Date of Award

Spring 5-7-2021

Level of Access Assigned by Author

Open-Access Thesis

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Higher Education Leadership

Advisor

Elizabeth Allan

Second Committee Member

Cynthia Erdley

Third Committee Member

Susan Gardner

Additional Committee Members

Shannon McCoy

Dan Tillapaugh

Abstract

Hazing is a concern throughout postsecondary education, with students experiencing psychological, emotional, and physical harm. Although several scholars have identified college athletes to be an at-risk group for hazing and Division III is the largest division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), there is a lack of research focused on hazing in this context. Utilizing a critical quantitative research paradigm and considering limitations of the extant literature focused on NCAA Division III, I examined the nature and extent of varsity athlete and non-athlete hazing and factors predictive of hazing experiences for students and varsity athletes at five NCAA Division III institutions. This investigation followed a non-experimental, quantitative research design, with descriptive statistics, chi-square analyses, and logistic regression analyses informing my findings. For all students, findings suggest: (a) varsity athletes and fraternity and sorority members were more likely to experience hazing than their peers belonging to other groups, (b) varsity athletes were more likely to experience harassment hazing than their peers, (c) there were individual and campus level factors that predicted student hazing experiences, (d) experiences with more normalized and frequently occurring hazing behaviors were predictive of students experiencing less normalized and less frequently occurring hazing behaviors, and (e) types of hazing experiences were predictive of students identifying there were hazed. For varsity athletes, findings suggest: (a) there were significant institutional differences in varsity athlete hazing, (b) there were individual and campus level factors that predicted varsity athlete hazing experiences, (c) experiences with more normalized and frequently occurring hazing behaviors were predictive of varsity athletes experiencing less normalized and less frequently occurring hazing behaviors, and (d) experiences with intimidation hazing were not predictive of varsity athletes identifying they were hazed. Overall, these findings expand upon the work of scholars who have examined postsecondary and college athlete hazing and this investigation contributes to the literature by establishing the Hazing Attitudes and Perceptions Scale as a predictor of hazing and examining findings considering the spectrum of hazing. Given these findings and contributions, implications for prevention, practice, and future research are subsequently considered.

Download

Share