ERIC Number: ED644179
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2022
Pages: 185
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 979-8-8193-7745-1
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Alumni Role Identity among Recent College Graduates
Corynn Marcum Gilbert
ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Northwest Nazarene University
Donative revenue to American higher education institutions is essential for their ongoing financial solvency in the existing funding model within the industry. Gifts from alumni comprise a critical portion of this revenue, yet alumni giving participation rates and giving amounts have been in precipitous decline despite ever increasing numbers of college graduates. There is a timely and relevant need to understand the factors impacting the future of alumni giving, especially if existing higher education funding challenges continue on their current course. Alumni who express strong organizational identification with their alma mater and high alumni role identity are more likely to engage in alumni support behaviors, including alumni giving. However, little research exists on whether new graduates have organizational and alumni role identity, whether they understand the support behaviors which have been traditionally associated with the role of alumnus, and whether they intend to engage in those behaviors themselves. The purpose of this research was to understand how new graduates perceive their relationship with their university at the point at which they make the transition from student to alumnus, how these perceptions inform their understanding of their new role as an alumnus, and how this understanding informs their intentions to engage in future alumni support behaviors. College graduates (n = 567) from a variety of private, faith-based universities in the West who completed their degrees during the 2020-2021 academic year participated in a mixed-methods online survey measuring organizational identity, alumni role identity, understanding of the alumni role, and the impact of these measures on self-reports of future alumni support behaviors. New graduates expressed above average to above-average organizational identity and average alumni role identity, yet expressed below average understanding of the behaviors associated with the alumni and distant to very-distant intent to engage in alumni support behaviors. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
Descriptors: Private Colleges, Religious Schools, Alumni, College Graduates, Identification (Psychology), Role, Intention, Expectation, Learner Engagement
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Related Records: EJ1382947
Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A