The Role of Person and Environment Characteristics in Accounting for Professional Development Behaviors in Student Affairs
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Date
2017-05
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[Bloomington, Ind.] : Indiana University
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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore whether a relationship exists, and to what extent, between the individual professional, their environments, and their professional development behaviors. Professionalization of student affairs has led to the incorporation of continuing education and competency enhancement throughout one’s career but the field lacks required minimum standards for entry or continuing education. With individuals responsible for their own development, it is critical to evaluate how their experiences, values, and perspectives are shaped and enacted in order to identify trends and illuminate obstacles to advancing student affairs as a profession.
A quantitative survey examined the perspectives, behaviors, environments, and characteristics of 243 student affairs professionals using Lewin’s (1936) Field Theory as the theoretical lens. Survey respondents rated their perspectives on professional development, its importance to them and the community, and shared descriptive characteristics of their person, environment, and espoused and enacted professional development activities. Descriptive statistics illustrated the frequency and range of activities. Significant relationships between the perspective of professional development and environmental, behavioral, and personal characteristics were found through regression analysis and chi-square tests.
This study contributes to the call for the student affairs field to assert whether it is a true profession. Building upon previous research, this study incorporated survey items from other studies to broaden and confirm former findings. Through the sampling approach, connecting to respondents through their graduate program alumni lists, the survey items were effective in gauging the respondent’s experiences, and that the findings aligned with previous studies. These findings contribute to theory by validating the use of Lewin’s (1936) Field Theory in this context, to research by building upon scholarship and confirming previous findings, and to practice by illuminating trends, limitations, and values among the student affairs community related to their professional development interests, needs, and behaviors.
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Thesis (Ed.D.) - Indiana University, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, 2017
Keywords
Professional development, Student affairs, field theory
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Doctoral Dissertation