Full Description
The resident assistant (RA) is the foundation of every residence life program. These student-staff members face difficult challenges as they guide and support their peers through the college experience. The Resident Assistant, by Gregory Blimling and Denise Baumann, provides a comprehensive text for training RAs in the skills they need to engage their peers in the educational experience of residence halls, and to respond to the many issues group living presents. Each chapter includes review questions, case studies, and strategies for dealing with student life in college residence halls.
The Resident Assistant helps RAs develop knowledge and skills in areas such as:
Crisis intervention
Peer counseling
Confrontation and discipline
Programming
Multiculturalism
The following topics are UPDATED in the eighth edition to provide current data and information to RAs:
Mental health issues
Title IX and Sexual Misconduct
Living-learning programs
Sexual orientation
The Resident Assistant will prepare RAs to create learning opportunities for students and to respond to the challenges students face in residence halls as they mature, grow, and succeed in college.
Contents
About the Authors
Part I The History and Foundations of Residence Halls
CHAPTER 1 The History of Residence Halls
Roots in the British Collegiate System
Origins in the United States
Nineteenth-Century Disregard for Student Housing
Early Twentieth-Century American Residence Halls
Residence Halls After World War I
Residence Halls in the 1930s
Residence Halls During and After World War II
Residence Halls in the 1950s
Residence Halls in the 1960s
Residence Halls in the 1970s
Residence Halls in the 1980s
The Twenty-First Century
Conclusion
Review
Case Studies and Applications
How It Was Then—How It Is Now
CHAPTER 2 The Roles and Responsibilities of the Resident Assistant
RA Educational Skills
The Roles of the RA
The RA as Student
The RA as Role Model
The RA as a Problem-Solver
The RA as a Conflict Mediator
The RA as a Campus Resource
The RA as a Trained Observer
The RA as a Community Builder
The RA as a Group Facilitator
The RA as Counselor
The RA as Administrator
Establishing Yourself With Your Residents
Interpersonal Relationships and the RA
What Is It Really Like?
Burnout
Conclusion
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Hall Soccer
What We Value
An Unlikely Match
Fourth Down and Long
CHAPTER 3 Resident Assistant Good Practices
Success Strategies
Good Practices Approach
Commitments of Good Practice for RAs
Conclusion
RA Self-Assessment
Case Studies and Applications
Sylvia and Irene Take a Break
CHAPTER 4 The Influence of Residence Halls on Students
Comparison Between Students Who Live in Residence Halls and Those Who Do Not
The Influence of Residence Hall Design
Ways That Residence Halls Influence Students
Methods of Advancing the Growth and Development of Students Living in Residence Halls
Review
Case Studies and Applications
The Commuter and the Resident
Friends
CHAPTER 5 The Philosophy and Educational Mission of Residence Halls
Need for Good Money Management
Philosophies for Working With Students in Residence Halls
Goals for Residence Hall Programs
Learning Objectives
Conclusion
Review
Case Studies and Applications
How Is He Doing?
CHAPTER 6 Living-Learning Programs
History of Living-Learning Programs
Types of Living-Learning Programs
Interest in Living-Learning Programs
The Influence of Living-Learning Programs on Social Climate
Conclusion
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Peace Versus Power
PART II Understanding and Working with Students in Residence Halls
CHAPTER 7 The Social Dynamics of College Residence Halls
Person-Environment Interaction
Social Networks
Climate
Students
Staff
Program
Design
Review
Case Studies and Applications
The Cornfields of the Midwest
CHAPTER 8 The Growth and Development of College Students
Biological Development
Psychological Development During the College Years
Chickering's Theory of Psychosocial Development in College Students
Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development
Moral Development in the College Years
Carol Gilligan's Theory of Moral Development in Women
Cognitive Development
Perry's Theory of Cognitive Development in College Students
Baxter Magolda's Theory of Self-Authorship
Social Development in the College Years
Review
Section A: Chickering's Seven Vectors
Section B: Developmental Issues
Case Studies and Applications
Lucy
Right Meets Left
CHAPTER 9 Adjustment Issues in College
The First Year
Forces of Attrition in the First Year
The Second and Third Years
The Fourth or Fifth Year
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Crimes of the Heart
Student Problems: Old and New
CHAPTER 10 Race, Culture, Gender, and Sexual Orientation
Psychosocial Development and the Influence of Gender and Race
Prejudice
Establish an Accepting Peer Relationship
Gender and Sexism
Sexual Orientation
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Cross-Cultural Miscommunication
Harassment
Close Friends
The Case of the Gay Roommates
PART III Resident Assistant Skills
CHAPTER 11 Peer Counseling
Complaints About Counseling
An Overview of Helping Skills
Counseling Model
Helping a Student Seek Professional Counseling
Related Counseling Issues
Advising
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Understanding Yourself
The Social Outsider
CHAPTER 12 Student Behavior Problems, Confrontation, and Discipline
Types of University Policies
Disciplinary Counseling Model
Goals of Disciplinary Counseling
Confrontation Skills
How to Confront an Intoxicated Person
Tips on Disciplinary Counseling
Review
Case Studies and Applications
The Viking
Catch Me If You Can
CHAPTER 13 Mediation
Defining Conflict Situations
Management Model for Roommate Conflicts
Analyzing Conflict Situations
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous
Why Me?
CHAPTER 14 Educational Programming
Goals of Programming
Traditional Programming Model
Wellness Programming Model
Engagement Programming Model
Residential Curriculum
How to Program
Conclusion
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Trying to Get by in Programming
Program Problem Solver 2
CHAPTER 15 Community Development
Elements of a Community
Types of Communities
How to Establish a Community
Conclusion
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Altogether
The War Between the Corridors
CHAPTER 16 Time Management
Overplanning
Time
Other-Imposed Time
Conclusion
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Hurry, Scurry
Happenstance
CHAPTER 17 Study Skills
Preparing to Study
Basic Skills for Acquiring Information
The Studying Process
Test Taking
Academic Honesty and Dishonesty
Review
Rationalizations
Case Studies and Applications
Elroy
A Two-Week Vacation
PART IV Contemporary Issues in Working With College Students
CHAPTER 18 Mental Health Issues and Suicide Intervention
Mental Health Issues
Causes of Suicide
Suicide Myths
Interviewing Potentially Suicidal Students
Making a Referral
Review
Case Studies and Applications
All Alone
Quiet Desperation
CHAPTER 19 Sexual Misconduct and Other Crimes
Relationship or Partner Violence
Sexual Misconduct
Theft
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Loving and Fighting
Without Permission
CHAPTER 20 Alcohol Misuse
Short-Term Effects of Alcohol
Influence of Alcohol on Behavior
Problems Associated With Alcohol Abuse
Causes of Alcohol Abuse in College
Identifying the Problem Drinker
Addressing Alcohol Problems
Low-Risk Drinking
Alcohol Education Programming
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Let the Good Times Roll
CHAPTER 21 Drug Abuse
Drug Enforcement
Reference Section on Drugs
Educational Institutions and Drug Use
Enforcement
Drug Overdoses
Review
Case Studies and Applications
Winning Through Fear and Intimidation
CHAPTER 22 Food Abuse
Bulimia
Anorexia Nervosa
Review
Case Studies and Applications
You Can Never Be Too Thin
CHAPTER 23 Sexuality
Contraceptives
Which Condoms Work Best?
Pregnancy
HIV and AIDS
Other STDs
Healthy Relationships
Review
Case Studies and Applications
The Most Difficult Decision of Their Lives
Sexual Responsibility
Index
