Running head: PERCEPTIONS OF STRESS 1

A Freshman’s Introspection on their Faith Development

Hudson Clare

Oklahoma State University

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A Freshman’s Introspection on their Faith Development

In this qualitative study, the goal or purpose is to understand why some college students

with faith backgrounds are leaving faith practices or questioning their faith, while others are

growing in their faith once they enter college social settings. From generation to generation the

rate in which society has changed has caused today’s students to face new challenges that their

teachers, parents and earlier generations have not faced. These new challenges have caused

Generation Z to look at and engage with faith, religion and spirituality differently. Generation Z

is categorized as men or women born between 1993-2012 and are the largest generational

demographic represented in today’s university systems. Due to cultural shifts in America, it is

imperative that Higher education address the needs of these students and seek to understand

every facet of a student’s life that may contribute to his or her success. “Higher education can

either adopt philosophies and practices that educate, mobilize, empower, and prepare

Generation Z to solve our world’s problems or miss the opportunity to influence significantly

the great minds of our next great generation” (Seemiller & Grace, 2017). The researcher

believes the findings in this report will be a catalyst for growth in the wake of student

development discoveries.

Problem Statement

By conducting the research in a qualitative manner, the participants of the study will be

able to express their feelings and emotions in a way that is a more telling of their experiences.

With proper context and detail, the research could prove to be a conversation starter to address or

support the current efforts that are occurring on a college campus. College is a formative time in

students' life, where students develop an identity that shapes who they will be for years to come.

It is also the first time that many students step out of their families’ protection. As Higher
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Education institutions seek to find new ways to meet the needs of their students, it will be vital to

better understand how faith progression or regression could impact a student’s social, emotional,

physical and academic areas in their lives. In addition to serving institutions of learning, the

research will provide campus organizations who address specific faith based students, a better

outlook on the students wants and needs, so that they can challenge the students in their faith

development. Lastly, it will give keen insight to students who affiliate to specific religions on the

challenges or support they may face once they step foot onto a college campus.

Statement of Purpose

The purpose of this qualitative research study seeks to address and support the current

efforts of student development that are occurring on college campuses. A variety of things

contribute to why some college students with faith backgrounds are leaving faith practices or

questioning their faith, while others are growing in their faith once they enter college. By

researching an integral part of many students lives which is their faith development, higher

education institutions will better serve their students in their progression or regression and how

that impact a students emotional, social, physical and academic endeavors. To conduct this

search the researcher will use ethnography as the research approach. The reason being is this

research method is reflective of a researcher who’s directly engaged and involved in the world

they are studying (Reeves, Kuper, & Hodges, 2008). Practitioners in Higher Ed works with

students directly or indirectly on a daily basis and this is vital for their work..

Research Questions

The primary question that will be asked of freshman students is, How has the transition

from home to college campus affected the progression or regression of college freshman’s faith

and spirituality? Faith and religion played an integral role in the adolescent lives of many
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students. Whether that faith is Christianity, Islam or pagan religions, the experiences and values

they have instilled into our next wave of students are noteworthy to understand. Building off of

the primary research question that is being pursued for understanding. The researcher will frame

the conversation with three students by asking thought provoking and informative questions for

data collection. These include questions such as, what faith do you claim? How long have you

claimed your faith? What are different influences that have caused you to hold to the faith that

you currently hold? Do you feel as if your faith has progressed or regressed since stepping foot

on a college campus? If you have progressed, what are the contributing factors to this? If you

have regressed what are the contributing factor to this occurring? How has this change impacted

your every day life, if any?

Literature Review

There is a ton of research on the development of students and in specific the faith developmental

stages. This research has proved to support an overwhelming desire to better understand how

students respond to transition not only in settings, but through age and life (Andrade, 2014).

Higher education is a testing time for many students as they embark on the journey of growing

not only as an academic or practitioner, but also the growing of who they are as a person.

Students have a belief that there is a fundamental responsibility that universities must play in

their development not only as a person, but also in their faith. In a recent research study the

findings stated that universities involvement in their faith journey was essential to their

development (Andrade, 2014). The research goes on to say that students desire integration of

faith in public and private university settings and believe faith development can occur in areas

such as extracurricular programming, leadership development, and counseling (Andrade, 2014).

There is a desire for faith based students, research also supports the lack of resourceful giving
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and support on the institutional level. Research studies repeatedly have found no true predictors

on whether college truly effects a 18-22-year-old in their faith development any more than a 18-

22-year-old experiences outside of a college setting (Mayrl & Uecker, 2011). No one has

developed a way to serve all students, as all religions are different, each students development is

dependent on the religion they follow. Studies show that there are larger predictors of what will

create spiritual growth in a student’s life than a universities involvement. Fowlers Development

Theory states that the age of coming out of adolescence is the time that the faith of a student is

most inwardly challenged (Bryant & Astin, 2008).

Where there may be a disconnect is that higher education seeks to educate the holistic

student, but may be missing an important piece to the holistic experience.

Institutional mission statements frequently stress the importance of fostering intellectual

and personal growth, and the development of civic virtues, such a service for the good of

society and concern for others. While these basic values would be affirmed by most

religious traditions, lending support for stated institutional goals, paradoxically faith

development and religious affiliation have not been nurtured on many campuses (Hartley,

2004),

This has caused an influx of students to turn to outside resources for support, clarity, and

encouraging as they seek to understand their own beliefs. There are a lot benefits to participating

in faith-based activities in the community in which students live and that has been the common

solution as higher education has not consistently sought to male faith development a priority.

When likeminded communities interact on college campuses, it provides an web of networking

support that they may lean into when they face the questions of what does it mean to understand

my own faith? (Bryant, 2007). Where Higher Education may see value from the research is in
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the positive relationships that exists between the college students’ overall health and correlation

to engagement spirituality, which suggests that college students who regard themselves as

healthy individuals appear to be integrating a spiritual component into their lives are living

healthier lives (Nelms, Hutchins, Hutchins, & Pursley, 2006).

This is important because there are a lot of religious students represented on campuses.

Christian students when compared to other religions are the most represented student populations

on majority of campus (Mooney, 2010). There is still a lot of value in the other student

populations as the participation of faith based practices such as weekly meetings, prayer,

ceremony and fellowship are just as devout across the board and do not fluctuate based on the

population of students represented in each religion (Hill, 2011).

With so many different types of students represented on campus with various

backgrounds, it is important for there to be continued research. Through the existing research, it

is evident that there are very two distinct beliefs when it comes to the value of integrating faith

into higher education (Andrade, 2014). On one side, you have higher education institutions

saying that the datum do not implicitly represent a need, where on the other hand faith based

students say it is vital for their development. With the research that this study will provide,

universities will be able to make informed decisions on something that thus far has not been

researched. That is whether or not Generation Z is in dire need of the support of universities or if

they feel supported by the universities existent efforts or the communities’ effort around them.

Method

The best way to collect data for this research study is through the interview process and

then eventually use observation to confirm the participants’ responses. By being able to ask

students relevant questions in a one on one setting, the reasearcher will be able to get critical
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information that answer my research questions. By structuring my collection method as an

interview, it provides a safe environment for the participant to be vulnerable and explain his or

her rationale for their respective response. Also, it will allow for consistency amongst all

participants, as my research question seeks to answer the primary challenge and influences they

experience that contribute to their development. The pitfall of just using interviews is that not all

participants are self-aware, and the researcher would never be able to see the participant put into

practice the things they spoke of or be able to observe and see if there were outside forces that

caused the results they were having. The researcher would be able to build on these interviews

by using observation to make sure that the participants were engaging in their religion both

privately and in community. It will take time to develop a relationship with the participants

where the researcher will be able to gain access to their lives to know whether they are truly

progressing or regressing. But the thirty-minute interview will provide a foundation that can be

built on as the research continues. In addition, having the interview transcribed will be beneficial

as the researcher will be able to draw back to the interview in their observational efforts.

Participant

To gather the research necessary for this study, the researcher will work directly with freshman

student populations on college campuses. Due to the diverseness of the topic of faith, the

researcher will concentrate his efforts on three specific religions. Addressing the protestant

Christian, Islam and pagan religion populations of students; will provide keen insight to the

research question across all spectrums of faith. The purposeful sampling strategy will be used to

gather information on students based on their religious affiliation. The process of finding

students who represent these various sub populations will be done by reaching out to campus

partners such as housing, athletics and campus organizations to find students who fit the criteria
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of a freshman student who affiliates his or herself with a religion. Thus far in the study the

researcher was able to find a male participant who is a freshman at a large public research

university in the mid-west. The participant was a follower of a pagan religion and represented a

demographic of students who are underrepresented on many college campuses.

Procedure and Analysis

The purposive sampling method will be used in this research study to gather information on

students based on religious affiliations. The process of finding students who represent these

various religions will be done by reaching out to campus organizations for a list of names from

there organization who are freshman and randomly selecting three participants from the list. In

this study, it is necessary that the researcher make contact with at least three freshman students

through email by using a university service account and looking in email directory. By having

twelve students from this large public research university in the Midwest, there should be enough

rich content to be able to decipher what are the areas of strength for the university. To gain a

better understanding of the research problem as a whole in regard to the United States, the

researcher would need to interview participants at various different universities. University role

in a student’s faith development, is dependent of the region of the country the university is

located and the type of institution it is (ex. private, public, liberal arts, or vocational school).

Because it is imperative that there is representation from all three religions in this study, it is

imperative that the researcher consider sampling bias. The researcher will be working with third

party vetting agencies (campus partners) to find participants who qualify for this study. The

researcher must recognize they may not have personal bias in the selection process, but the third-

party providers may. In this situation, having continual dialogue with campus partners about the

importance and relevance of this study to the university is necessary.

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With qualitative research, it is important to start analyzing the data as soon as the first

observation or interview is done. The researcher will use coding and themes to identify the

motivations behind the answers that are provided by the participants. By doing this, the

researcher will be able to decipher what are the underlying driving forces for the progression or

regression. To code this, the researcher will look for words that are repeated or themes that are

consistent and log these to draw back on in the research writing.

Ethical Considerations

The researcher identifies as a Christian student who regressed in their faith in their

freshman year, it may be difficult for the researcher as they will speculate the reasons for a

student’s progression or regression. The researcher has to be able to represent the participant

accurately; to do this the researcher must separate their personal experiences with the topic from

the experiences the participants have. Another issue the researcher may face is the separation of

church and state, with this study taking place on a college campus, the researcher must do their

due diligence to have conversations with the participants in a manner that is non- threatening and

rather seeks to better understand the topic. The benefits of the research for the participants is that

the data collected could be implemented on their college campus in ways that will better serve

them in faith based development. The risks are that regression could cause feelings of shame for

the participant when they reflect on where they once were and where they are now. To combat

this, the best thing the researcher will do for the participants is point them to pre-existing

resources on their campus or in the community. Also, the researcher will encourage them that the

way that you start does not have to be how they finish.

Findings
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In this study the researcher found that two overarching themes from the participants

interview. These two themes were comprised of the understanding of religion and the perceived

challenges for personal. Drawing back to the researchers original research questions, the

particpant was probed to answer questions about his beliefs and how those effected his

undergraduate experience. The data that was collected from the interview was consistent with

research but there were some interesting point provided by the participant because of the scarcity

of people in his religion. The researcher sought to understand the participants belief on religion

and the role it has played in his life. The participant acknowledged that religion did play a role in

his childhood development. This information is consistent with the literature review and the

findings that have previously been recorded that state students in college draw back on childhood

as they move into adulthood. The male participant talked about his disdain for religion in his

adolescence and how that transitioned him to find his own religion, he speaks of them saying,

bible beaters are the ones who are constantly like saying this is how it is. This is how it is.

You're a sinner just because you don't understand. And I came from a family where three

of, on my mom's side, three of my family literally are bible beaters and they just, they get

on my nerves way too much

The participant goes on to explain how these experiences influenced his conversion to practicing

religious syncretism and choosing to follow the Egyptian deities. This is consistent with Fowlers

development theory and the premise that students are most challenged when they leave

adolescence. This participant made the choice to follow a pagan religion after the pressures of his

family were no longer felt. The participant talks about the influencer who challenged him to

convert and how that was beneficial for him.

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One time my friend who is a Hellenist, a worshiper of the Greek pantheon, he, uh, was

talking to me, and he's like you should probably think about what faith means to you as

you have asked today. And when I told him what I thought about it, he said, you sound

more like a, you sound more like you're a pagan by Christian standards.

The participant said after this encounter he was opened up to a new way of looking at religion

and it challenged him to find something that made him happy. He says, “That's just something,

spirituality and faith, like religion, I can't prove it. And that's something that works for me, keeps

me grounded in that sense of the word.”

The next theme covers the greatest research question proposed in this study, has the

student progressed or regressed since coming to college? In the data collected from the dialogue

in the interview, the participant talks about the challenges he has faced on his universities

campus. The first point that is discussed is the essence of the community that the participant is

apart of and if there is anyone who holds to a similar belief. He talks about the disparity of his

religion and how there is limited support internally on a college campus because the closest

geographic follower to him is “currently living in Norfolk, Virginia”, he does state that he has

“found a couple people who are like halfway to what he believes”. When the researcher asked

the participant if he felt that the university had put forth efforts to support him he said, “people

must first get rid of their bias. They have to be willing to accept that there is other ideals than

theirs. And that's where they have the troubles.” He challenges the university by saying that

support to him as a pagan is swimming in uncharted territories but that it is needed for the

development of him as a religious student. What is interesting is the researcher asks the student

on multiple occasions if he felt like he had regressed because of his lack of religious community.

He said, “When I came in, I felt that I should, I would remain in control. There would be no
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growth and there would be no regression” He then goes on to say that he feels like the

environment on his college campus has been welcoming and inclusive and that the university

remains “neutral”. He says he has been pursued by people from various other religious

backgrounds but as for him and his friends he says, “we try and avoid the topic of religion if we

can because somehow or another there is someone else around that will pick a fight because of

it”. One of the most crucial findings in the case of pagan belief is that there is a lack of

community the participant truly feels that he will never progress or regress on a college campus.

He says, “Unless one of the people who have my faith move here, then I don't think I will

progress any further.” This is congruent to the previous research that states that students who are

18-22 on college campuses develop in the same way as 18-22 year olds not on college campuses.

Though this is a great finding it must be tested against whether or not community of believers

promote growth.

Conclusions

In conclusion, there has been a ton of new information that can inform universities in their

efforts and with the data that has been collected on this male participant and the research that has

been conducted previously, universities can move forward with insight on how to serve the

underrepresented. There is a need for more data, but more importantly there is a need for those

with power to immerse themselves in student communities to understand the real issues being

faced and what students need. As long as universities operate off of perceived needs and wants

the desires of students will not be met. This is no different for the religious development of our

young people, as the cultural shift happens in America and aboard, students will need to be

challenged in what they believe but also supported with the beliefs they hold.
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References

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College Student Affairs leadership, 1(2), 2nd ser. Retrieved March 2, 2018, from

https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=csal.

Bryant, A. N. (2007). The effects of involvement in campus religious communities on college

student adjustment and development. Journal of College and Character, 8(3).

doi:10.2202/1940-1639.1178

Bryant, A. N., & Astin, H. S. (2008). The Correlates of Spiritual Struggle During the College

Years. The Journal of Higher Education, 79(1), 1-27. doi:10.1353/jhe.2008.0000

Hartley, H. V., III. (2004). How College Affects Students' Religious Faith and Practice: A

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Hill, J. P. (2011). Faith and Understanding: Specifying the Impact of Higher Education on

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Nelms, L. W., Hutchins, E., Hutchins, D., & Pursley, R. J. (2006). Spirituality and the Health of

College Students. Journal of Religion and Health, 46(2), 249-265. doi:10.1007/s10943-

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Seemiller, C., & Grace, M. (2017). Generation Z: Educating and Engaging the Next Generation

of Students. About Campus, 22(3), 21-26. doi:10.1002/abc.21293