Dr. Steve Helfgot: Diversity, Student Development and the Power of the Campus Environment

Theories of student development describe how students grow and change—develop—as a result of their experience in college.  There are two major types of student development theory.  Psychosocial theory focuses on the development of identity during the college years. Cognitive developmental theory describes how students make meaning of information and experience.  It is not about what students think, but about how they think and about how they become more sophisticated thinkers. 

There are some things, though, that make a difference in student development regardless of the type of theory we are talking about.  One of them is the college environment.  What happens in the college environment can encourage or discourage development.  Environment matters.    This is expressed through, what is called the interactionist equation:  B=f(PXE).  Behavior is a function of a Person in interaction with the Environment.  Students “behave” in certain ways in part because of who they are and in part because of how they experience and interact with the college environment.  And the environment is not a passive participant in this interaction.  There are things in the environment, that we can create and control that send different kinds of messages.  These messages can invite students to engage with the college environment and provide developmental opportunities or they can have the opposite effect.

Our colleges are increasingly diverse.  We need to ask ourselves what we are doing with our college environments, for diverse students, to encourage the kind of engagement and behavior that will result in increased learning and development.  There is much that we do and there is more that we can do. 

Students want to feel that they belong on campus. We can help.  We need to continue to promote diversity in our workforce, at all levels and in all jobs.  We need to continue to diversify our curriculum so that all of our students “see themselves” in their course work.  Those are the big things.  But smaller things matter, too.  As students walk through campus buildings, what kind of art do they see on the walls?  As they sit in the student center what kinds of music do they hear being played?  When they go to the cafeteria to eat, what kind of food do they find?  What is reflected in our film and lecture series our musical and theatre productions?

“Behavior is a function of a person in interaction with the environment.”  Student learning, development and success all depend, to some degree, on student behaviors.  For all students, and for non-traditional students in particular, are we all doing the best we can with campus environments to invite the kinds of student behaviors that will lead to student learning development and success?