Graduate Program

College Student Affairs

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Semester of Degree Completion

2007

Thesis Director

Barbara Powell

Thesis Committee Member

Steven Conn

Thesis Committee Member

James Wallace

Abstract

Among the many prominent motivational theories addressed in this study, one was central to the research - hope theory. Hope is a goal directed cognitive process that involves three components: goals, pathway thinking, and agency thinking (Snyder, Feldman, Shorey, & Rand, 2002). The focus of this study was to assess the levels of hope and motivation of two at-risk undergraduate student populations attending Eastern Illinois University (EIU). All of the subjects were participants in one of two student support programs: a) Gateway, an alternative admissions program designed to provide access to higher education to underrepresented and disadvantaged students; and b) Student Support Services (SSS), a federal TRIO program designed to support low-income, firstgeneration, and/or students with disabilities to overcome class, cultural, and social barriers to higher education. One hundred and twenty nine students took part in the study.

Data were collected from surveys, which consisted of a demographic questionnaire and three instruments. The first two instruments, the Adult Dispositional Hope Scale (Snyder, 1991) and the academic portion of the Domain Specific Hope Scale (DSHS) were designed to measure levels of hope. The third instrument, the School Attitude Assessment Survey-Revised (McCoach, 2002) was designed to measure factors associated with student achievement/underachievement including, general academic selfperceptions and motivation.

Results indicated no statistically significant differences in scores between the two groups (Gateway and SSS) on either the Hope Scale or on the School Attitude Assessment Survey-Revised (SAAS-R). No statistically significant differences were found between the scores of minority and non-minority participants. However, a significant correlation was found between the Hope Scale scores and the overall SAAS-R scores, as well as a statistically significant correlation of .30 between Hope Scale scores and student's actual GPA's.

This study may prove valuable in that it contributes to the understanding of the influence of motivation, learning beliefs, and other non-academic factors associated with college student success. The information provided in this study could be beneficial to institutions because comprehensive assessments of students' educational beliefs and goals could greatly assist in the development of more effective retention strategies.

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