Post-Traditional Students’ Perceptions of Mattering: The Role of Faculty and Student Interaction

Abstract

A post-traditional learner is a student who has at least one of the following characteristics: is financially independent, delayed enrollment, employed full-time, enrolled part-time, has children, obtained a GED or high school certificate, and/or is a single parent. This study addresses how faculty-student interactions influence post-traditional students’ perceptions of mattering. The purpose of this study was to explore the student’s perceptions of mattering within faculty and post-traditional students’ relationships. In addition, this research used existing characteristics to describe students on a post-traditional spectrum as minimally, moderately, or highly post-traditional. This study seeks to discover the relationship between post-traditional learners and interactions with faculty members. Mattering is a feeling that one matters to another individual or that one is concerned with another’s well-being. This study found that post-traditional students rated their perceptions of mattering as moderately high regarding faculty-student relationships. Additionally, post-traditional students did not differ in their perceptions of mattering based on the amount of post-traditional characteristics they possessed.