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This study explored the phenomenon of student affairs professionals working at Arizona State University who shifted from a student affairs unit to perform similar work in an academic unit. The conceptual framework for this exploration was social identity theory (Tajfel,

This study explored the phenomenon of student affairs professionals working at Arizona State University who shifted from a student affairs unit to perform similar work in an academic unit. The conceptual framework for this exploration was social identity theory (Tajfel, 1974), which asserts that individuals develop a self-concept or image that derives, in part, from her/his membership in a group or groups. This qualitative study utilized in-person interviews to capture raw data from four purposeful participants, and a software package (NVivo 9) aided in the grounded theory approach to data analysis (Charmaz, 2006). The study found that participants placed a high value on the college-centric approach to their student affairs work, but they still identified as student affairs professionals working inside the academic unit. Findings are useful to: supervisors who have an interest in the professional development and personal well-being of staff; faculty and administrators of master's and doctoral degree programs designed to prepare student affairs professionals; associations that serve student affairs professionals; higher education leaders engaged in organizational change; and higher education administrators interested in the roles of individual biases and values in organizations. This study will interest student affairs professionals making the shift from a student affairs unit to an academic unit, and it will inform the researcher's own practice and career development through his investigation of his own organization.
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    Details

    Title
    • Social identity and the shift of student affairs staff to the academic unit
    Contributors
    Date Created
    2012
    Resource Type
  • Text
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    Note
    • thesis
      Partial requirement for: Ed. D., Arizona State University, 2012
    • bibliography
      Includes bibliographical references (p. 113-123)
    • Field of study: Educational leadership and policy studies

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    Statement of Responsibility

    by Michael Mader

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