Date of Award
5-2006
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Departmental Honors
Department
Psychology
Abstract
The idea of climate as a construct that could impact the perception of one's environment was introduced by Bernice Sandler and colleagues (1996) with the idea of "chilly climate" as it relates to the inequitable differences between women and men. However this concept has been applied to other populations as well in particular that of ethnic minorities. A chilly climate describes how a person perceives the environment in terms of being welcoming and accepting, or intolerable and chilly. Taken alone any chilly behaviors may have little to no effect however behaviors that are overt and frequent can have a devastating cumulative effect by reducing self-esteem, confidence, aspirations and participation (Sandler, Silverberg, & Hall, 1996). These results are reinforced by other findings that have shown ethnic minorities, in particular African-American students, perceive a more negative general campus; racial and academic climates than White students (Reid & Radhakrishnan, 2003).
Recommended Citation
Pruitt, Laura C., "Campus Climate: Effect on Ethnic Minority Students' Mental Health Utilization" (2006). Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects. 735.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/honors/735
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Faculty Mentor
Melanie Domenech Rodríguez
Departmental Honors Advisor
Scott C. Bates