A belonging message raised GPA for African American students. Gains built up over time.
HelpedThe short version
African American students who got the message had higher GPAs by year three; European American students did not.
- 92
- first-year college students, African American and European American
- Randomised
- groups picked at random
- Recorded
- behaviour was recorded
- 2 tools
- tested
The study
Who took part
92 students in their first year at a selective college. 49 were African American and 43 were European American.
What they did
Students read a report of a survey of older students, who said worries about belonging faded over time. Then, in one hour-long session, they wrote an essay about their own experience and recorded it as a speech for future students. The other group did the same steps with a survey on unrelated topics.
What happened
Over three years, African American students who got the message had higher GPAs than the other group. The gap with European American students shrank by 52%, from 0.29 to 0.14 GPA points. European American students did not differ between the groups.
What the study found
- HelpedGoals
African American students who got the message had higher GPAs by year three; European American students did not.
- Action: Give advice to someone facing the same challengetested
- Action: Read about someone facing the same problemtested
Small randomised trial of 92 first-year college students, African American and European American · vs students who did the same survey on unrelated topics · behaviour was recorded
- HelpedOther outcomes
Three years on, African American students who got the message said they were healthier.
- Action: Give advice to someone facing the same challengetested
- Action: Read about someone facing the same problemtested
Small randomised trial of 92 first-year college students, African American and European American · vs students who did the same survey on unrelated topics · behaviour was recorded
- HelpedOther outcomes
Three years on, African American students who got the message saw doctors less.
- Action: Give advice to someone facing the same challengetested
- Action: Read about someone facing the same problemtested
Small randomised trial of 92 first-year college students, African American and European American · vs students who did the same survey on unrelated topics · behaviour was recorded
How solid is this?
- Groups picked at random
- Behaviour was recorded
- Small group
Source
A Brief Social-Belonging Intervention Improves Academic and Health Outcomes of Minority Students (2011)
DOI: 10.1126/science.1198364 (opens in a new tab)
