Effects of a Wilderness Orientation Program on Student Expectations of Adjustment to College

Wilderness orientation programs are being used at some colleges and universities in the United States to supplement traditional orientation programs for incoming first-year students. Over the past twenty years, the use of wilderness orientation programs has increased significantly; however, little empirical evidence exists to evaluate the benefits of wilderness orientation programs. This study was designed to examine how one wilderness orientation program affects expectations for adjustment to college among first-year student participants. An adaptation of Baker and Siryk's (1989) Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire was used to evaluate adjustment expectations. This questionnaire includes four dimensions of student adjustment: academic adjustment, social adjustment, personal/emotional adjustment, and institutional attachment. The questionnaires were electronically mailed to the entire first-year population at a small private college in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The pre-test was sent before students arrived on campus in August and the post-test was sent five weeks later. Students rated their expectations for adapting to college in both the pre-test and the post-test. Results from students who participated in the wilderness orientation program were compared with results from students who participated only in the traditional orientation to college using various t-test analyses. Comparisons based on gender variables were also made. The results indicated that students who participated in the wilderness orientation program did not exhibit a significant change in expectations for adjustment to college from pre-test to the post-test. In contrast, students who participated in only the traditional orientation program demonstrated a significant decrease in expectations for both academic adjustment and institutional attachment. No significant differences based on gender were observed. The findings suggest that exposure to a wilderness orientation program may affect expectations for adjustment to college for incoming first-year students. Nevertheless, due to limitations associated with this study, results must be interpreted with caution. Implications of the results are discussed, a description of limitations is outlined, and recommendations for future research are presented.