The Influence of University-Related International Experience, Volunteer Service,and Service-Learning on Moral Growth

• Main Author: Garff, Parry F
• Format: Others
• Published: BYU ScholarsArchive 2014
• Subjects: moral growth; higher education; reference group; volunteer service; service-learning; international experience; values; Sociology
• Online Access: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/4342; https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5341&context=etd

This thesis empirically tests whether university-related volunteer service, international experience, and service-learning have a positive moral impact on students and whether the peer reference group moderates this relationship. I use a measure of morality based on the recent work on values by Shalom Schwartz. A novel approach to measuring the social psychological phenomenon of the peer reference group is used in which the relative strength of the peer reference group is measured. The peer reference group was included in hypothesized models as a moderator between volunteer service, international experience, service-learning, and moral growth. Cross-sectional survey data of 633 engineering students was used, and most hypothesized relationships lacked statistical significance. However, university-related volunteer service has a positive and statistically significant relationship with morality. Post-hoc analysis gives some evidence that the peer group and individuals within the peer group may be the antecedent of how a student values volunteer service, international experience, and service-learning.