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Identity has emerged as a compelling force in understanding leadership. Situated within the identity approach to leadership, this study explored identity within the context of leadership for both assigned (i.e., positional) and emergent (i.e., nonpositional) student leaders. Findings from this study suggest that a distinct set of a leader’s identities is active in college student leadership and that personal identities are most salient to leaders. By making connections between identity and leadership, educators and practitioners may strengthen their understanding of how their curriculum and workshops may serve as identity workspaces for leaders.

This study sought to understand how a leader’s leadership is affected by their salient identities. To achieve this, the study employed a qualitative paradigm using a phenomenological methodology. Ultimately, the study worked to craft a shared understanding of how identity is experienced by leaders within the context of their own leadership. Textual descriptions are provided for each of the three themes of awareness and salience, leader differentiation and context affiliation, and identity as a situational factor in leadership. Implications for research and practice are highlighted for leadership educators.

The purpose of this study is to understand the differences in motivations, advantages, disadvantages and time of multiple-major awareness among students who pursue multiple majors based on a set of defined characteristics. The student characteristics of interest included race, gender, financial aid status, class standing, transfer status, first-generation status and the number of majors.

The authors administered a survey instrument to a random sample of multiple-major undergraduate students to gauge the prevalence of motivations, advantages, disadvantages and time of multiple-major awareness themes developed during individual interviews.

Statistical analysis revealed significant differences among multiple-major students based on characteristics of interest. Results discussed at length include transfer students deriving higher levels of motivation from degree practicality than nontransfer students and students who receive financial aid indicating multiple passions as a primary motivation more frequently than students not receiving financial aid. Similar differences between male and female students are uncovered relating to perceived advantages of diverse interactions and experiences and increased balance, as well as perceived disadvantages of time commitment and ability to grow professionally. Finally, first-generation students learned about multiple majoring later than non-first-generation students.

This study builds on previous research regarding multiple-major students, an understudied yet important population in higher education. Additionally, it delves deeper by exploring differences in this population by student characteristics.

This study sought to examine student motives for participating in a residential leadership learning community for incoming freshmen using McClelland’s Achievement Motivation Theory (McClelland, 1958, 1961). Eighty-nine students began the program in the Fall 2009 semester and were administered a single, researcher-developed instrument. Responses to an open-ended question that asked students what their primary motive for participating in the voluntary, residential leadership learning community were analyzed using deductive content analysis techniques (Fraenkel & Wallen, 2009; Patton, 2002) and categorized according to McClelland’s Achievement Motivation Theory as the need for Achievement, the need for Power, the need for Affiliation, or any combination thereof. Results demonstrated that while all three needs were found within the responses, the need for Achievement and the need for Affiliation were more common motives for joining the voluntary, residential leadership learning community.

This research study set out to answer the following question: How does social class relate to social connectedness in college?

The authors operationalized a nonexperimental, cross-sectional and analytical study design to analyze 271 survey responses.

This study illustrates that discretionary income has the most dramatic practical significance on the social connectedness of undergraduate students at the research site. As the body of knowledge regarding effective measures of social class for collegians increases, institutions should consider more innovative measures like discretionary spending, perceived social class and others during this unique transitional period of life.

A widened perspective of social class in college could aid in supporting the university and college goals of student success and social well-being.