Examining the effectiveness of a Social-Emotional Belonging Intervention on First-Year College Students

Students transitioning to higher education are faced with major academic, social, and emotional challenges. For first-year students, developing a strong sense of university belonging is critical in promoting overall wellbeing and academic success (Ahn & Davis, 2020; Arlsan, 2021; Gopalan & Brady, 2020). Low levels of belonging are linked to increased risk of dropout, reduced motivation, and poorer mental health outcomes. These effects are especially concerning for first generation and minoritized students, who report higher levels of belonging uncertainty and are disproportionately affected. The Social Belonging Intervention (SBI) was developed to address these challenges and, while shown to be successful at improving belonging and student persistence, has been inconsistent at improving student wellbeing, a critical component of academic success (Walton et al., 2023; Yeager et al., 2016).  

 

A hybridized intervention was developed that combines the SBI and growth mindset; deemed the Social-Emotional Belonging Intervention (SEBI). The intervention, which consists of a course-based reading and writing assignment, was piloted in the Fall of 2024 in a sample of first-year students (n=97) as part of 14 introductory writing courses. The study was conducted as a double-blind experimental design and examined how the SEBI influenced levels of belonging, anxiety, and depression as well as GPA, future credit enrollment, and credit achievement. Students were randomly assigned to either complete the SEBI or a control writing assignment and completed an online survey assessing mental health and academic outcomes.