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Abstract
Despite the growing number of single parents returning to college to gain a better future for their families, 53% of student parents leave college within 6 years without a degree (Beeler, 2016). However, being hopeful enables student parents to focus on success which increase the probability to attain their goals and success (Snyder et al., 1991). The ability to achieve those goals comes from help-seeking, mentoring, and the ability to seek resources (Snyder et al., 1991). The goal of the present study is to examine levels of hope which enhance help-seeking skills to increase academic success within this population. The sample consisted of 26 single parents that are currently enrolled in community college or 4-year university. Participants were recruited via emails and social media via the snowball method. Constructs were measured with Snyder’s Adult Hope Scale (Snyder et al., 1991) and a help-seeking and academic success scale that were created by the researcher. Results show that positive correlations between hope, help seeking behavior, and perceived academic success. However, despite the positive correlation between these three variables, there is no significant correlation between any of these variables and the current GPA. Supplemental investigation into the amount of time that each participant studied weekly, still showed no significant correlation between GPA and perceived academic success.
Department
Psychology
Faculty Advisor
Veronica Fruhit, PhD
Publication Date
2020
Sponsorship/Conference/Institution
Dominican University of California
City
San Rafael, CA
Keywords
Hope, academic success, single parents, help seeking, non-traditional students, student engagement
Disciplines
Adult and Continuing Education | Higher Education | Other Psychology | School Psychology | Social Psychology
Included in
Adult and Continuing Education Commons, Higher Education Commons, Other Psychology Commons, School Psychology Commons, Social Psychology Commons