Author ORCID Identifier
Date Available
5-6-2020
Year of Publication
2020
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Document Type
Master's Thesis
College
Communication and Information
Department/School/Program
Communication
First Advisor
Dr. Renee Kaufmann
Abstract
This thesis examined the experiences of first-generation college students in the context of higher education. This thesis was framed by the communication theory of resilience to discover how first-generation college students enact five processes of resilience: crafting normalcy, affirming identity anchors, maintaining and using communication networks, employing alternate logics, and foregrounding productive action. First-generation college students face academic preparation, financial, social capital, personal, and college completion adversities that may necessitate engagement in resilience processes. Participants (N = 8) participated in focus groups and interviews where they discussed messages from family, peers, and university faculty and staff involving reactive and proactive resilience processes. Results showed that first-generation college student engage in all five processes of resilience with peers and university faculty and staff and four processes of resilience with family. Implications for theory, limitations, and future directions for research directions for research are discussed.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.13023/etd.2020.120
Recommended Citation
Nelson, Paris Lauren, "Defying the Odds: Exploring the Ways First-Generation College Students Enact Resilience" (2020). Theses and Dissertations--Communication. 92.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/comm_etds/92
Included in
Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Interpersonal and Small Group Communication Commons
