Age and Disclosure of Medical, Mental Health, and Learning Differences to Faculty

Abstract

This study compares experiences of traditional-aged college students (≤ 24) to nontraditional-aged students (≥ 25) in disclosing medical and mental health problems or learning differences to faculty. Two studies representing qualitative (Study 1; n = 39) and quantitative (Study 2; n = 190) data were collected from participants attending two different 4-year public universities. Nontraditional-aged students used the strategy of practical focus/obtaining resources more frequently (35.48% vs. 0%) and reported more positive experiences disclosing to faculty than traditional-aged students.