Reference List Entry:

Simmons, Denise R., and Julie P. Martin. 2014. "Developing Effective Engineering Fictive Kin to Support Undergraduate First-Generation College Students." Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering 20 (3): 279-292. http://doi.org/10.1615/JWomenMinorScienEng.2014010979.

About this Journal Article:

The use of fictive kin by African American communities is a longstanding practice. Beyond extended families, fictive kin are relationships elevated to the status of familial and have been effective in creating nuanced support networks, and tangible social capital for historically underrepresented minority groups (HURM). The authors find that first-generation students who create a network of fictive kinships across peers, faculty, student life, and administrators associate their persistence, self-efficacy, sense of belonging and perceived inclusion with the engagement in these relationships. Relationship building should consider the effectiveness of a fictive kinship models and approaches.

Annotation contributed by Dr. Buffie Longmire-Avital