Researchers suggest there are many outcomes associated with attending college. There is also research that suggests there are positive outcomes connected with involvement in college, and living in residence halls. Resident Advisors (RAs) are college students who are involved in college via their RA job, and are on-campus residents. Studies to assess the outcomes associated with serving as a RA, however, have been. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to measure self-reported outcomes of the RA experience. The data were gathered by administering the Student Leadership Outcomes (SLO) survey to all RAs on campus in the Spring, 1998 semester. The SLO is an instrument designed by the university at which the study was conducted to measure outcomes of student leadership experiences. Data were analyzed to determine if the outcomes associated with the RA position differed by: size of residence hall (small, medium, large); type of residence hall (single-sex, co-educational); gender of supervisor; or, status of supervisor (undergraduate versus graduate). The SLO is a 37-item instrument which asks respondents to assess the degree to which they believe they have achieved certain outcomes associated with their leadership position. Respondents rate items on a 4-point Likert-type scale (1= strongly agree, 4= strongly disagree). Data were analyzed by calculating the mean scores for each group of RAs (i.e., RAs in single-sex halls, RAs in co-ed halls) and rank ordering their scores. Then comparisons between those rankings were examined. The results of this study provided some interesting information about outcomes associated with being an RA. The findings suggest that the size of hall has a positive impact on loyalty to the university, respect towards others, and leading a group or committee. The findings also suggest that type of hall and status of supervisor has a positive affect on loyalty. In addition, the results indicated that gender of a supervisor has no affect on RA outcomes. / Master of Arts

This study was designed to determine the ability of the Critical Incident Technique (CIT) to advise changes to training regiments offered to Resident Advisers (RAs). The CIT was devised as a tool in the field of organizational psychology. Its purpose is to assist in analyzing the success of individual team members by examining the self-reported occurrence of incidents on the job, which are deemed critical. The Critical Incident Technique has been implemented with success in business and military applications. This powerful tool allows researchers to make valuable observations about the realities faced by individuals on the job. These observations make it possible to devise and improve existing training methods capitalizing on these realities. Data for this study came from an examination of incident reports (IRs). RAs generate IRs in response to different kinds of issues faced working with resident college students. Three regional institutions agreed to participate in this study and helped to diversify the data collected. This study addresses the following questions: What are the critical incidents RAs experience most often on the job? Is there a difference between the critical incident types reported in residence halls by institutional type? Is there a difference between the critical incident types reported by hall types? Is there a difference between the critical incident types reported by gender? What implications do the findings have for future RA training? Four types of demographic information were collected from the IRs: institution type (large public, midsize public, and small private), hall type (male, female, or coed), RA gender, and incident type. Conducting a survey of the literature concerning RA training and the CIT, generated five general categories of incidents on which RAs report. Crisis situations Policy enforcement Facilities management Administrative procedures Advising Specific measures including coding, and excision of sensitive information (such as sexual assaults sexual identity situations) from documents were used to protect the confidentiality and anonymity of the parties involved. When data collection was complete, a chi-squared test of significance was used to examine the relationships between the incident types reported and each of the other three variables (gender, institution type, and hall type). After analyzing the data using the statistical research methods described above, it was possible to make recommendations for future RA training. This study examines the impact of institutional environment, department philosophy, and personal bias on the training of RAs. The results suggest that each of these factors influences the success of RAs, and defines the environments in which resident students live. / Master of Arts

Threatening behavior is a cause for concern on college campuses. Even though solutions presented cannot completely prevent crime and violence, steps must be taken towards continuous improvement of violence prevention efforts. The purpose of this case study was to examine resident advisors' attitudes and beliefs about the process of identifying and choosing to report threatening behaviors. Thirteen participants from Residence Life at a major Land Grant University served as the case study group. A qualitative approach guided the inquiry of the study and was represented through observations, document analysis, and participant interviews. Analysis of the research questions supported the study's findings. Overall, students' exposure to violence prevention on campus is often through educational programs and resources, while Resident Advisors are also instrumental resources in sharing information with students. They suggest making more efforts in sharing violence prevention education with students. Because a wide range of issues face today's college students, they seek assistance from Resident Advisors, as well as peers, friends, and family. Building community through the residence halls provides a proactive approach in efforts to develop and provide students opportunities for growth, responsibility, and accountability to their communities. Finally, despite reporting systems in place and resources available, barriers still remain for students. The inconsistency between the views and perceptions of violence prevention education and barriers to reporting between Resident Advisors and administration in Residence Life indicates need for further engagement between students and Institutions of Higher Education based upon policies, educational efforts, and reporting structures. Institutions have an obligation to engage students in the prevention of violence through sustained community-building measures and working with targeted peer groups, such as Resident Advisors. Conclusions from this study were explained through the individual, information, and social background factors of The Reasoned Action Approach and guided the recommendations for practice and further research. Addressing the disconnect between the administration and Resident Advisors' perceptions is crucial in reducing barriers to reporting. A need remains for further engagement with peers, friends, family, RAs, and other influential groups to help shape students' understanding, awareness, and continued involvement in the identification and reporting of threatening behaviors. / Ph. D.

No description available.

This study explores the implementation of Restorative Practices (Costello, Wachtel, & Wachtel, 2009) in a residential life program at a small public university. Narrative inquiry is used to explore the perspectives of eleven resident advisors (RAs) who have been trained in Restorative Practices (RP) and are using them in their residential communities. Participants were interviewed three times over the course of one academic year. The study illuminates the RAs' perspectives, growth and experiences with RP over that year. The findings demonstrate that RP may not only provide a structure for RAs to succeed within their challenging position, but may also encourage growth in a RAs' leadership capacity and abilities. This research also addresses how RAs conceptualize their position and role, including how they negotiate their dual, and sometime conflicting, roles of serving simultaneously as an authority figure and peer within the residence hall community, and how RAs benefit from and are challenged by implementing RP in their hall. In addition to examining the RA role specifically, the study also addresses how RP can serve as a theoretical framework for preparing RAs for their work in residence halls and for supporting them throughout the year. Further, the research suggests that RP, as a framework for the RAs' work in the residence halls, can potentially transform the residential experience for both the residents and the RA. The result may be the creation of the kind of community experience that the research has shown contributes to the retention of students. Finally, this study concludes with identifying some of the issues that are important for Residential Life departments in a process of successfully implementing RP in college residential settings.

This thesis explores the management of cross-cultural conflict by Resident Advisors (RA) at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada. A total of twelve RAs were interviewed on the policies and expected practices of RAs, how these policies are implemented and whether these policies are effective in resolving cross-cultural conflict. This research analyzes and demonstrates that besides conflict itself, the discourse of conflict--how one speaks about conflict--and its representation are equally important. In many circumstances, the cultural discourse and its representation are not only a major part of the problem, but even a source of it. I argue that a narrow conceptualization of culture in the expected dispute resolution practices of RAs constrains the management of disputes between residents. Examples of disputes pertaining to nationality, racial and sexual discrimination, drugs, and alcohol illustrate the use of culture as a controlling factor in conflict, defining culture as bounded and discrete. This neglects the underlying structural issues at play, serving only to reproduce conflict and to ensure that social and economic inequities are passed on.

This thesis explores the management of cross-cultural conflict by Resident Advisors (RA) at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada. A total of twelve RAs were interviewed on the policies and expected practices of RAs, how these policies are implemented and whether these policies are effective in resolving cross-cultural conflict. This research analyzes and demonstrates that besides conflict itself, the discourse of conflict--how one speaks about conflict--and its representation are equally important. In many circumstances, the cultural discourse and its representation are not only a major part of the problem, but even a source of it. I argue that a narrow conceptualization of culture in the expected dispute resolution practices of RAs constrains the management of disputes between residents. Examples of disputes pertaining to nationality, racial and sexual discrimination, drugs, and alcohol illustrate the use of culture as a controlling factor in conflict, defining culture as bounded and discrete. This neglects the underlying structural issues at play, serving only to reproduce conflict and to ensure that social and economic inequities are passed on.

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No description available.

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