Frame-Changing Experiences and the Freshman Year: Catalyzing a Commitment to Service-Work and Social Action

Abstract

Interviews with college students committed to volunteer work reveal that a majority of these students can point to a single academic experience that deeply influenced their commitment. These experiences typically occur during the freshman year of college and alter the ‘frame’ through which these students view their community and/or their role within the community. Here, I offer a model demonstrating the role of these ‘frame-changing experiences’ in catalyzing a young adult’s commitment to service-work and social action.