Author: Rachel    Claussen

Major: Kinesiology and Physical Education

Graduation Year: 2016

Thesis Advisor: Christohper Nightingale

Description of Publication: The primary relationship this research assesses is between health and academic performance. In addition, it looks at the differences in this relationship for resident students as compared to commuter students. Methods: The participants were all UMaine undergraduate students. The inclusion criteria for the participants are as follows: 18-24 years old, never have been married, not a Division I athlete and full-time student during the spring semester of 2015. A paper- based self-reported survey was distributed using a convenience sample due to the fact that the primary investigator only asked professors she knew if she could distribute the survey during their class time. SPSS was used for the statistical analyses. Results: It was found that resident students had higher GPAs than commuters (p = 0.017). Also, GPA was associated with perceived stress (p = 0.029) as well as perceived health (p = 0.050). Additionally, residence was related to the number of hours worked each week (p = 0.007) and perceived health (p = 0.040). Conclusion: It can be concluded that living on campus would allow for a higher GPA, decreased stress levels and increased perceived health. However, the commuter student population has been consistently elevated indicating that the University of Maine may need to take action to provide more on campus living for the wellbeing of its students.

Location of Publication:

• fogler
• reynolds

URL to Thesis: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors/378