Teaching Sociology

http://tso.sagepub.com/ A National Survey of American Higher Education Capstone Practices in Sociology and Psychology
Robert C. Hauhart and Jon E. Grahe Teaching Sociology 2012 40: 227 originally published online 3 April 2012 DOI: 10.1177/0092055X12441715 The online version of this article can be found at: http://tso.sagepub.com/content/40/3/227

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441715
1715Hauhart and GraheTeaching Sociology 2012

TSOXXX10.1177/0092055X1244

Article

A National Survey of American Higher Education Capstone Practices in Sociology and Psychology
Robert C. Hauhart1 and Jon E. Grahe2

Teaching Sociology 40(3) 227241 American Sociological Association 2012 DOI: 10.1177/0092055X12441715 http://ts.sagepub.com

Abstract
Previous research on capstones in sociology and psychology has suggested that there is a typical capstone experience required by three quarters of all four-year colleges and universities in the United States. This article reports results from a national survey that confirm that sociology and psychology capstone courses conform generally to a common format. The findings further indicate that factors related to student limits and time limits predominate with respect to those variables that produce less successful course outcomes. A review of the social science capstone literature and the pedagogical best practices literature suggests that student limitations and time limitations can be attenuated by curricular, structural, and resourceallocation changes.

Keywords
capstone course, active learning, interdisciplinary courses Recent research has suggested that capstone or senior seminar courses are a common feature of American undergraduate sociology and psychology curricula (Hauhart and Grahe 2010; McKinney and Busher 2011). Until very recently, however, capstone studies in sociology and psychology have not, by and large, sought comparative data between institutions nor addressed with any perceptiveness and rigor the organizational and pedagogical features of capstone courses. This lack of comparative data has made it difficult to develop a broader understanding of the nature and role of capstone courses within sociology and psychology. Beginning in 2007 in sociology, Kain (2007) inaugurated research into the general availability of capstones and senior seminars. Hauhart and Grahe (2010) then extended, and broadened, this line of research for both sociology and psychology through a regional survey and also explored the nature, characteristics, and mechanics of the typical capstone course in sociology and psychology. Recently, in a smaller comparative study, McKinney and Busher (2011) confirmed a number of those findings with respect to sociology. In psychology, Perlman and McCann (1999a, 1999b, 2005) produced a series of studies that identified capstones or senior seminars as central to the core psychology curriculum in American higher education. However, their work did little to contribute to our understanding of the mechanics of those courses and the pedagogical methods employed. This article reports the results of a national survey regarding sociology and psychology capstones. The national survey project was developed to build on the regional survey data we previously reported (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). On one hand,
1 2

Saint Martin's University, Lacey, WA, USA Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, WA, USA

Corresponding Author: Robert Hauhart, Department of Society and Social Justice, Saint Martins University, 5000 Abbey Way, Lacey, WA 98503 Email: rhauhart@stmartin.edu

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we used a survey instrument that was designed to replicate many of the questions posed in the regional survey. One recent recommendation for future capstone studies specifically called for expanding the sample of institutions studied as an important contribution to this area of research (McKinney and Busher 2011), and we agreed with this goal. The results of our national survey generally confirm our earlier data regarding the typical capstone course in sociology and psychology. We do not report that data in full detail here although we plan to report it in a separate article. More importantly for the purposes of capstone pedagogy, we developed questions for our national survey directed at determining those factors that impose limitations on the typical capstone model and affect it negatively by producing less than successful capstone course outcomes. Although there has been little systematic investigation about limitations in capstone courses, many researchers have discussed anecdotal problems with successful completion of capstone projects (Hauhart and Grahe 2010; McKinney and Busher 2011; Siegfried 2001). We wanted to investigate in more depth the problems that emerge in capstone courses and whether those problems vary depending on institutional characteristics. Our national survey results provide a basis for examining these issues and for comparison with the capstone literature from other disciplines, notably political science and economics. Generally, our results tend to confirm many of the core principles and practices that studies from these related disciplines have identified as pedagogically sound. Comments we received in response to openended questions on our regional survey suggest that among the more important factors that impede successful capstone course outcomes are student limit factors and time factors (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). Knowing this permitted us to examine the existing sociology and psychology capstone and pedagogical best practices literature with a fresh eye to identify practices that we should ask about in our national survey. This process led to better identification of those features that support, or retard, effective capstone courses. We then discuss the implications of our present national survey results and the related literature for best practices with respect to organizing, conducting, and evaluating the sociology and psychology capstone experience.

Teaching Sociology 40(3)

Method Sampling Procedure

Schools were randomly selected from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Learning list of colleges and universities. We sampled only institutions that offered bachelors or higher-level degrees since our prior research indicated that twoyear colleges seldom offer capstone courses (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). From the total of 1,856 institutions, we attempted to select a representative national sample by dividing the total universe of cases into nine geographic regions. We then randomly selected 33 percent of the institutions from each region (New England, n = 48; Mid East, n = 106; Great Lakes, n = 91; Plains, n = 72; Southeast, n = 151; Southwest, n = 45; Rocky Mountains, n = 25; Far West, n = 66; and Outlying Areas, n = 15). This yielded a stratified random sample of 619 institutions. We used a Google search to find each institutions official Web page. We then examined the psychology and sociology department Web pages to obtain the chairpersons names, e-mail addresses, orif necessaryphone numbers (n = 15). Of 1,238 possible contacts, only 735 were available to complete the survey.1 The solicitation e-mail to the chairperson of each department asked that he or she refer our invitation to participate in the survey to the person who teaches the capstone or the person most familiar with the departments capstone. After the initial mailing, two follow-up e-mails were sent in a common follow-up practice to increase the response rate (Cresswell 1994). From the three sets of e-mails, 187 respondents consented to participate and completed some questions on the survey. This represented a 25.44 percent response rate. Although slightly lower than the 28 percent response rate of our regional survey (Hauhart and Grahe 2010), the rate is within the range anticipated for Web-based surveys (Porter and Whitcomb 2003; Shannon and Bradshaw 2002; Van Selm and Jankowski 2006). School demographic information. Table 1 presents the percentage of the population from each degree type and financial source that was contacted and responded to the survey. These data clearly demonstrate that very few private, for-profit schools were contacted (2.01 percent total) because there was no department or there was no contact information. Of

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Table 1. Presence of Capstones across Type of Institution Not Contacteda (n) 58 144 83 29 82 48 9 14 10 477

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Degree BA MA PhD

Financial Control Public Private Private, for profit Public Private Private, for profit Public Private Private, for profit Total

Contacted (n) 40 218 1 171 166 2 107 56 0 761

Contacted (%) 40.82 60.22 1.19 85.50 66.94 4.00 92.24 80.00 0.00 62.42

Sample (n) 4 25

Responded Capstone (%) Offered (%) 10.00 11.42b 100.00 84.00 85.20 92.00 58.80 90.00 80.70

27 50

15.79 29.76b

51 30

47.66 53.57

187

24.57

a Institutions that were not contacted included those that did not have sociology or psychology majors, included no contact information on their Web pages, or provided all online information in Spanish. b No distinction was made between nonprofit and for-profit schools within the sample. Therefore, response rate includes all private schools that were contacted.

the 187 respondents completing the survey, there were more representatives of public (56.1 percent) than of private (43.9 percent) schools. Considering both who was contacted (see Table 1, column 4) and the response rate (see Table 1, column 6), institutions that are underrepresented include four-year schools and publicly funded masters programs.

Materials and Procedure

The Capstone Survey was administered using SurveyMonkey.com. Recipients of our e-mail solicitation were advised of the nature of the study, invited to participate, and asked to indicate their consent by proceeding. Following the protocol approved by the institutional review board (IRB) at both authors institutions, participants were treated ethically, including being promised anonymity, although respondents could voluntarily provide contact information to receive a summary report of our results. The Web-based survey included seven pages: an informed consent page, five question pages, and a debriefing/contact page. A copy of the survey is available at https://sites.google.com/a/ plu.edu/capstone-survey/capstone-survey. The survey began with questions measuring institutional

characteristics (i.e., public vs. private, type of degree awarded, and institution size) and the presence of a capstone course. If respondents answered no, they were asked two follow-up questions and then offered the opportunity to go to the debriefing/contact page and end the survey. Those who continued with the survey responded to questions replicating our regional survey (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). We believe that replication in the social sciences is sometimes undervalued and thus believe that one beneficial outcome of our national study is the fact that we pursued some of the same questions posed by our earlier regional study (Park 2004). Additional questions explored factors that interfere with course project completion and address the likely outcomes of those projects. Capstone course characteristics. These questions asked about course features; all included an other category for unexpected responses. Whenever multiple response options were included in a question, the available responses were randomly ordered. Capstone course characteristic questions asked about various organizational and outcome variables. Capstone characteristics that are reported in this article are included in Table 2.

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Teaching Sociology 40(3)

Table 2. Logistic Regressions Demonstrating the Relationship between School Demographics and the Presence of Course Characteristics Degree (Reference = PhD) Project focus Extended paper Review primary research Major project Data collection Data analysis Integration across discipline Integration with general education Internship Class activities Instructor lectures Instructor-led discussion Student-led discussion Common list of articles Common list of books Peer review of rough drafts Peer review of final papers Peer review of oral presentations % Sample (b) BA (b) 0.58 0.25 MA (b) 1.01** 0.93 Department (Reference = Sociology)

Psychology Combined Private Size Nagelkerke (2) (b) (b) (b) (R2) 0.25 0.46 0.78 0.58 0.35 0.18 0.69 0.40 0.83 0.87 0.66 0.15 0.81 0.24 0.85 0.20 0.62 0.57 0.27 0.48 0.68 1.05** 0.47 1.06** 0.48 0.04 0.06 0.85* 0.55 0.47 1.05* 0.37 0.74** .12 0.41 .07 0.17 0.52 0.49* 0.28 0.20 0.39 .07 .14 .11 .08 .04 .09 11.89* 7.92 7.49 16.26** 13.16** 9.44 3.56 8.42 20.83*** 18.49*** 6.81 16.95*** 9.95 4.91 5.78 2.74

76.0 1.06 58.9 0.21 51.4 0.06 47.3 1.06* 57.1 0.46 54.1 0.54 20.5 0.13 19.9 0.42 52.1 0.23 79.5 63.0 55.5 38.4 34.2 17.8 0.85 0.15 0.79 0.13 0.19 0.78

0.42 0.25 0.176 0.93** 0.48 0.80** 0.15 0.35 0.21 0.89 0.04 0.45

0.89** 0.20 0.50 0.73* 0.44 0.62 0.41 0.37 0.36 0.77 0.51 0.37 0.57 0.05 0.10 0.37

0.72** .18 0.91 0.13 0.27 0.16 0.42 0.27 0.10 .19 .06 .15 .09 .05 .06 .03

39.0 0.29

Note: Categorical variables are dummy coded (0, 1). Where there were more than two categories, the reference group is listed. Therefore, the degree comparisons represent differences from PhD programs, the department comparisons represent differences from sociology departments, and privately funded institutions are compared to publically funded institutions. *p < .10. **p < .05. ***p < .01.

Capstone course quality variables. Capstone course quality variables included those that interfered with effective completion of the capstone course, the nature of the projected course outcomes, and the evaluation of those outcomes. Respondents employed a four-item scale (never,

sometimes, frequently, always) to identify the degree to which the following conditions interfered with effective completion of the capstone project: (1) students being unprepared academically, (2) difficulty synthesizing a coherent paper, (3) difficulty getting IRB approval, (4) obtaining sufficient

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literature review in available time, (5) students not being motivated, (6) coming up with the research idea, (7) lack of time to analyze data, (8) finding appropriate methodology and/or study materials, (9) students maturity or emotional level, (10) faculty backgrounds being limited relative to students interests, (11) not enough time for faculty supervision, and (12) other. The order of the items was randomized, and participants were required to address each alternative before continuing. The form and disposition of capstone course outcomes were measured with the same four-item scale including the following common research reporting formats: (1) oral presentation in class, (2) poster presentation in class, (3) oral presentation on campus, (4) poster presentation on campus, (5) oral/poster at conference off campus, (6) papers being submitted for publication in undergraduate journal, (7) papers being submitted for publication in low-ranked journal, (8) papers being submitted for publication in medium-ranked journal, (9) papers being submitted for publication in high-ranked journal, and (10) papers being published in any journal. Again, the order of item presentation was randomized, and participants needed to respond to each item to continue with the survey. On the final page, respondents were thanked for their participation and provided a reference to our previously published report from our western U.S. regional survey (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). Participants also were invited to provide their contact information if they wanted a summary report of the findings of the present survey, with the promise of confidentiality.

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p < .001, where schools offering PhDs were less likely to offer capstones (70.4 percent) than were schools offering either masters degrees (89.6 percent) or bachelors degrees (86.2 percent). There were no meaningful differences between departments, 2(N = 187, df = 2) = 2.51, p = .285, with sociology (77.6 percent), psychology (79.5 percent), and combined (90.6 percent) departments all similar in the likelihood that they would offer capstones.

Absence of a Capstone
Of the 36 respondents whose schools did not offer capstone courses, 11 reported that their departments had not considered adding a course in the past 10 years. These were predominantly public institutions (10 of 11), and all offered graduate programs (10 PhD and 1 masters). The remaining 25 respondents reported considering such a course. Nine stated a course would soon be offered, 3 reported that a capstone was offered as an option or for honors students, and 2 stated there was a general education capstone course.3 For the remaining analyses, only departments that offered capstone courses are considered. Consistent with other online survey research, the dropout rate increased as the survey lengthened (Hoonakker and Carayon 2009; Horerger 2010). Therefore, subsample sizes for descriptive information include all the participants who responded, but inferential statistics were computed using listwise deletion (Cohen et al. 2003).

Characteristics of the Capstone Course4

Class activities were measured with two questions. One measured the focus of the capstone project (i.e., extended paper, some type of data collection), and the other measured common classroom activities (lectures, discussions, peer reviews). The percentages of respondents identifying each of the course requirements and outcomes as present in their courses are presented in the second column of Table 2. To determine whether programs offered different capstone courses, the school demographics were employed as predictors in a series of logistic regression analyses also presented in Table 2. Categorical variables included the degree offered (bachelors, masters, and doctorate), type of financial control (public and private), and department

Results Presence of a Capstone

A larger portion of the sample reported offering capstones (80.7 percent) than previous research results estimating 60 percent of schools offer senior capstones (Hauhart and Grahe 2010; Kain 2007; Perlman and McCann 1999a).2 Proportionally more private schools (90.00 percent) than public schools (67.86 percent) offered capstone courses, 2(N = 187, df = 1) = 11.86, p < .001. Furthermore, schools offering capstones differed in the highest degree they awarded, 2(N = 187, df = 2) = 10.06,

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(sociology, psychology, and combined). In addition, a standardized variable was computed to represent the size of the institution. Standardized institution size represents the average of three variables: number of students at the institution (M = 9255.16, SD = 10170.86), number who completed the major each year (M = 93.22, SD = 208.09), and number of faculty members (full-time equivalent) in the department (M = 11.76, SD = 10.25). When considering the eight logistic regressions evaluating capstone project focus, only two yielded statistically significantly models (data collection, R2 = .14; data analysis, R2 = .11). For both variables, psychology departments reported requiring their students to do this more than sociology departments. Also, four-year colleges were less likely to require data collection than programs that offered PhDs. In addition, larger schools were less likely to require data analyses. Other individual parameter coefficients emerged as statistically significant predictors of project focus variables but did not predict enough variability to make the model reliable. For example, private schools were less likely than were public schools to state that projects integrated material across the discipline (b = 1.05, p < .05) and less likely to include an internship (b = 1.06, p < .05). Considering the 8 logistic regressions evaluating common class activities, 3 yielded statistically significant models. However, 2 of these regressions failed to yield any significant parameter coefficients (instructor-led discussion and common list of research articles). The third variable, instructor lectures, revealed that programs that offered masters degrees were less likely to do this than those that offered PhDs and that larger schools were more likely to use lectures. There were no individual coefficients that yielded significant findings at the = .05 level. Together, these 16 regressions highlight that the types of courses being offered across the sample were affected by school characteristics, but these did not generate strong predictive models for the type of project focus or classroom activities. Thus, it is difficult to classify the type of capstone course by considering institutional characteristics. If institutions employ similar methods in their capstone courses, do they face similar challenges when administering those courses?

Teaching Sociology 40(3)

Problems with project completion and relationship to course outcomes. Although major projects are not expected in all capstone courses, the majority do require some sort of research project. To understand what interferes with course projects, participants responded to 12 likely causes. Eight respondents stated that these did not apply in the open-ended response and were dropped from analyses to minimize bias. The means and standard deviations are reported in Table 3. Because there was strong multicollinearity between these variables, we reduced the number of variables using a principal components analysis (Stevens 1992). The scree plot suggested four independent factors explaining 66 percent of the variance. The factor solution using a varimax rotation and Kaiser normalization presented in Table 3 reveals that these four factors represent (1) student limitations such as preparation, maturity, and motivation; (2) student time limits regarding data collection/analysis or getting IRB approval, (3) limits in identifying a research idea, associated literature, or methodology, and (4) faculty limitations of time and expertise. Using regression weightings, factor scores were created for each respondent. Having just considered the limitations for completing capstone course research, respondents were asked to estimate the likely outcomes of these projects. This list included oral and poster presentations to the class, at an on-campus conference, or at an off-campus conference. In addition, the list included submitting the paper to an undergraduate journal or a low-, medium-, or high-ranked journal. Finally, the list included getting the research published in any journal. Following the same principal components analysis dimension-reduction procedures, we reduced these variables to three factors (all eigenvalues > 1) representing 67 percent of the total variance. The means, standard deviations, and factor loadings of the three project outcomes are presented in Table 4, demonstrating that oral presentations in class were more common (M = 3.11, SD = 1.09) than other types of conference presentations (M = 1.70, SD = 0.58) and that both were more common than submitting or publishing the project (M = 1.31, SD = 0.39). Each of these three capstone project outcomes was examined using a three-step hierarchical linear regression. The first step included school characteristics

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Table 3. Means, Standard Deviations, and Rotated Factor Loadings of Variables That Interfere with Course Project Completion Factors Limiting Course Project Completion Limitations Students unmotivated Students unprepared Synthesis into coherent paper Students maturity/emotions Collect data Analyze data Getting institutional review board approval Research idea Obtaining literature Appropriate methodology Faculty background/expertise Faculty time M 1.98 1.95 2.24 2.01 1.76 1.66 1.43 1.77 1.69 1.53 1.43 1.82 SD .55 .63 .71 .58 .77 .71 .67 .71 .74 .65 .61 .78 Factor 1 .77 .71 .67 .61 .14 .12 .01 .35 .16 .13 .11 .22 Factor 2 .05 .02 .10 .17 .85 .85 .69 .29 .02 .32 .09 .16 Factor 3 .06 .41 .05 .16 .06 .11 .35 .47 .78 .72 .56 .12

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Factor 4 .01 .01 .25 .32 .22 .26 .32 .32 .08 .11 .58 .81

Note: Factor 1 = student limits; factor 2 = data collection/analyses; factor 3 = background/methods; factor 4 = faculty limits. The extraction method is principal components analysis, and the rotation method is varimax with Kaiser normalization. n = 131.

Table 4. Descriptive Statistics and Factor Loadings of Possible Outcomes of Capstone Projects Oral Presentation in Class Presentation .97 .12 .03 .06 .01 .09 .06 .09 .17 .10 .08 .50 .71 .78 .67 .40 .20 .32 .10 .12

Outcome Oral presentation in class Poster presentation in class Oral presentation on campus Poster presentation on campus Oral/poster presentation at conference Submit to undergraduate journal Submit to low-ranked journal Submit to medium-ranked journal Submit to high-ranked journal Paper published in a journal

M 3.11 1.61 1.89 1.79 1.67 1.44 1.33 1.27 1.19 1.46

SD 1.08 0.84 0.93 0.90 0.63 0.50 0.47 0.46 0.41 0.56

Submission .02 .11 .14 .15 .46 .70 .78 .80 .82 .90

Note: The extraction method is principal components analysis, and the rotation method is varimax with Kaiser normalization. n = 131.

(bachelors and masters dummy-coded variables, private versus public, and the standardized size variable). The second step compared psychology and combined departments against sociology departments. The final step introduced the four interference factors

(student limitations, time/IRB, methods/research limits, and faculty constraints). All three regressions are presented in Table 5. Each of these regressions highlights distinct relationships between limiting factors and outcomes

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Table 5. Predicting Outcomes with Hierarchical Regression Oral Step Bachelors Masters Private school School size Psychology Combined Student limits Time/institutional review board limits Research limits Faculty limits Project minimums Step R2change Model R2 Model adjusted R2 Model df 1 .18* .11 .20* .05 2 .17* .10 .20* .04 .02 .04 3 .19* .10 .24* .02 .03 .00 .05 .02 .19** .05 .03 .04 .09 .01 11,119 1 Conference 2 3

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Submission 1 .01 .06 .05 .07 2 .00 .09 .06 .05 .14 .00 3 .07 .07 .06 .07 .13 .00 .17* .06 .14 .29**** .14* .15**** .19**** .11 11,119

.21** .21** .15 .20** .20** .22** .29*** .28*** .21* .17 .18 .10 .00 .07 .10 .13 .06 .31***

.05 .05 .02 4,126

.00 .05 .01 6,124

.10** .10** .07 4,126

.01 .11** .06 6,124

.01 .02 .13 .10 .02 .21**** .02 .14 .01 11,119 4,126

.02 .04 .01 6,124

Note: Bachelors and masters were both dummy coded (1, 0) so that regressions compare differences between these programs and those that offer PhDs. Psychology and combined departments are similarly dummy coded so that regressions compare differences to sociology departments. Private schools are dummy coded such that regressions compare differences with public schools. *p < .10. **p < .05. ***p < .01. ****p < .001.

beyond the classroom. The regression examining the likelihood that a project would be presented orally to classmates yielded no statistically significant models (all R2change < .05), and the only parameter that achieved the p < .05 level was research limits (scarce ideas and resources), b = .19. Bachelorsonly institutions were somewhat less likely than PhD programs (b = .19) and private schools were less likely than public schools (b = .24) to report these as likely outcomes. The regression examining any type of conference presentation revealed reliable effects at both step 1, school characteristics (R2change = .10), and step 3, limit factors (R2change = .10). In step 1, both bachelors (b = .21) and masters programs were more likely than PhD programs, and private schools were more likely than public schools (b = .29) to have these outcomes. In step 3, time/IRB limits (b = .31) was the only limitation factor that predicted conference outcomes. Only step 3 (limitation factors) predicted increased submissions/publications (R2change = .15, p < .001). Here, student limits (b = .17) were negatively

related, while faculty limits5 (b = .29) and project minimums (b = .14) were positively related to submissions.

Discussion Capstone Course Presence

Our national findings confirm a number of the results we earlier reported based on our western U.S. regional survey of sociology and psychology departments regarding capstone practices (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). Thus, we earlier reported that 61 percent of the respondents to our regional survey stated they offered capstone or senior seminar courses at their institutions (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). Our present finding confirms that at least 60 percent, and perhaps as many as 80 percent, of American baccalaureate or higher institutions with sociology or psychology departments offer capstone courses (see Table 1). This is significant because while it now seems well established that

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most American universities with sociology or psychology departments require capstone completion for the undergraduate degree, issues surrounding the quality of the pedagogy within those courses arguably remain insufficiently investigated across the disciplines. For example, most of the prior research reports on capstones in sociology and psychology have been limited to examination of a single capstone course, method, or special purpose (see, e.g., Berheide 2007; Boysen 2010; Marsh and Poepsel 2008; McKinney 2005; Roscoe and Strapp 2009; Scepansky and Carkenord 2004; Weis 2004). Thus, our national finding lends itself to a call for further comparative research regarding the content, organization, delivery, and learning outcomes of those courses across a range of institutions.

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ogy during recent decades. With this exception, however, reference to the psychology of learning and educational best practices literature suggests, as we noted in our report on our regional study (Hauhart and Grahe 2010), that these shared structural and organizational features of the typical capstone course we have identified are generally compatible with creating optimal conditions for student learning (Bain 2004; Svinicki 2007). Our national data also supplement our earlier findings by revealing that the type of institution does have an influence on the frequency of at least one type of classroom activity or capstone disposition. Thus, our data suggest that larger schools and PhD-granting departments are more likely to use student oral presentations in the capstone class than are smaller schools and bachelors and masters departments. A further emendation to our regional findings is that student participation in conference presentations arising from the capstone course is more likely at bachelors and masters departments than at PhD-granting schools. In both instances, faculty limit factors are the likely source of the difference since one would assume there is an inverse relationship between the number of students in a capstone course and the amount of time the faculty member could allot to different types of class-based student activities.

The Typical Capstone Course

Our present study confirms that sociology and psychology capstone students nationwide are most likely to engage in a major project that entails research, a literature review, and a major paper (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). Since the ideas for these capstone projects are most commonly student generated, the nature of these projects lends themselves to what has been termed inquiry guided learning and would therefore create a favorable learning milieu (Atkinson and Hunt 2008). Indeed, our national findings confirm overall, with only minor exceptions, the organizational and structural features of capstone courses we characterized as constituting the typical capstone course in our regional study6 (Hauhart and Grahe 2010). This is important since at various times, sociology in particular has struggled with the question of whether there are general standards across the discipline and shared contours to its practices (see, among others, Berheide 2005). With respect to the existence, structure, and format of capstone courses, our data suggest that there is a distinctly defined core approach to senior capstones within both sociology and psychology.7 Indeed, the only notable difference between sociology and psychology capstones reflected in our data is the emphasis that psychology places on data collection and data analysis. This would be consistent with a somewhat more quantitative orientation within academic psychol-

The Importance of Addressing Student Limitations

The most significant changes in our national survey involved our efforts to gain further knowledge regarding the problems respondents identify as inhibiting the production and completion of quality senior projects within the capstone experience. Perhaps the most suggestive initial research finding from the series of questions posed is that factor 1, student limits, is potentially more determinative of either positively skewed or negatively skewed course outcomes than is factor 2, time limits; factor 3, ideas/methods limits; or factor 4, faculty limits. Thus, to the extent students are academically well prepared, emotionally mature, and highly motivated, these cumulative factors may be more important in producing project completion and enhancing project quality than are factors from the remaining three foci.

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This finding is supported by a substantial body of literature in educational psychology. Svinicki (2004:185), for example, in summarizing this literature on individual differences that matter in producing learning outcomes, notes that students who have a greater depth of knowledge as background learn faster because they can fill in the blanks they are missing with new information and then move ahead. Consequently, Svinicki (1980:18688) recommends that practical steps taken to ensure that incoming students are academically preparedsuch as ensuring prerequisite courses actually teach (and students actually learn) what is needed to prepare for the major capstone projectwill facilitate further learning. Our results suggest that steps like these are essential since better academically prepared students are more likely to successfully complete capstones. The research on student motivation also supports our findings. Thus, it is a truism to suggest that motivated students are those most likely to learn something well, but the fact that it is a truism does not make it any less important. Svinicki (2004) summarizes the research on motivation by stating it is the second most important individual difference variable (after level of prior knowledge) that affects learning. Moreover, our data confirm that it is among the factors that are quite important with respect to successful completion of the major project that constitutes the sociology or psychology capstone. Likewise, however, the corollary is true and our data confirm it: To the extent students are not motivated to pursue the major project required by the typical capstone course, this factor may well be determinative of the eventual disposition. Thus, adopting instructional practices that have been demonstrated to increase learner motivationsuch as support for an orientation of task mastery or support for the idea that successful learning is indeed possible (Svinicki 2004:20405)would be beneficial in producing more successful outcomes. In sum, if confirmed by subsequent research, this finding suggests that among the most important best practices to institute would be to ensure that student preparation for the capstone experience is enhanced and a supportive motivational culture is created within the capstone experience. Prior research on teaching and learning supports both of these tentative conclusions (Bain 2004; Svinicki 2007).

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The implications of these two findings suggest a number of pedagogical approaches that warrant consideration. With respect to preparation of undergraduate students whose academic backgrounds may not have sufficiently prepared them to succeed in sociology or psychology capstones, students may benefit from enhanced opportunities within the curriculum to engage in deep learning. Thus, the major project required by the capstone experience commonly requires mastery of a relevant literature at more than a surface level as a prerequisite for answering the research question that is pursued. Where the precapstone curriculum has supported student efforts to engage in deep as opposed to surface learning, students whose prior preparations have been inconsistent will benefit from increased opportunities to engage their disciplines and perform better in their capstone courses. Research suggests that increasing the support for deep learning has positive benefits for both student motivation and course outcomes (Roberts and Roberts 2008). This is one way in which the results of our study can be used to suggest pedagogical changes that will improve the entering behavior of students matriculating in the senior capstone. Similarly, our research supports the recommendation that students experience a curriculum that is sequential and developmental in structure (Berheide 2005). Thus, the major research project that the typical capstone entails calls on sociology and psychology students to have mastered a good many skills, disciplinary background, and literature as well as maintain a critical ability to examine an important question comprehensively. A curriculum that exhibits continuity, developmental complexity, and the opportunity for deep learning in gradational sequence (Berheide 2005) is likely to prepare a student for the rigorous project that the culminating capstone course involves. Based on our findings, a student with such an educational background will likely experience a more successful capstone project and produce a more sophisticated outcome. Thus, such a student will likely complete the project, and the product submitted will be of higher quality. In short, our findings support earlier research regarding vertical sequencing of courses and the integration of the undergraduate curriculum leading to the capstone course.

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(Elliott et al. 1998; Siegfried 2001). A recent survey of economics department chairs likewise revealed substantial agreement on the most important learning outcomes (Myers, Nelson, and Stratton 2011), many of which were comparable to those revealed by our study (i.e., integrating material across the discipline). An earlier study of the economics major reached a very similar conclusionconcepts that integrate prior understanding are transformative and essential to developing a level of understanding that encompasses the breadth of the entire discipline (Davies and Mangan 2007). Moreover, capstone research in these related disciplines also identifies student limitations as among the significant impediments that must be overcome for a successful capstone course to ultimately produce a quality course outcome and final intellectual product (Carlson et al. 2002:18990). Research outside of these disciplines and directed more generally at the qualities of mind that capstone experiences stimulate are likewise supportive of our findings. Kuh (2008), for example, reports that learning experiences that require any of the following produce more actual learning: practices that demand that students devote considerable time and effort to purposive tasks produce more learning within the discipline (Kuh 2008:27); practices that put students in circumstances that essentially demand [they] interact with faculty and peers about substantive matters produce more learning (Kuh 2008:27); and circumstances that demand high interaction typically result in an environment rich in feedback, and while the details of the particular high input activity may differ by discipline, the in depth learning environment created fosters more and better learning outcomes (Kuh 2008:28). Our findings that the typical sociology capstone requires a major project that commonly involves a substantive review of the literature, extended paper, oral reports, and integration of learning across the disciplines suggests that this framework can create precisely the type of intensely demanding study in

Comparing Capstone Pedagogy across Disciplines

Our present study, and our previous work (Hauhart and Grahe 2010), has been limited to investigating capstone organization and practices in sociology and psychology. As we have already suggested, most prior studies have been even more limited commonly examining only a single capstone course within a single institution and single discipline. This raises the question of whether studies conducted in other disciplines support, or perhaps even amplify, the research findings that we have reported. An initial review of this literature suggests that only a few disciplines have pursued comparable studies across institutions of their capstone practices. Generally, the published discussions of capstone courses in history and anthropology appear mostly limited to the sort of single-course examinations that characterized both sociology and psychology for many years or simple reflective articles (see, e.g., Baker 1978; Stowe 2006). Studies of capstone pedagogy in political science (Sum and Light 2010) and economics (Carlson, Cohn, and Ramsey 2002; Elliott, Meisel, and Richards 1998; Siegfried 2001) generally appear to confirm and support both specific results and the implications derived from our findings. Seeborg (2008:70), for example, concludes that capstones in economics ideally should be integrative experiences that involve a required research paper to maximize learning outcomes. Ishiyama (2005), in his study of the political science major at 32 institutions, reports that evidence of a structured sequential and integrated curriculum within the undergraduate major, culminating in a senior capstone, produces students who score well on the Major Field Aptitude Test (Political Science II) and have higher rates of application and admission to graduate programs. In short, structured programs that conclude with capstones can produce more successful outcomes for graduates of those programs than relatively unstructured majors that do not require capstones. Other capstone studies in these disciplines confirm that the capstones tend to involve major research projects that require study in depth and the integration of knowledge across the discipline

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depth that Kuh (2008) describes as necessary and productive of actual learning.

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A related limitation is the fact that our survey did not elicit the views of students regarding capstone course experiences. This limitation may well have had an influence on responses to those questions intended to probe the most common barriers to capstone course completion. Responses to questions of this nature may be perspectival. Consequently, student responses might have been quite different than faculty responses and might have told us more about the capstone course experience for actual learning than we were able to discover with a faculty-only approach. Further research directed at student learners and their experience within the capstone is therefore an obvious complement to our work here. We previously have suggested (Hauhart and Grahe 2010) one approach we would like to pursue includes in-depth interviews of those who teach capstone courses. We would add that we consider in-depth interviews of graduates of those courses equally important. There is little question that student views regarding capstone experiences and learning processes have been insufficiently investigated (McKinney 2007). The rationale for conducting both types of interviews is the potential for obtaining qualitative, in-depth information that our online survey approach did not reach (Phillips 1971). We also agree with McKinney and Busher (2011) that evaluation of the final products created in the senior seminar experience is another valuable way to assess the learning that occurs. Their examination of 18 completed capstones is a start that we believe merits further attention. Finally, we have come to believe that field observation of some in vivo capstone courses might be a way to grasp the magic that the very best instructors introduce into the capstone setting (Denzin 1970:216 17; Phillips 1971:15960). As always, a primary limitation on a number of these methodological approaches is available time. Finally, capstone projects are most often shared orally but are also frequently evaluated in paper form. While McKinney and Busher (2011) have conducted an initial study assessing the quality of capstone papers generally, further research could examine the scientific or disciplinary merit of these student projects measured against professional standards. By considering the institutional

Limitations of the Present Study and Future Directions

In our view, the primary limitation of the present study is its survey format. Thus, it is widely accepted that survey research, while valuable, has inherent methodological weaknesses. Denzin (1970:18284), in his review of the method, observes that its very emphasis on structure and regularity makes it best suited for the study of processes and events of structure and regularity. This is one reason that Denzin, a proponent of interaction theory generally, supported triangulation in social research through use of multiple methods of observation and study (Denzin 1970:2627). Thus, while our survey approach has been productive in ascertaining a great deal not previously documented regarding the existence, structure, and internal organization of capstones in sociology and psychology, it has been only partly successful in capturing the dynamic, interactional processes that might further distinguish singularly successful capstone courses. One modest weakness in our research design is the fact that in some larger departments, several faculty members may teach the capstone simultaneously. Alternatively, in a department that rotates responsibility for capstone courses, several faculty members may have relatively current familiarity with the departments course. Perhaps it would have been better had we asked the chairperson to distribute our survey to all faculty members who teach the capstone course or who have familiarity with it, but given the fact that only one in four recipients address the survey by completing it, the likelihood is that a wider distribution within departments would have met with a similar fate. Randomization and probability statistics together are generally intended to minimize the impact of anomalies in populations, nonresponse, low response rates, recall bias, lying, and other imperfections in human respondents and in the research process (Gani 1988; Mazurkiewicz et al. 1996; Wikman 2006), but we acknowledge the small degree of uncertainty and variability that this approach may have introduced.

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variables measured here, in addition to other student body information such as minimum entrance or program requirements, student variables such as general academic performance and self-reported capstone course experiences from students with wide-ranging backgrounds could help uncover contributing influences on course outcomes.

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faculty, (2) too many students, (3) logistical issues related to the number of commuter students, and (4) staff densitymost of our faculty are graduate faculty. 4. We also asked where and how these courses are offered. Respondents estimated the frequency at which the course was offered in different formats (responses summed to 100 percent). Respondents reported that capstone courses were overwhelmingly offered in traditional classroom settings on the main campus (88.94 percent) but only rarely at satellite/ extension campuses (5.82 percent) and with only a small percentage offered as online courses (4.92 percent). It is possible that the low number of private, for-profit schools in our sample skewed the outcome with respect to capstones offered on satellite/extension campuses or as online courses. 5. This relationship could reflect that the process of completing the research cycle with a paper submission requires a significant amount of time beyond a classroom- or campus-level presentation. One might hypothesize that this causes higher levels of stress on faculty resources, particularly where student questions are beyond the expertise of faculty mentors. A third variable explanation that cannot be tested with these variables is that faculty who work at institutions that require higher rates of publication are more likely to encourage their students to submit their papers for publication. Although it is less probable that faculty who are limited in time would seek out extra work guiding student papers to publication, it is more understandable that faculty who are willing to work outside their expertise will complete the cycle on exceptional student projects. 6. Our national data also confirm our earlier finding that the goal of capstone courses is most likely to include integrating previously learned material across the discipline and least likely to include developing students as future citizens. As we found in our regional survey, instructors are likely to require that papers conform to professional writing styles, and individual instructors are most likely to be the sole sources of evaluation for student work, either with or without a common rubric. One modest adjustment to the

Conclusion
The issue of the degree to which sociology and other disciplines require completion of a senior capstone and the related questions of the content and structure of those courses are important. It is axiomatic that the curricular activities that constitute the core of a discipline assume more importance, and consume more time and other educational resources, than those courses and initiatives considered less central and important to a discipline. The recent emerging research on capstones in sociology suggests that these senior integrating courses are widely offered and typically required for completion of the undergraduate degree. Consequently, it behooves us to examine as thoroughly as possible the structure, content, and purpose of the capstone experience across the discipline to align them with the best educational practices we may design.

Notes
Reviewers for this article were, in alphabetical order, Edward Kain and Tim Kubal. 1. The reasons for unavailability included the following: programs that contained shared divisions or combined departments (n = 58), institutions without a psychology (n = 126) or sociology (n = 201) department, no contact information available for a department chair (n = 92), and contact information resulting in unresolved failed contact (n = 26). 2. The results of our national survey may be affected to some degree by the differences in sampling techniques between our national and regional surveys with respect to the percentage of schools requiring capstones. 3. Of those who decided not to offer a capstone after considering it, 10 based their decision on resource limitations, including (1) not enough

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findings in our regional survey may be the degree to which a single instructor teaches the capstone course. The national data suggest that while this still is the most common arrangement, it is perhaps nearly as likely that the capstone course is rotated among multiple faculty members. Thus, the national data can be read as refining and narrowing the degree of divergence between these two predominant practices. 7. In addition to replicating many of our prior findings, our national survey produced data on questions not previously pursued. For example, while distance education has undeniably increased during the past decade and dominated the agenda for discussion at many American universities, our findings suggest the clear pattern for capstone courses remains delivery in the traditional classroom setting rather than online delivery. This is perhaps sufficiently unexpected and warrants special notice. As above, to the extent our sample underrepresents private, for-profit schools, this finding might reflect a modest sample bias (see note 4).

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Bios
Robert C. Hauhart, PhD, JD, is an associate professor and chair within the Department of Society and Social Justice at Saint Martins University, Lacey, Washington. Professor Hauhart is the prelaw advisor and teaches legal studies, criminal justice, and sociology. His research interests include nonlegal initiatives for social justice; the intersection of law, society, and economy; and capstone pedagogy. Jon E. Grahe is an associate professor of psychology at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. He teaches social psychology and research methods classes. His research interests include studying influences on dyadic rapport and creating collaborative undergraduate research projects across institutions.

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