National Study to Examine Prevalence of Hazing on College Campuses
Contact: Kay Hyatt at (207) 581-2761
ORONO, Maine — A pilot study on hazing conducted at four Northeast postsecondary institutions illustrates the need for national data to monitor trends and help colleges and universities address this highly consequential behavior, according to University of Maine researchers leading the multi-year initiative. One in 20 students responding to the survey reported being hazed at their current college or university, and one in 10 say they experienced hazing in high school.
“Hazing is a complex social problem that can have damaging effects on students and campus communities,” says principal investigator Elizabeth Allan, assistant professor of higher education at UMaine. Data of national scope will fill a major gap in current research and inform policy, programming and accountability to help colleges, as well as secondary schools, prevent hazing, according to Allan, who has researched and written about the issue for the past decade.
The regional study represents the first phase of a national investigation into the prevalence and nature of hazing among undergraduate college students. Initially sponsored by the North American Interfraternal Foundation and the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), more than 20 other national associations and organizations have signed on as co-sponsors.
Project director Mary Madden, assistant research professor at UMaine, presented highlights from the regional study at NASPA’s annual conference held March 11-15 in Washington. A total of 1,789 students at the four pilot campuses responded to a 70-item web-based survey, which included questions about both college and high school experiences related to hazing. In addition, 90 in-depth interviews were conducted with students and staff from the participating institutions.
“Hazing behaviors were reported across student organizations including athletics, fraternities and sororities, bands, recreation and sports clubs,” says Madden. “This suggests that hazing is embedded within the culture of an institution, not just a specific organization or team. Changing that culture will require institutional attention and strategies.”
The survey defined hazing as “any activity expected of someone joining or participating in a group that humiliates, degrades, abuses, or endangers them regardless of a person’s willingness to participate.”
When asked directly if they had been hazed at the postsecondary institution they currently attend, one in 20 — across various types of teams and student organizations — responded yes. However, one in five reported being involved in a specific behavior that met the definitions of hazing but did not consider themselves to have been hazed because “nothing happened to me that I did not agree to” or “it was all in fun.”
The discrepancy points to students’ perception that as long as they felt in control, it wasn’t hazing, Madden explains. “They tended to identify hazing and its levels of seriousness more with physical components, such as being tied up or paddled, rather than with coercion or peer pressure.” she says
Among other key findings in the regional study completed in Spring 2005: