A Hermeneutic Phenomenological Approach to Southeast Asian American Undergraduates' College-Going Experiences

• In Event: 49.088 - Roundtable Session 17
  In Roundtable Session: 49.088-17 - New Directions for Research in Postsecondary Education

Abstract

This paper will highlight a hermeneutic phenomenological methodology (van Manen, 1990) used to explore the complexity of populations that fall under pan-racial categorizations such as Asian Americans and experiences that facilitate and hinder their transition from high school to postsecondary education. The goal of this research is to move beyond data that mask the diverse educational experiences of Southeast Asian Americans by qualitatively exploring their path to university and how they invest in education through the dispositions they acquire, the resources available to them, and choices made as a result. The frameworks of habitus (Bourdieu, 1986), social (Bourdieu, 1986; Coleman, 1988), cultural (Bourdieu, 1986), and aspirational capital (Yosso, 2005) frame this research.

Author

• Jennifer R. Crandall, University of Pittsburgh