The impact of self-selection and reference group identification in a university living-learning center

A coeducational living-learning center for the arts was studied through participant observation and quantitative assessment. Residents who had self-selected into the center exhibited higher aesthetic interests and greater satisfaction than members who were assigned by their location preferences. Members who perceived the membership group as a positive reference group exhibited higher aesthetic interests, lower religious interests, greater satisfaction, and less traditional academic behavior than members who saw it as a negative reference group. The results document the importance of full self-selection into a membership group and demonstrate the relationships between reference group identification, basic interests in personality, and social behavior.