Students Trust in Administration During COVID-19
Emma Krause
Longwood University
Abstract
This study was aimed at Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia. Specifically, the purpose was to look at the differences between respondents’ class status and how this affects their trust in Longwood University relaying information through their COVID-19 dashboard through a mixed method study.
To test the hypothesis, those who are considered underclassmen, freshman, will have less trust in Longwood University’s ability to relay information to its students, an online survey was sent out to students at Longwood University. The survey was sent out through a google form and 432 responses were recorded. Responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics and figures as well as an open-coding approach. The results showed that as students spent more time on Longwood’s campus they have less trust in their ability to relay information through the COVID-19 dashboard. The implications of the research shows that students may not feel comfortable with administration relaying accurate information to them. This shows that both with and without COVID-19, Longwood’s administration must learn to share accurate information regarding events happening on, near, or around campus.
Introduction
COVID-19, or coronavirus, is a new virus that started towards the end of 2019. This new virus caused much panic, as many did not understand what it was, how it spread, or how it affected those who got the virus. Since then, researchers have discovered that this virus is spread due to respiratory droplets in the air and one can get the virus by being close to another who is infected. There have been many different prevention tactics put in place to help stop the spread of COVID-19 such as, making sure citizens are properly washing their hands, using a face covering, and social distancing from others. Lastly, what makes COVID-19 scary is the unknown about if one has the virus or not. Many people can be asymptomatic and not even know they have the virus if infected. While there has been many different studies and research has been done, there is still much more to learn about COVID-19.
In today’s society, COVID-19 is an important and prevalent issue. However, due to the virus being new, there is still little research that has been done. Across the United States, many different college campuses are doing all they can to positively respond to the virus and keep their students safe. With lack of information due to the recency of the virus, there are holes in research on how the virus affects humans socially. Specifically, in colleges, there are many students who are facing challenges that are new to both them and the college or university that they attend. According to the New York Times, across the United States there are a total of more than 250,000 cases on college campuses with 7,830 of those cases coming from Virginia alone. This is incredibly concerning and calls for further research on the social implications that the virus has on these students.
Within this particular study those who participated were all from Longwood University, because of this, the findings only apply to this specific institution. While other schools may have similar issues, until further research is done, this will not be known. The purpose of this study is to look at the self reported trust levels that students have in the administration at Longwood University and their ability to relay accurate information through their COVID-19 dashboard.
Literature Review
There has always been a wariness between those in charge and those who must abide by their policies. Within large scale politics, there are many differences across the United States and this level of trust largely depends on where one lives (Weinschenk & Helpap, 2015). Likewise, having transparency between the government and others creates a larger level of trust that one cannot have without being open (Grimmelikhuijsen & Meijer, 2014). This spans to colleges as well and their ability to have and obtain a sense of trust with their students. This can be seen in different ways such as, having educational trust (Rhoden, 2017), social trust (Huang, Van den Brink & Groot, 2011), and how education affects general trust levels (Frederiksen, Larsen, & Lolle, 2016). This article will review and critique the levels of trust within the government (Han et. al, 2020), college (Wolniak, et. al, 2016), and examine the repercussions of that trust for college students (Frederiksen, Larsen, & Lolle, 2016).
Trust Towards the Government
Trust towards the government is something that many may struggle with. Not understanding what is going on in day to day operations can be difficult for some. Grimmelikhuijsen and Meijer (2014) was concerned with the effects of transparency on the perceived trustworthiness towards the government. This study compares to Weinschenk and Helpap (2015) that argue that political trust varies across the United States. While both these studies examine the importance of trust towards the government, Grimmelikhuijsen and Meijers study lacks an understanding of a greater population response. When the government is transparent and able to perform in the ways that states and citizens need them to, the trust between states, individuals, and the government is increased. Nicholls and Picou (2013) demonstrated this understanding by taking a look at the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the trust in government. When one has a negative experience with little to no help, trust within the government can be found to be lacking. These general results reflecting how the government’s involvement in crisis affects those in need can be found to be similar to those of Han et al. (2020) in examining the trust between the government and their response to COVID 19. The results of both studies show that with government involvement, there is a higher level of trust.
Creating Trust
Along with the government, colleges have the ability to create trust between the university and their students. When universities are able to create a safe learning environment their students will have an established trust towards the institution (Rhoden, 2017). This article argues that three different types of trust will help students perform better in their university, these types of trust are, trust in themselves, in close others, and institutional trust. Likewise, another factor within colleges that predict success of students is within the policies made by the university. Gray & Swinton (2017) argue that when student performance and retention rates decline, if there is a swift change in policy to correct and help students, they will ultimately perform better and the retention rates will rise. While each study may seem far different, they go hand in hand. Having a steady retention rate and the ability to help student performances, a level of trust will form as the students have trust in themselves, others, and within their institution.
Lack of Trust
When students have a lack of trust towards their college or university, there can be many different repercussions that develop. Frederiksen et al. (2016) examined the relationship between levels of education and if this causes others to have a higher level of trust in life. This compares to Huang et al. (2011) who studied the relationship between college education on social trust at the individual level. Both studies focus on the cultural, economic, and social structures that students will experience both before and during college. Depending on the location where one lives, the levels of trust will vary (Frederiksen et al. 2016). This can be criticized by the fact that the findings of the study, showing that the levels of trust vary depending on location, will not stand at every institution. While both studies are valid, it is important to note that both studies gathered information through previous surveys. This results in information that may be inaccurate due to the answers being anonymous giving others the ability to answer freely.
In summary, while there are many studies that show the different levels of trust within an institution, there is little knowledge as to what affects this. Having transparency between any institution and those who must follow their rules creates a larger trust between both parties (Grimmelikhuijsen and Meijer, 2014). While this is known, there are many areas where there is a lack of understanding as to why certain states or certain institutions have higher rates of trust over others. This is something that must be explored in further content to understand where the trust comes from or where it is lacking.
Data and Methods
Sample Section
Students at Longwood University made up the population for this study. A non probability convenient sampling was used. A researcher reached out to each member of their department for their students to take. A researcher put the link to the survey to Facebook for each class page. Researchers who are members of greek organizations sent out the survey to their greek organization. The survey was sent to all sports athletic teams both clubs and not. The questionnaire has four sections; how courses are offered, policies, students mental and physical health related to COVID-19, and demographic variables. Using google forms and participants will be sent a link.
Quantitative Section
432 responses in total were recorded. The dependent variable is the level of trust students have in Longwood’s administration to relay accurate information. The research question used for this variable is, “On a scale from 0-10, what is your level of trust in receiving accurate information from the Longwood COVID-19 Dashboard?” The independent variable is students’ class status. The research question used for this variable is, “What is your class status at Longwood?” These variables are being used to look at the difference between class rank in regards to students’ trust in Longwoods administration. I will be analyzing my close-ended survey questions using descriptive statistics and figures.
Qualitative Section
Open-ended survey questions, “Have the changes to classes affected your motivation to learn course material? If yes, how so?”, “What seems to be working well this semester?”, “Is there anything you would like us to know related to Longwood and changes due to COVID-19? Please use the space below to tell us.” Participants were recruited in various ways by the researchers, many researchers reached out to potential participants in different organizations on campus. Open-ended questions were analyzed using an open-coded approach looking for themes in written responses.
Findings
Quantitative Findings
The dependent variable is trust in receiving information from Longwood University through the COVID-19 dashboard. This is asked on a 0 (not at all) to 10 (an extreme amount) scale. The independent variable is class status at Longwood University. Respondents answered “Freshman”, “Sophomore”, “Junior”, “Senior”, “Transfer”, “Other”. The hypothesis is that those who are considered underclassmen, freshman, will have less trust in Longwood University’s ability to relay information to its students.
The mean score for self-rated trust in Longwoods COVID-19 dashboard was 4.94. The standard deviation was 3.03. This means that about 68% of students answered between 1.91 and 7.97. This shows that answers on this variable varied greatly.
Table 1
Percent of Students per Class Status
Class Status Count Percent
Freshman 81 18.75%
Sophomore 86 19.91%
Junior 130 30.09%
Senior 118 21.31%
Transfer 10 2.31%
Other 8 1.85%
Note. N=432
Table 1 shows both the count and percentage for students per their self-reported class status. The majority of respondents are upperclassmen with Juniors and Seniors having the largest responses (30.09% and 21.31%). Only 18.75% of respondents have only been on campus for one semester as freshmen. It is important to note the percent difference per class status. This is due to different class statuses having different experiences and length of time being present on Longwood University’s campus.
Table 2
Trust within the Longwood COVID-19 dashboard by class status
Class Status Means
Freshman 5.70
Sophomore 5.47
Junior 5.29
Senior 3.83
Transfer 3.80
Other 3.71
Note. N=432
Table 2 shows the comparison between respondents’ class status and their trust in the Longwood COVID-19 dashboard. The mean for those who trust most in the COVID-19 dashboard were those who identify as freshman (5.70). The mean for freshman (5.70) is much higher than those who are seniors (3.80). This shows that the original hypothesis was incorrect.
The original hypothesis stated that those who are considered underclassmen, freshman, will have less trust in Longwood University’s ability to relay information to its students, but what the data shows is that as students spend more time on Longwood’s campus, they have less trust in their ability to relay information through the COVID-19 dashboard.
Qualitative Findings
When looking at the qualitative findings for this study, there were three major themes that were presented, lack of communication, positive communication between professors and students, and the fear of getting sick. All of these themes play a role in how students feel about COVID-19 and how Longwood University is handling it. Throughout this section we will look individually at each theme and why it is important.
To start, there are many students in the Fall of 2020 who believe there to be a lack of communication regarding information given to the students about COVID-19 on campus. This can hurt a students sense of trust in their administration if they do not feel as though the reporting is accurate. Likewise, trust helps create a sense of belonging and will increase a students ability to perform in classes. “There is a huge lack of communication or knowledge of COVID-19 from the health center which needs to be addressed since a lot of students only have this center to go to for medical health” (Student 020). This student addresses that the health center is the only place to go for medical help for many students to go to so there may be a fear to go for other medical reasons if that is where COVID-19 testing is taking place.
Many students also specifically mentioned the COVID-19 dashboard sharing how they feel about the accuracy. “I know the COVID-19 Dashboard is inaccurate (Student 148)”, “The accuracy of the reporting dashboard because the numbers do not add up (Student 110)”, “Testing needs to be more streamlined and the covid dashboard needs to be updated more often (Student 220).” These responses all show that there are students who are worried about how information is being presented and if it is correct and accurate information. As stated before, students who feel as though they do not have full trust in their administration can have less of a sense of belonging to a university. However, while there may seem to be a lack of communication and trust within administration, there is also communication that happens between professors and students.
The second theme is positive communication between professors and students. While looking at responses and seeing how it can be difficult and confusing to attend online, hybrid, or even in person classes, many students reported that their communication with their professors was positive. This can help students out tremendously when they feel as though many other things are out of control. In response to what seems to be working well this semester respondents said, “Communication with professors and proactive-ness (Student 210)”, “I think that there has been good communication from professors in regards to their standards for class if we have to quarantine (Student 237)”, “Communication between professors and students, finding ways to still host events in clubs (Student 367)”, and “Communication between students and professors (Student 144).”
Communication seems to be something that many students care greatly about whether it be a negative or lack of communication or a positive and constant ability to communicate. It can be inferred that this positive communication could help students stay motivated and be able to push through a time that is stressful, unclear, and difficult. As well, while classes for students may seem disconnected and much harder to get through, with communication from professors there is an ability to understand and follow along with what is going on.
The last theme to look at is the fear of getting sick. There may be many different reasons why a student would have a fear of getting sick. This may be due to students not complying with the rules, having to be in person for classes, or fear of getting friends and family sick. Nonetheless, this is something that students recorded being worried about saying, “I dread coming to class and I am scared to come to class due to so many people in my class testing positive for covid (Student 284),” and “Yes. If I’m going back and forth between online and in person, I dread going in person and it [a]ffects my motivation to pay attention and vice versa (Student 110).”
As the last student stated, not only is the fear of being sick affecting their mental and physical health, but it also affects the motivation of students. This can negatively affect students in many different ways. If a student is afraid to go to class due to being around many other students and chooses to be on zoom instead, there may be a disconnect and a harder ability to focus on their schoolwork. Ultimately, this fear can cause students to perform poorly in school, not have the full social life they would usually have, and cause them to disconnect with family out of fear they may infect another.
All of these themes help play a role in how students feel this semester regarding COVID-19. It is important to see how all three of these themes can work together to affect students’ physical health, mental health, motivation, and their trust in their university both with their professors and with administration. If a student has poor physical health and contracts COVID-19, they may have a decline in their motivation and mental health. Likewise, if a student does not trust the university’s way of displaying information, it may negatively affect their mental health or their academic standings due to fear. Each of these themes have the ability to work together to affect how a student perceives this semester.
Conclusion
The study shows that there is much more research to be done regarding COVID-19 and the impacts it has on college campuses. With further research, colleges and universities will have the ability to make sure that their campus is safe and that students have trust in their school to keep them safe. The findings show that as students are on campus longer, they have less trust in administration. This shows that campuses need to establish a relationship early on with students so that in crisis, the students will feel safe and as though they know what is going on. Overall, it is important to note that as students come to college, they are in charge of their own lives compared to their parents taking care of them. Having a trust with their college may affect students in more ways than one. Students taking care of themselves entails that they are aware of events happening around campus so they will make the best decisions for themselves. In having a trust in their college, they will be able to take care of themselves physically, mentally, and emotionally.
Works Cited
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