Black Girls Rock: The Impact of Integration and Involvement on the Success of Black College Women

Abstract

Given that individual and institutional characteristics are suggested to work collectively in promoting optimal student success, the purpose of this quantitative study was to understand factors that contribute to the success of Black college women at predominantly White institutions (PWIs). Of particular interest was the relationship between self-reported gains of Black women and the level of social integration and student involvement these women reported. The College Student Experiences Questionnaire (CSEQ) was used to analyze a purposeful sample of 736 Black undergraduate women who completed the survey between 2005 and 2010. Statistical analyses, including multiple regression tests and Pearson product moment correlations, were conducted to examine relationships between social integration, student involvement, and self-reported gains. Results of the analyses indicated that each of the variables was positively correlated, statistically significant, and that social integration had a stronger relationship to each of the self-reported gains factors than student involvement.