Publications [#367841] of Bridgette M. Hard

Journal Articles

1. Yust, PKS; Liu, J; Hard, BM (2021). Course Belonging and Engagement in Introductory Psychology:Why They Matter and What Predicts Them. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 7(3), 206-227. [doi]
   (last updated on 2024/04/24)

   Abstract:
   As a “gateway” to the psychology major, Introductory Psychology should facilitate student mastery of foundational material and spark future interest in psychology. The current research examined predictors of these key course outcomes in two semesters of a college Introductory Psychology course (N = 508 students). Two studies examined the role of course belonging and engagement (i.e., “gusto” for the course content) in predicting grades and future interest in courses and research, as well as the role of student demographics, relationships, and course impressions in predicting belonging and engagement. Study 1 focused on the end of the semester and found that both belonging and engagement predicted final grades, but engagement was the only unique predictor of future interest. Belonging and engagement were predicted by different student demographic, relationship, and course-impression factors. Study 2 focused on a subsample of students from Study 1 (N = 296) to analyze the role of early belonging and engagement in predicting several outcomes. Early engagement predicted the first exam grade, and early belonging predicted students’ later course impressions (of lectures and discussion sections). Early belonging and engagement predicted end-of-semester belonging and engagement, but student demographic, relationship, and course-impression factors remained unique predictors of end-of-semester belonging and engagement, even controlling for early belonging and engagement. Taken together, these findings indicate that belonging and engagement, both early and at the end of Introductory Psychology, are shaped by different combinations of students’ characteristics, relationships, and course impressions, and have distinct implications for course achievement and continuing interest in psychology