why
is the Black male college experience at a predominantly White institution?” Not only do I hope
to examine how Black males experience college, I also want to incorporate other factors that may
influence their performance. Spirituality in considered an influential part of Black culture and
understanding this study and the results would help me incorporate different factors that shape
Black male’s experience.