Date of Award

1-1-2014

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Specialization

Communication and Leadership

School or Department

School of Leadership Studies

First Advisor

Dr. John Caputo

Second Advisor

Dr. Carolyn Cunningham

Abstract

The goal of this study is to create understanding of why Hispanic students from the Rio Grande Valley in Texas have trouble completing their higher educational goals once they leave the area. This study applies communication accommodation theory to better understand how students adapt their communication styles in their academic, personal, and social lives. This study also applied standpoint theory to see how growing up in the Rio Grande Valley impacts the students’ sense of selves. Ethnographic research was conducted with five students attending four different universities around Texas. Through observations and interviews, the researcher found several ways that the students accommodated their communication styles to adapt to the culture of higher education including using phrases not traditional to the Hispanic culture to create a bond between multiple cultures and how it varies from gender with the use of the different languages. Suggestions for how to prepare Hispanic students for higher education are discussed as a focal starting point to create solutions for these students.

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