zunerakhanwrit1133du-blog

[zunerakhanwrit1133du-blog]

the final e-portfolio link

(this includes pictures and stuff in the document)

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mi_J-fq8OGoIGTdOEJAnP4f9oiPEWHEFViqsjyADhRA/edit?usp=sharing

[zunerakhanwrit1133du-blog]

Theory of Writing

The basis for my theory of writing is that above anything else writing is a form of expression. The way we write changes with each genre, but the process stays consistent. We use our compositions to express our feelings, knowledge, and opinions. In order to efficiently express our thoughts, we must be able to write concisely and not get discouraged when our pieces don’t go according to plan. Writing is a process of ups and downs. Writing is not just exploding all your thoughts onto a piece of paper but a process that requires thorough thinking and reflection.

In order to develop our writing theories we were asked to create maps in class. I loved these maps because you couldn’t really plan for them and just had to put down whatever you felt at that moment. Ironically these maps helped me realize my planning process for writing. Persistence is essential for writers to truly reach their full potential. You could have all the best qualities of a writer but without perstiance it doesn't matter. Writing can get difficult so you have to keep going and not get discouraged. You can’t give up on a piece because people gave it negative feedback. You take the feedback with a spoon of sugar and continue to write until you feel it’s good. In the reading “Framework for success in postsecondary writing” they discussed the importance of cultivating persistence in writers. “Perstiance the ability to sustain interest and attention to short and long-term projects.” Persistence played a key role in my next map. For the second map I created my process of writing. In order for a composition to be good it must be planned out before it is written. Even after you think your done your not. Writing needs to be edited and revised multiple times. This part can get frustrated because you reach a point where you don't wanna write anymore but you need to persist and keep editing until it’s done.

Writing is an ongoing process that is constantly growing. I used to believe that voice was the most important part of writing because I solely viewed writing as an expression. This was a roadblock for my writing theory because I hated structure and planning, I just wanted to have authentic papers that reflected me. I didn’t want to take away the authenticity of my writing by having some boring structured paper. It sounds ridiculous but it’s how I felt. Despite this, my writing process became more organized and structured this quarter. I stopped rambling in papers but began to focus on revision and deliberate choices to enhance my writing. When I started this quarter I was asked: “Who are you as a writer?”. My writing style was fun and personal. I struggled to write formal papers because when I write I want to be expressive and pop off the page! I hated writing specific prompts because I believed that it took away my voice. I didn’t want to write for specific audiences or rhetorical situation I just wanted to write and be me. But I learned that prompts don’t take away your voice, your voice, when applied to prompts, makes your writing stronger.

I used to believe writing was easy because it’s just like talking but on paper. In a reading this quarter called “Why writing is hard.” I learned that writing is actually difficult because it’s like talking. “Writing connects the emotional center of our brain with the rational center.” Writing is expressing yourself in a rational way. I hated answering prompts because it felt like there were so many possible answers and I would get so frustrated because so much was going on in my head and I couldn’t focus on one topic. “Full act of the mind drawing on the full resources of our nervous system formulating and communicative impulses into thoughts and words and transcribe through the work of the fingers.” Your brain is on fire when you write which is why it’s so important to take time to plan and reflect.

[zunerakhanwrit1133du-blog]

The essay

Intro:

I expected that everyone meets their soulmate the minute they move into the dorms, due to unrealistic expectations set forth by How I Met your Mother. When my brother went to college he found himself in a committed relationship by second semester and they’ve been together ever since. In college, many students choose to participate in intimate relationships. College introduces so many more opportunities for  non traditional relationships.These relationships are defined depending on the how the people involved feel. There are varying degrees of intimate relationships in college that differ from relationships in high school. In high school dating wasn’t seen as serious, you dated to go on dates or have someone to go to prom with. But college relationships are more serious, you could potentially end up marrying them but in high school graduation was seen as kind of an expiration date. In college, there’s also a  greater degree of freedom for students and this changes the way they interact. The transition from college to high school is commonly referred to as the red zone for people because there are so many changes occurring, could this period influence what relationships people create? People are more at risk to engage in dangerous behaviors that aren’t common to them. Such as engaging in casual unprotected sex. While discussing relationships in college sex will come up because as we mature, so do our relationships. The way college students regarding sex is completely different than how sex was regarded in high school.

So what's the general attitude in regards to dating in college? I’m hoping to research the different types of relationships college students have and what factors influence why they choose to have that kind of relationship. I also want to further understand the “college culture”, the University of Denver has a very prominent “hook up culture”. There has been research conducted on many external influences on students and how those influences affect students ability to form relationships. Two factors that I haven't found information on are how majors or involvement in Greek life impact the types of relationships students engage in during college.

Contextualized Lit Review:

There are some common factors that influence students willing to participate in exclusive relationships or if they participate in the hookup culture. Some already researched factors are gender, demographic factors, casual sex, relationship labels, and alcohol use.

Gender

Current studies have highlighted a divide between males and females. In regards to hooking up women typically view it as a negative experience (Owen). Two different studies found that women have more depressive symptoms than males in regards to hooking up (Grello) and that when women are in committed relationships they show less depressive symptoms (Whitton). Women displaying these attitudes and opinions suggest that casual sex is a negative experience for them but is it still true. Do women still view casual sex as negative? One study found that 47.5% of males engage in hookups while only 33% of women do (Monto). Another study found no significant gap in the amount of each gender who choose to engage in hookups (Owen).  These differences in data indicate that there is no common trend based on gender and participation in casual hookups. “The hookup culture is no longer a woman vs man problem. Women can want sex and men might not want that.” (Weiss). Current day research finds that gender is an influence on how someone will perceive casual sex. Multiple studies have connected multiple traits of each gender that contribute to the view they have on casual sex.

Demographic Factors

Research has been conducted to investigate how demographic factors could influence an individual in regards to sexual situations and relationships. In college students display a lot of risky behaviors such as engaging in unprotected sex and binge drinking. Both behaviors are related to casual sex. In regards to taking these risks in college relationships, demographic factors played a role. It was found that males and seniors were more likely to take risks than anyone else ( Elliot). Another study looked at religiosity of college kids and wanted to see if being religious affected the desire of students to hook up. A connection was found between religiosity and hooking up, women who were religious images in casual sex less while it didn’t matter for religious males (Owen). A study found that the hookup culture is driven by a small slice of white heterosexuals, Greek life members and athletes (Weiss). There seem to be many variables present in determining how someone will view casual sex or relationships. Hooking up isn’t for everyone and neither are relationships, but do outside factors such as demographic background effect which one people will choose?

Casual Sex:

There have been claims of negative hookup cultures on college campuses but recent research has found that this is not necessarily the case. In order to truly gauge what a hookup culture is it’s important for there to be a definition of what hooking up is. ¾ of students agree that hooking up is when people get together and don't expect anything else (ABC). An interview by a vice journalist of Lisa Wade sought to debunk toxic myths about the hookup culture and figure out if it was a positive thing or a negative thing. She believes that the hookup culture needs to be healthier. “If students would like to participate in casual sexual encounters, it needs to be done in a more kind way. Right now, the rules for sexual engagement are so much about denying any kind of interpersonal connection that students go overboard and they end up being really discourteous, sometimes really rude or cruel, in an effort to perform disinterest. So, we need a healthier hookup culture, and we need many more sexual cultures on campus to compete with it.” Sexual encounters can be good or bad depending on how the people involved are treated.

Defining relationships:

Healthy committed relationships have been proven to protect students mental health in college, and they provide young adults with a sense of social identity and accomplishment (Weiss). For college students this seems ideal, so why are college students opting out of relationships? A study found that college students view romantic relationships as a distraction from their futures (Vujic). Due to recent social norms, people are taught to get an education and get married later ( your life).In fact, college relationships are rarely defined anymore (Vujic). “When asked to define their relationship 53% said they were emotionally involved with one person, 30% were not interested in dating, 12% where dating different people and 4% were married” (Elliot). Students are unclear about what defines a relationship anymore. People become emotionally involved in one person but don’t consider is a relationship while other people choose to date but don’t consider it exclusive. Defining relationships in college has become a confusing thing for students because there are so many different types of relationships now.

Alcohol Use:

The current college culture encompasses a lot of partying and drinking. Studies have been conducted investigating if alcohol use is linked to sexual encounters. Alcohol has a direct link to casual sex for both genders and 65% of people who engaged in a sexual encounter used alcohol before (Grello). Current research and literature confirm that alcohol and casual sex are linked but is this part of the college culture or something to be worried about? Alcohol in the context of college students is used as a social lubricant but it can be used as a manipulative tool as well (Monto). An increase in alcohol use has been proven to increase sexual behavior while relationships cause a decrease in alcohol use. It seems that in college alcohol is the instigator of the hookup culture.

Methods:

For my research I choose to do a mixed method. I choose this method because I wanted to have some background on relationships in college done by other studies rather than just making assumptions about the nature of college relationships based purely on my own experiences. The location of my research is the campus of University of Denver. For my survey I created 10 questions about relationships and the hookup culture at University of Denver. I used SurveyMonkey to create and distribute the survey online. I sent out the survey into multiple group chats and facebook pages because I wanted to reach college-aged students. I sent the survey in a sorority, a fraternity, Resident Assistants, and engineer  group chats and then sent it out to random people who weren’t involved in any of those activities. I wanted to grab a majority of diverse responses from both females and males. 100 people responded to my survey, 54 females answered and 46 males. What I looked for in my survey responses was Greek life participation, relationship status, religiosity, and grade level I also looked at the general attitude on hookup culture prominence at University of Denver and general opinions on how hooking up goes on the campus. I also looked at relationship views students had.  I conducted Observations at a freshman dorm at 1am- 4am on a Saturday night witnessing people coming back from a night out and watching the interactions students had. In my observations I looked for how people interacted after a night out.  In my interview I wanted to look at why people choose to get into relationships and how their relationships impacted their college experience. I interviewed a junior male who was a engineering major Jake, and then a freshman female business student Eliza. I wanted to get different views on relationships based on gender and grade.  

Results/discussions:

After analyzing answers I found patterns that correlated to previous research and that also sought to disprove some studies. The results show the hookup culture and relationship views of students at the University of Denver. In general students at University of Denver of both genders believe there is a prominent hookup culture on their campus. A majority of students also view casual sex as a positive thing. Students at DU typically are single but it’s not because they don’t want commitment. A majority of students on DU’s campus are single but open to the idea of a relationship. They aren't actively looking because they are busy with school and because they aren’t ready yet, but if an opportunity presented itself they would go for it. Students would only date if they liked the person regardless of everything else.  That's the main reason for being in a relationship. There were differences in the view of casual sex based off gender, men saw it more positive than women and more women saw it negative than men did. But women didn’t see it more negative than positive.  In regards of major potentially influencing relationship status there were some common trends. STEM majors when asked about relationships said they were open to it but for in the future. There answers said they would be down but would be difficult to manage and that it would be a distraction. Business majors typically said relationships could be beneficial or a distraction but there too serious for us right now and should be thought about in the future. Business majors looked more at the social side of relationships. Psych majors believed relationships were beneficial when the person was dependable, a majority responded thought and believed it was too soon to date. There responses were more about themselves rather than relationships being a distraction. Undecided majors weren’t interested in relationships because they were busy and wanted to experience the college life. Greek life participation had a influence on how casual sex was seen. Fraternities views differed greatly from those not involved in Greek life, while sororities views remained consistent with those not involved. Fraternities view casual sex as something that is very positive and not negative at all. Grade influenced how casual sex was seen and relationship status and views. Freshman and seniors had the most positive view of casual sex, while sophomore and juniors were divided. Juniors had the highest level of respondents in relationships while freshman typically were more single. Religiosity seemed to have an effect on how casual sex was viewed. Respondents who grew up religious tended to view casual sex more negatively than respondents who weren’t raised with religious parents. With defining relationships the labels placed on relationships and the steps of dating has stayed relatively consistent based off of the interviews and survey responses. In regards to alcohol use and the hookup scene, no true conclusions could be drawn but it seems to be that students go out to party with friends not to have one night stands.

Hook up culture

In regards to seeing if DU had a prominent hookup culture my survey results were very consistent. 86% of students who took the survey believed that there was a hookup culture. 13% didn’t agree or disagree and 2% disagreed. This information confirms previous research conducted. It has been found that hooking up occurs more commonly in the college scene (Monto). In college, there is a prominent hookup culture but the data found by this question doesn’t necessarily prove that these students are engaging in the hookup culture.

I then asked how people viewed hooking up. 45% of respondents viewed it as a positive thing. 16% said it was a negative thing, 24% had no opinion, and 16% had other opinions. With the people who answered the other I asked them to explain. A common occurrence in their explanations said it would be a positive or negative thing based on the situation. One respondent said, “Both. In one sense I think it perpetuates a culture of superficial relationships built on nothing but sex, in another sense it gives people the opportunity to experiment while they are young, find out what works and what doesn’t.” They weren't viewing casual sex as some positive or negative thing but as something to experience and learn from. Many people said it depended on the person and that emotions could ruin it. Hooking up isn’t a black and white thing on campuses its dependent on certain views and expectations. In previous studies it was revealed that females found hooking up as a negative experience, but my survey was filled out by a majority of women who didn’t view it as negative thing.  I interviewed a freshman female and asked her about the hookup culture at University of Denver to get her point of view. She didn’t think that the hookup culture was a good thing or a bad thing but the individual experiences could be negative or positive. She said that it was negative because people aren’t having safe sex, sex is being taken less seriously and people get emotionally hurt. It could be positive though because it's good for confidence. When I interviewed a junior male he kept his answer about the hookup culture short. He believed that there was a prominent hookup culture on our campus and thought that tinder and bubble made it easier. He focused on the ability of people to participate in it while the women focused on the safety and well being of the people involved. The hookup culture at University of Denver seems to be prominent on campus but also doesn’t seem unhealthy. Students are trying to understand and grow from their experiences in order to have positive experiences in regards to sex. Casual sex isn’t something that's positive or negative, its dependent on the people involved according to college students.

Defining Relationships

I asked questions concerning relationships and how students define them. Out of the students surveyed 76% were not in a relationship and 24% were. Despite 76% of students not labeling themselves as in a relationship when asked to define a relationship a majority of people classified hooking up as a relationship status. I asked students to define their relationship. Nineteen people responded with exclusive, one respondent said exclusive but not yet dating. Twelve people said causal relationships, 25 people said single. 17 people said just hooking up with random people. One person said married. A previous study found “When asked to define their relationship 53% said they were emotionally involved with one person, 30% were not interested in dating, 12% where dating different people and 4% were married” (Elliot).  These themes stay consistent with my data. Respondents did not confine themselves to being single even if they said they weren’t dating. People in college feel like hooking up and casual are relationship statuses of their own. Which show how other research that said college relationships are changing is correct.  

The freshman female decided to start dating her current boyfriend after a month of hooking up and going on dates. She said that they were acting like they were dating so it just felt like the right time to put a label on it. They began to date because she liked him. The junior male met his girlfriend on tinder and they’ve been together for two years. He decided to define the relationship because he liked the idea of working with someone to reach his goals in life. “Life is easier on a team.” In regards to defining relationships, freshman and juniors get into them for different reasons. The freshman started dating because the opportunity presented itself and she liked him. The junior started dating because he wanted to have someone to help him reach his goal. He didn’t want to be alone and he was actively looking an open to it. The willingness and ability to find relationships increase as people get older.

Relationship Views

Previous research seems to display that college students aren't getting into relationships because they see them as a distraction to their future or they think relationships are too much work. I asked students “How do you feel about exclusive relationships at this point in your life? Is it something you want, are they beneficial or a distraction?”. This question got a variety of responses a majority of respondents answered with single phrases but some offered insightful views of college students. The phrases typically overlapped so I noted how many times each thing was said rather than only note one phrase if they used multiple. 11 students said it depended on multiple factors if they wanted to be in one. 23 people said they believed relationships were beneficial,11 said they were a distraction. 10 said they would seek a relationship in the future just not now. Two students don't care if it happened now. Four people said it was important for relationships to be healthy. Twelve students said yes they want one now and eight said not now. One respondent said “ I think they are a good thing if the people truly like each other - I think it is a waste for people to date just "to date". It is beneficial if the people care about each other and are respectful.” A common occurrence in high school relationships were dating just for the sake of dating but in college relationships should have more depth. “I think they are too serious for our age. It is okay to be exclusive with someone but a relationship is not necessary. We typically aren’t going to marry the first person we date or hook up with.” But some people still view relationships at our age as not serious.  “As someone who has a lot on the line with college, I feel as if serious relationships are very much in the back of my mind and more something I see as a distraction rather than something I am looking for at this point in my life.” This view enforces the fact that some view relationships at a distraction in college. “I’m too busy to maintain an exclusive relationship and spend enough time with a partner for them to feel that I’m giving them enough attention. I enjoy exclusive relationships and want to be in one with someone I care about, but I feel that my obligations stop me from successfully doing so.”

“I would rather have an exclusive relationship than open. An exclusive relationship can have its ups and downs but I believe it to be less cognitively taxing than that of an open relationship. I’d prefer an exclusive relationship because it can foster support and growth just as well as damage. Dependability is something hard to come by in contemporary college campuses and authentic relationship can provide for a rare circumstance of dependability.” A majority of the responses I received dig into personal issues. People all get into relationships for different reasons but the students I asked seemed to want to be in a relationship only if it would be healthy. College students care about their well being and take into consideration that a college relationship could help them, but also know it could be detrimental if it was unhealthy. Previous studies have found that relationships are good for mental health of freshmen which is consistent with my data.

When asked about relationships the freshman female said that being in a relationship was overall a very positive experience for her, she liked having someone around who genuinely cared about her. She did say though that relationships are positive as long as you're good at time management and if your not super dependent on other people. When I asked her what she missed about being single she didn’t say partying, she said she missed having alone time when she was in a bad mood. She believes that the nature of college relationships differ from high school relationships because they become more serious. She believed the most important aspect of her relationship was trust.  The junior male thought his relationship was positive because he’s grown a lot since being in a relationship. “I plan on carrying out my future with the person I am with now. So I believe my relationship is very relevant to my future.” He does miss the freedom of being single though. He thinks that college relationships are more effort than high school relationships. With relationship views the older you get the more relationships impact you. As a freshman your finding yourself and you want to grow but as a junior you want someone to grow with. Freshman worry about if there relationship will take away time from their other activities while juniors integrate their relationships into their activities. Freshman still view themselves as growing and becoming independent from their parents and stuff, the older they get the more they want someone to share their life with.

Demographic Factors

In my survey, I focused on three demographic factors. I looked at gender, major, religious background and participation in Greek life.

For my survey 54% of respondents were females and 46% were males. A majority of my respondents were women and did not view casual sex as a negative thing.  Out of the female respondents, 24% were in relationships and 76% were single. 93% believed there was a prominent hookup culture on University of Denver campus and 7% neither disagree or agree. When asked how they viewed casual sex 39% viewed it as positive, 20% viewed it as negative, 26% had no opinion and 13% of respondents said it depended. Out of the males, 20% wherein relationships and 80% were single. When asked if DU had a prominent hookup culture 79% agreed, 1% said disagree and 20% neither disagree or agree. When asked about the view of casual sex 59% thought it was positive, 11% said negative and 15% had no opinion and 15% said it depended. According to my data women don’t view casual sex as a negative experience over a positive. More women saw sex as a positive thing over a negative thing. This shows that slowly but surely the attitudes of casual sex between women are changing. 26% percent had no opinion which shows that it’s not a negative or positive thing, to each their own.

I also looked at if they were raised in a religious household. 47% said no and 53% said yes. When I asked which religion a majority were Catholic or Christian and one said Jewish. I looked at the respondents who were religious and looked at how they answered the single question and their view of casual sex and then compared it to those who were not religious. Out of the respondents, those who grew up religious 30% were in a relationship and 70% were single. When asked about casual sex 43% saw it as a positive thing, 25% saw it as negative and 32% had no opinion.  Out of the students who were not religious 18% were in relationships and  82% were single. When asked about casual sex 52% saw it as positive, 4% saw it as negative and 41% had no opinion. Studies who grew up religious saw sex as more negative than kids who didn’t grow up religious. Students who grew up religious still viewed sex as positive but there were more respondents who believed it was negative.

I also looked at involvement in Greek life and if it affected how they perceived casual sex. 70% of the respondents were involved in greek like and 30% were not. After analyzing the responses of those in sororities, fraternities, and people not in either I found some trends. For sororities 20% viewed casual sex as negative, 42% positive, 22% no opinion and 16% had mixed feelings. Non-greek life viewed 20% negative, 38% positive, 25% had no opinion and 17% mixed. The respondents in fraternities 7% saw casual sex as negative and 72% saw it was positive, and 21% had no opinions. Involvement in Greek life did not show any major differences in attitude between sororities and people but showed huge differences in opinions for Frats. Greek life is seen as a huge source of partying and this may affect the exposure to casual sex. Frats have more exposure so there more open to it.

I wanted to see if different majors affected if people hooked up or choose to be in relationships. I looked at their relationship statuses and their views on relationships. Out of the respondents, 20% were science stem, 40% were business, 10% where psych and 25% were undeclared/others. At the University of Denver, there seems to be a majority of students in business, science or psych so I wanted to look at the bigger picture. For science majors, 20% were in relationships and 80% were single. For business majors, 23% were in relationships and 77% were single. For psych majors, 30% were in relationships and 70% were single. For other/undeclared 26% were in relationships and 74% were single. When asked about views of relationships I saw some common trends. When science majors were asked about relationship views they said they would want one but a common answer was that they didn’t have time. There too busy with school and saw them as a distraction. Business majors cared more about the nature of the relationship and wanted to focus on the social aspect of the school. Psych majors wanted to find themselves first before getting into relationships or having someone who was dependable. For uneducated they said they didn’t want a relationship yet but were open to them, they just wanted to enjoy the college life.

I also looked at the grade respondents were in. 70% were freshman, 18% were sophomores 8% were juniors and 7% were seniors.  Of the freshman, 19% were in relationships and 81% were single. When asked about their views on casual sex 12% said negative, 54% said positive, 34% had no opinion. Sophomores 33% were in relationships and 67% were single. For views on casual sex it was evenly split 34% of respondents viewed casual sex as positive, 33% had no opinion or said it was negative. 44% of juniors were in relationships and 56% were single. 44% viewed sex as positive, 11% saw it as negative and 45% had no opinion. For seniors 38% were in relationship and 62% were single. 62% saw casual sex as positive , 25% negative and 13% had no opinion. Freshman and seniors both had the highest amount of people believe that casual sex was positive while sophomore were evenly split. Juniors also viewed sex as positive. It seems like there are no true themes of growing attitudes in one direction, but for relationship views, there were clear patterns in the responses. Freshman wanted to be in relationships but were hesitant because of school. Sophomore wanted relationships but said they were too difficult. Juniors believed that there were distractions but wanted them. As people get older they want relationships but something is always holding them back from going for it. The older we get the more open we become to dating, but we also take into consideration a lot more before we decide to date.

Alcohol use

For my observations, I worked at centinalls halls front desk on a Saturday night from 1am -4am. I wanted to see how college students engage with each other after a night out. Based on my observations I can come to two main conclusions involving college students and drink. The first is that college students become loud and very social when they are drunk. Alcohol made students more friendly and people engaged with me in strange ways that they wouldn't when they were sober. One girl gave me a mustard packet and said that she loved me and another resident gave me a cookie at 1 am. Drinking definitely does impact the way students engage but I can’t make any assumptions about if they engage in sexual behavior. The second finding was that college students tended to travel in groups of people more than pairs. I observed a couple fighting, the girl seemed to be intoxicated and the guy was angry about something. She was the only one apologizing and then they hugged and headed upstairs. Alcohol can sometimes be used as a manipulative tool (Monto), in this scenario it seemed like the guy and girl were fighting but he blamed it on her being drunk just to end the fight.  A different pair acted super touchy and rushed to the elevator to go upstairs, which might back up the study about alcohol and hookups. I observed a couple come to the lobby to pick up food they ordered. They were wearing sweats and didn't really care about the people coming back form a night in.

Conclusion:

My research had many limitations. I was limited to 10 weeks to conduct this research which means it wasn’t as thorough as it could have been. My survey proved to be a huge limitation. I only had 100 respondents and a majority of them were freshmen so my analyzation of the answers of other grade levels might be affected by the smaller number of respondents. The majority of respondents were girls over guys. Due to lack of funding for my research, I didn’t have the best tools to analyze my survey results by organizing them into different filters and categories. I had to go through the answers of each respondent multiple times and see the different relationships and trends. This could have led to errors in the analyzation or even missing trends within the answers. Another limitation would be observations. When observing people is hard to make assumptions about their relationship status without really knowing them or asking them. With observations, you can’t just assume things are happening so they fit your date better.

The purpose of my research was to investigate the general attitude regarding relationships in college and to understand the college-aged population and to further my understanding of the college culture. Previous research conducted on college relationships displayed a common theme of women being at a disadvantage in relationships but my research contradicts that notation. At University of Denver's campus many women choose to engage in casual relationships and hooks up by choice and don’t see it as a negative thing. The same percentage of women and men were single and more women viewed casual sex as positive then negative. A majority of students don't care about people having casual sex but were more focused on if the people involved were being safe and healthy. The view of relationships in college aren’t necessarily consistent as negative or positive. Many students believe that relationships aren’t something you can force and each relationship is dependent on the people in it. Many freshman are engaging in causal relationships. Freshman tend to be more interested in living the college life over dating. Demographic factors that influenced DU students views of casual sex included religion and involvement in Greek life. A higher percentage of Fraternities members view casual sex as positive, while the rest of the school have divided opinions. Students who were raised religious have a more negative view of casual sex then students who were not. In regards to major it was hard to make a stronger finding because the number of respondents varied for each major. So the percentage single could have been affected by a smaller data pool. But I believe for views of relationships they were consistent. Each major had a different reason for not being in a relationship but a majority from each group were open to relationships but weren’t actively looking. So people aren’t shutting down relationships for school but aren’t looking either. If it happens it happens. Grade level influences view of casual sex. It’s interesting though because freshman and seniors both see it as positive and more are single than in relationships. I think it is because at both of these times in life your starting something new. Freshman are new to college so they want to experience life and find themselves while seniors are about to go into the real world. They might choose to be in a relationship or do it by themselves. At both points your starting and ending big parts of your life but the maturity levels are completely different which is why the smarties are interesting. Sophomores  have a split view and juniors do too in regards to casual sex. The older students get the more open they become to the idea of being in a relationship but they also increasingly view relationships as distractions rather than beneficial.

After all this research I can conclude that college relationships are very complex things and sex is a bigger part of them but sex isn’t as important as other things. Students believe that relationships are about more than sex but about being healthy. Students also have a majority positive view of casual sex. I believe that the students at DU are trying to make healthy relationships regardless of the culture. They know what to look for and what to avoid. Not everyone is like that in college but based on my data a majority of respondents are. The hookup culture at DU is a mostly positive thing but is based on situations. Students realize that casual sex can be bad due to a bad experience but they don't see the action as bad if everyone's happy.

Appendix:

Interview questions:

1. How did you start dating?

2. How do your views on college relationship different from high school relationships?

3. Why did you decide to define the relationship?

4. Are your parents divorced or together?

5. Why did you choose to be in a relationship?

6. What is the most important aspect of your relationship in your life?

7. How do you perceive the hookup scene at DU?

8. What is your opinion on relationships impacting your future?

9. Has been in a relationship been a positive or negative experience?

10. What aspects of being single do you miss?

Observation notes:

Observations

Halls front desk

1am saturday night 05/06/2018

1:06 two girls came in one looked very upset and they said they would talk tomorrow

Someone's playing the piano and i'm debating if i wanna go yell at them to shut up

1:08 a boy approached the desk and complained about how the bar was very crowded and full of boys so he left

1:15 a couple came in with taco bell looking content and happy not drunk, a crowd of people walked in four guys and two girls went into the elevator together

A guy sat in the lobby waiting for someone and then a girl came in drunk gave him a hug and apologized saying she was sorry and fucked up and walked to the elevator together. The piano stopped and two girls walked out dressed up.

1:21 the kids playing the piano and being loud left.  A girl left wearing sweatpants, turns out she was just getting cookies nothing interesting

1:23 two boys walked in handed me a key they found on the walk back, they seemed drunk and nervous to approach me.

1:24 a girl walked in alone walked fast and looked very sad or upset looking at her phone

1:30 a guy walked in with a girl interesting they were touchy and got in the elevator together.

1:31 a guy came to the desk gave me a high five and told me  I was gonna be fine, also he is not wearing real pants and blazer he's attractive and is very drunk

1:35 a group of two boys and two girls walked in talking and laughing and all went into the elevator together

1:36 another boy and girl walked into together seemed kinda drunk. The girl had the same outfit on as everyone else

1:40 a girl came down left for a minute and then came back in with a boy holding his hand

1:44 a group came in who were definitely drunk 2 boys and 2 girls carrying fat shack being loud

1:46 a girl came in and talked about how a 40 year old man tried to dance with her and that wasn’t her issue she turned around and has pink eye so he backed off and this seemed to upset her?

1:50 two boys walked in a girl came down on the phone looking frantic

1:54 a group of friends came in drunk and split up to go to either tower but took forever and very loud

1:56 three girls walked in and one was walking slightly behind wiping her eyes looks like she was crying

1:58 two people walked in one girl one boy both looked at me told me they loved me and that it gets better than proceeded to tell me my job sucks.

2:00 two girls and two boys came back together and one was belligerently drunk

2:06 a girl and boy and another boy came in  and then she walked to the elevator and he yeled like are you going to bed and she said well i was unless you want to hang out and they both left after that

2:09 a girl gave me a mustard packet and told me she loved me

2:27 someone ordered jimmy johns and gave me a chocolate chip cookie

References: 

Your Life. (2013, September). USA Today Magazine, 142(2820), 6-9.

References

Abc, N. (26, July). Study on College Hookups. Abc News. Retrieved from https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=126813&page=1

Elliot, L., Easterling, B., & Knox, D. (2016). “Taking Chances in Romantic Relationships”. College Student Journal,50(2), 241-245.

Grello, C., Welsh, D., & Harper, M. (2006). No Strings Attached: The Nature of Casual Sex in College Students. Journal of Sex Research,43(3), 255-267.

Knox, D., Vail-Smith, K., & Zusman, M. (2007). The Lonely College Male. International Journal of Men's Health,6(3), 273-279. doi:10.3149/jmh.0603.273

Monto, M., & Carey, A. (2014). A New Standard of Sexual Behavior? Are Claims Associated With the “Hookup Culture” Supported by General Social Survey Data? Journal of Sex Research,51(6), 605-615.

Owen, J. (2010). 'Hooking Up' Among College Students: Demographic and Psychosocial Correlates. Archives of Sexual Behavior,39(3), 653-663.

Vujic, K. (2018, March 21). In college relationships, whoever cares less wins. Boston Globe.

Weiss, S. (2017, January 13). Debunking the Toxic Myths Around College Hookup Culture. Broadly. Retrieved from https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/9k9yv5/debunking-the-toxic-myths-around-college-hookup-culture

Whitton, S. W., Weitbrecht, E. M., Kuryluk, A. D., & Bruner, M. R. (2013). Committed Dating Relationships and Mental Health Among College Students. Journal of American College Health,61(3), 176-183. doi:10.1080/07448481.2013.773903

[zunerakhanwrit1133du-blog]

Lit Review

The relationships formed in college are interesting applications of the way students are raised.  A lot of research has been conducted in the past decade to understand more about them. The relationships formed in college serve as a foundation for the relationships formed in adult life. On a majority of college campuses, a prominent hookup culture has emerged. Studies have been conducted about college relationships and how they’ve changed or stayed the same, and factors that could influence someone’s choice of being in a relationship or participating in casual consensual sex. People have researched how psychosocial and demographic factors influence how people behave in intimate scenarios. Studies have also been conducted on casual sex in college and how and if hooking up has changed in the past decade. The age range that a lot of research focuses on in this context is people aged from 17- 30 but a median age of 20. Hooking up in college is not a choice determined just by the individual but is influenced by many external factors and the choice to be in a relationship is also influenced by external influences.

Gender

Gender influences how people perceive and behave in relationships. There have been studies conducted that confirm the notation that men and women are raised to form different relationships. A study on college males found that men are less likely to be involved in a love relationship and know how to make friends (Knox). A different study found that men are more likely than women to engage in casual relationships and are more likely to drink than women (Elliot). Men and women behave differently in social situations and based on current day studies this leads to different relationships expectations. Men who are unable to make friends and drink more are probably more likely to hook up rather than get into relationships not because they want to but because they’re incapable. Current studies have highlighted a divide between males and females. Males tend to want casual relationships while women want commitment. In college relationships men have the advantage of caring less because its seen as masculine to be disinterested and detached (Vujic). A study also found that men are taught to seek sex and not a relationship in college (Knox). The masculine image that college men try to conform to impacts the relationships they form with women or in general. The nature of causal relationships in college has caused a negative effect on females, females tend to hide their true feelings because they fear their feelings won’t be reciprocated by their partner (Vujic). The desire women show for commitment in the face of so many causal encounters suggest they fear asserting their true wishes. (Abc).  Are women really hiding their true feelings or are women breaking free from sexual norms and engaging in casual sex because they want to? The way women have been raised impacts how they behave when they are adults, girls are told to behave and look pretty. It’s taught to women to please men regardless of what they feel. In regards to hooking up women typically view it as a negative experience (Owen). Two different studies found that women have more depressive symptoms than males in regards to hooking up (Grello) and that when women are in committed relationships they show less depressive symptoms (Whitton). Women displaying these attitudes and opinions suggest that casual sex is a negative experience for them. Women want commitment not casual sex according to recent data they are suppose to be happier in relationships.  But a study found that lack of commitment was not the source of their negative  hook up experiences. A study found that women view casual sex as negative not because they want commitment but because there consent and pleasure is discounted (Weiss). So if it is a negative experience for women why do they engage in casual sex? A study looked at why people engage in hooks up and found, women engage in casual sex to please their partner while males do it to increase status of experience (Grello). One study found that 47.5% of males engage in hookups while only 33% of women do (Monto). Another study found no significant gap in the amount of each gender who choose to engage in hookups (Owen).  These differences in data indicates that there is no common trend based on gender and participation in casual hookups. “The hookup culture is no longer a women vs man problem. Women can want sex and men might not want that.” (Weiss). Current day research finds that gender is a influence on how someone will perceive casual sex. Multiple studies have connected multiple traits of each gender that contribute to the view they have on casual sex.

Demographic Factors

Research has been conducted to investigate how demographic factors could influence an individual in regards to sexual situations and relationships. The research and literature that were examined had a majority of the respondents in the age group of 17 - 50, with the median age of 18 or 20. These studies looked at if certain demographic factors correlated to participation in hooking up. One study investigated grade, race and marital status of parents (Knox). Knox investigated how these factors influenced the students loneliness and how the student reacted to social situations of forming relationships. In college, students display a lot of risky behaviors such as engaging in unprotected sex and binge drinking. Both behaviors are related to casual sex. In regards to taking these risks in college relationships, demographic factors played a role. It was found that males and seniors were more likely to take risks than anyone else ( Elliot). Another study looked at religiosity of college kids and wanted to see if being religious affected the desire of students to hook up. A connection was found between religiosity and hooking up, women who were religious images in casual sex less while it didn’t matter for religious males (Owen). A study found that the hookup culture is driven by a small slice of white heterosexuals, Greek life members and athletes (Weiss). There seem to be many variables present in determining how someone will view casual sex or relationships. Hooking up isn’t for everyone and neither are relationships, but do outside factors such as demographic background effect which one people will choose?

Casual Sex:

There have been claims of  increasing hook up cultures on college campuses but recent research has found that this is not necessarily the case. While it is true that the college environment has become more sexualized, sexual behavior has remained constant for the past 25 years (Your Life). Since 1988 there hasn’t been an incline in sexual patterns, frequency of sex or sexual partners (Monto). Despite the consistency in the sexual behavior of college students there has been a growing disapproval of the hookup culture. In order to truly gauge what a hookup culture is it’s important for their to be a definition of what hooking up is. ¾ of students agree that hooking up is when people get together and don’t expect anything else (ABC). A study investigated the nature of casual sex in college and found that there are fewer expectations among college students so there is more casual sex and the attitudes regarding sex has become casual (Owen). A study found that hooking up occurs more in the college scene (Monto). College students have lower expectations in regards to sexual relationships and sex occurs more frequently due to these low expectations. These low expectations and causal views can be seen as a negative thing because sex is normalized. An interview by a vice journalist of Lisa Wade sought to debunk toxic myths about the hookup culture and figure out if it was a positive thing or a negative thing. She believes that the hookup culture needs to be healthier. “If students would like to participate in casual sexual encounters, it needs to be done in a more kind way. Right now, the rules for sexual engagement are so much about denying any kind of interpersonal connection that students go overboard and they end up being really discourteous, sometimes really rude or cruel, in an effort to perform disinterest. So, we need a healthier hookup culture, and we need many more sexual cultures on campus to compete with it.” Sexual encounters can be good or bad depending on how the people involved are treated. Why are people treated badly in casual sexual relationships? Casual sex is easy and fun and there’s no emotional attachment while relationships are taxing and hard work (Vujic). The lack of the emotional attachment between the people could be the reason why casual sex could be a negative experience.  Relationships are built off mutual respect and care for each other while hookups are based on desire and in the moment thinking. When engaging in a hook up the other person might not believe that they have to treat you with respect and that’s where it becomes a negative thing. Some people believe that there should be a reduce in people accepting the hookup culture (Whitton).

Defining relationships:

Current research seems to suggest that college students want nothing to do with traditional relationships but would rather engage in casual sex. Healthy committed relationships have been proven to protect students mental health in college, and they provide young adults with a sense of social identity and accomplishment (Weiss). For college students this seems ideal, so why are college students opting out of relationships?  Lisa Wade believes that this is the case because there is no competitor to the hookup culture and students who want relationships can’t find them. She also says that people feel the need to engage in the hook up scene. Another study found that because students have the option to engage in frequent sexual encounters without the expectation of a continuous relationship there has been a decline in traditional dating practices (Monto). Relationships are declining in college because why go through the hard work of a relationship when you can have casual sex with no label? Why do students find sexual encounters more appealing than traditional relationships? A study found that college students view romantic relationships as a distraction from their futures (Vujic). Due to recent social norms people are taught to get an education and get married later ( your life). So education is a priority over a relationship but despite this 63% of women want to meet their husband in college and 83% say marriage is a huge goal (ABC).  Another study found that there are no longer clear steps, stages or statuses if dating on college campuses anymore, and defining relationships has changed (Owen). In fact college relationships are rarely defined anymore (Vujic). “When asked to define their relationship 53% said they were emotionally involved with one person, 30% were not interested in dating, 12% where dating different people and 4% were married” (Elliot). Students are unclear about what event defines a relationship anymore. People become emotionally involved in one person but don’t consider is a relationship while other people choose to date but don’t consider it exclusive. Defining relationships in college has become a confusing thing for students because there’s so many different  types of relationships now.

Alcohol Use:

The current college culture encompasses a lot of partying and drinking. Studies have been conducted investigating if alcohol use is linked to sexual encounters. Alcohol has a direct link to casual sex for both genders and 65% of people who engaged in a sexual encounter used alcohol before (Grello). Another study also reinforces the link between drinking and hooking up (Owen). This study also found that more alcohol use is consistent with more hooking up behavior for both women and men, and came to the conclusion that consuming alcohol makes the sexual behavior more likely (Owen). Current research and literature confirm that alcohol and casual sex are linked but is this part of the college culture or something to be worried about? Alcohol in the context of college students is used as a social lubricant but it can be used as a manipulative tool as well (Monto). 40% of kids aged 18-20 year olds binge drink and 30% could be classified as alcohol dependent (Whitton). Alcohol use isn’t just linked to casual relationships but too committed relationships as well. Relationships prevent both genders from being problematic drinkers due to the fact people in relationships have less motivation to go out and party ( Whitton).  Alcohol use has an effect on students and their ability to be successful in school and relationships. An increase in alcohol use has been proven to increase sexual behavior while relationships cause a decrease in alcohol use. It seems that in college alcohol is the instigator of the hookup culture.

Conclusion:

There has been a lot of relevant information published about college relationships and factors that influence them but there are also a lot of gaps. There is a lot of controversies in the concept that gender determines the kind of relationship that will be formed. Have the opinions about casual sex changed? Are women more open to sexuality as a positive thing rather than a negative thing? Is there a difference in the views of the gender in regards to casual sex or commitment? Has there been a decrease in expectations of college students in regards to sex? Has sex been normalized?  Is the hookup culture negative or a positive thing? Do college students when engaging in a hookup care about the other person? Is there a prominent hookup culture on college campuses? Does drinking and partying lead to more people hooking up? Do college students solely go out to find someone to have sex with? With my research, I hope to answer those questions.

References

Abc, N. (26, July). Study on College Hookups. Abc News. Retrieved from https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=126813&page=1

Elliot, L., Easterling, B., & Knox, D. (2016). “Taking Chances in Romantic Relationships”. College Student Journal,50(2), 241-245.

Grello, C., Welsh, D., & Harper, M. (2006). No Strings Attached: The Nature of Casual Sex in College Students. Journal of Sex Research,43(3), 255-267.

Knox, D., Vail-Smith, K., & Zusman, M. (2007). The Lonely College Male. International Journal of Men’s Health,6(3), 273-279. doi:10.3149/jmh.0603.273

Monto, M., & Carey, A. (2014). A New Standard of Sexual Behavior? Are Claims Associated With the “Hookup Culture” Supported by General Social Survey Data? Journal of Sex Research,51(6), 605-615.

Owen, J. (2010). ‘Hooking Up’ Among College Students: Demographic and Psychosocial Correlates. Archives of Sexual Behavior,39(3), 653-663.

Vujic, K. (2018, March 21). In college relationships, whoever cares less wins. Boston Globe.

Weiss, S. (2017, January 13). Debunking the Toxic Myths Around College Hookup Culture. Broadly. Retrieved from https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/9k9yv5/debunking-the-toxic-myths-around-college-hookup-culture

Whitton, S. W., Weitbrecht, E. M., Kuryluk, A. D., & Bruner, M. R. (2013). Committed Dating Relationships and Mental Health Among College Students. Journal of American College Health,61(3), 176-183. doi:10.1080/07448481.2013.77390

[zunerakhanwrit1133du-blog]

Vignette

I stare at my laptop screen unaware of the nightmare that is soon to follow. I navigate through KT’s Tumblr and struggle to comprehend the challenge associated with each post. At first glance I see simple instructions on how to construct an e-Portfolio, but as time progresses and I read each detail associated with each component I realize this won’t be easy at all. The e-portfolio that I am creating encompasses all of my struggles from this quarter, but it also showcases my successes in research and writing. In my e-portfolio, everything I have learned in Writ 1133 this quarter will be applied. Including rhetorical situations, metacognition, and reflection. When I came into this class I didn’t even know what those words really meant, I just thought writing required a pencil and the alphabet.

I started off this quarter believing that my writ class would be the easiest class I would take, but now after 10 weeks, I realize it was one of my most challenging courses. At the beginning of the quarter, I was told I had to compose a Lit Review, Essay, and a Theory of Writing. I remember at the time I thought it was gonna be easy. It could be bullshited the night before with no sort of revision. But I have never been more wrong about anything in my life. I came into this quarter with a basic understanding of writing, but now I am leaving it realizing that writing is a complex entity that no one truly understands. The way we write is constantly changing and we have to grow as writers to grow as people. If I take away anything from this quarter it’s that revision is a necessary part of the writing process. The first draft typically is the worst one you’ll write. It can get discouraging but you keep going until you can’t anymore. Embracing failure as a writer is something that took me a while to be okay with.

My Lit Review required the most revision out of any piece in my portfolio. The Lit Review was a challenge for me and I still don’t understand it entirely. This composition tested my ability to write for a genre I wasn’t well versed in. My first Lit Review will not be my best, but it won’t be my last either. At one point or another, we learn from our failures. I struggle when it comes to analyzation and synthesis (my whole body tensed up while typing up those horrible words). It’s not my fortay to write for specific genres and fit specific structures, but I learned how to do it this quarter through a painstaking process of trial and error. Despite all of the struggles and failures, I learned. I am so grateful that I am now able to dissect research journals and papers. I can navigate databases that aren't google and can compose my own thoughts based on others findings. Analyzing papers and making my own comments was something I struggled with but I  failed forward and here I am. Analyzing data became a common trend in this class, after the lit review we had to go research and find our own data. At this point in the quarter I wanted to give up but shockingly I didn’t.

After analyzing other research conducted on college students, I started to find gaps in the information. What makes college relationships so different and intriguing from any other relationship? Why is there such a huge media representation of the college hookup culture? After conducting research I had to figure out if my data answered my questions. This portion of my portfolio required a lot of analyzing and tying things together. I had to connect dots between surveys, interviews, and observations. I struggle when it comes to finding common themes and determining the relevance of data. I didn’t even think I would have to do that in a writing class!  Finding connections between three sources is hard enough when the sources are professionally done, but when you conduct the research yourself it’s a different ball game. My problem was looking at my data and being like what am I even looking for? If you haven't caught on yet, I am not good at reading between the lines but after this essay, I feel like I’m improving. I found connections in my data which fit the themes and questions I was asking. Tying together everything into one cohesive paper gave me an amazing feeling. I learned more and more about my own writing process.

Writing is a way of expression. There's not one way to write, there are different genres but ultimately the way someone writes is up to them. I developed a theory of writing through trial and error. I failed a lot this quarter. I failed to comprehend prompts, readings and to answer homework posts. But throughout the whole class, I wrote the way I wanted to. I learned my own style and found my own voice. I learned so much about learning how to write. It’s a weird concept, in my opinion, to learn your writing style and process by reading others writing but hey somehow it works. I think my main issue with this quarter was having my writing revised by others. For me, writing has always been an escape and I never wrote for others, I wrote for myself. Learning how to write for different audiences and analyzing rhetorical situations was a big challenge for me but I overcame it, despite some minor anxiety.

Writing is a key part of the research process. Having a basic understanding of how to write is essential to succeed in the real world no matter what your major is. This quarter I got to write about relationships but the process I learned can be applied to multiple topics. I’m a science major but I have to be able to write lab reports and lit reviews or else my findings will be irrelevant.