Preliminary Investigation of the Relationships Between Involvement in Student Affairs Professional Development and Margin in Life

Abstract

Involvement in student affairs professional development was investigated using McClusky’s (1963) Power Load Margin (PLM) theory from the adult education field. The PLM theory is a framework for identifying sources of stress (load) and power in one’s life; the amount of power available to handle stress is called margin in life (MIL). This study employed a correlational research design to investigate if relationships existed between involvement in professional development outlets and activities, and MIL scores for student affairs professionals. Sixty-five (60.7%) student affairs professionals from a Midwestern university participated in the study by completing a Professional Development Questionnaire (created by the researcher) and the MIL Scale, developed by Stevenson (1982) and based upon the PLM theory. Results of correlational analyses indicated a slight, but not significant (p = .05), negative relationship between MIL scores and the number of career-related professional development outlets. No correlation was found between MIL scores and career-related professional development activities. Results of this preliminary study suggest the possibility that as the number of professional development outlets in which one was involved increased, one’s available power decreased. This study was one of the first PLM investigations of careerrelated professional development related to the student affairs field. Limitations included the small sample size from one university, and weak and insignificant correlations (at the .05 level). Additionally, this study did not address other life factors that could affect one’s MIL score, such as years in the field, position level, or other circumstances. The methods employed for this study could provide the basis for replication studies with larger samples.