Comfort in Counsel: Receiving Advice Promotes Well-Being and Feelings of Belonging among Post-Secondary Students

Abstract

Every year, thousands of Canadian students begin their post-secondary education. This major life transition can lead new students to feel anxious, unprepared, and isolated. Here, I consider whether receiving advice from a fellow student can help newcomers in their transition to university. Specifically, I conducted one well-powered, pre-registered field study to investigate whether receiving advice from a previous student leads to greater emotional and social well-being compared to receiving a campus map. In addition, I examined whether students had received advice before starting university, and if not, whether they wished they had. To do so, I recruited 941 SFU students during the start of the Fall 2022 or 2023 semester. Students were assigned to receive either a piece of advice from a former SFU student or a campus map. Afterward, participants reported their current positive emotions, feelings of social connection, belongingness, and appreciation. Participants also indicated whether they had received advice before starting their university studies, and if not, whether they wished they had. Consistent with my pre-registered hypotheses, participants assigned to receive advice (vs. a campus map) reported greater positive emotions, social connection, belonging, and appreciation. Moreover, while most participants reported receiving advice before starting university, the majority of those who did not wished that they had. These findings demonstrate the emotional and social benefits of receiving advice. As such, people, programs, and institutions may consider providing opportunities for the promising power of counsel in enhancing student well-being during a salient life transition.

Faculty Supervisor: Laura B. Aknin, Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University