Principal Components Results Summary
A total of 25 variables and 971 responses were included in the analysis of responses to the question, “In what ways do you think you can grow (through the arts)?” Nine factors overall had an eigenvalue greater than 1, explaining a cumulative 71% of the variation. Four components explaining a cumulative 44% of the variation were extracted for description and analysis.
Each dimension is characterized by distributions of responses that illustrate different themes that may sometimes in tension with each other. Each of these dimensions is described in more detail in the sections below.
A scree plot, dimension eigenvalues, and a loadings table for the variables included in the analysis follow at the bottom of this page.
Demographic Contrasts Results Summary
We also tested for demographic patterns in the responses along each dimension, conducting an analysis of variance (ANOVA) with a Tukey posthoc test to compare the principal component scores between demographic factor levels. Demographic variables that showed contrasts (Tukey adj.p.value < 0.05) between factor levels indicated differences that are unlikely to be due to chance. These differences may suggest an association between the direction of the demographic factors difference and the areas of personal growth described by the accompanying dimension/principal component.
Demographic factor level contrasts for hs_arts_freq and hslocation were observed for Dimension 2. Demographic factors that had associations with each of the dimensions are listed below, along with statistical tables and accompanying figures illustrating the contrasts between factor levels. A brief description accompanies each dimension to summarize the results.
Dimension 1: Receptive to New People, Perspectives, and Experiences -vs- Creativity, Self-Expression, and Communication
Dimension 1 (the first principal component) explains about 16% of the variation among responses to the othergrowth question, and this dimension is characterized by responses focused on Receptive to New People, Perspectives, and Experiences in one direction, and by responses about Creativity, Self-Expression, and Communication in the other direction.
Receptive to New People, Perspectives, and Experiences is the label given to describe one direction of this dimension; it is a synthesis of the topic variables of:
LIWC..Authentic
LIWC..verb
LIWC..focuspresent
topic..Connect_with_People_in_New_Ways
topic..Exposure_to_New_Experiences
AIC..ELAB
AIC..DIAL
LIWC..function
Taken together, this direction of the dimension describes a certain openness to the perspectives of others, to new experiences, and other worlds. One one level, this is the point of higher education, and so it may not be an area of growth that is mutually exclusive from other types of experiences. Nonetheless, the there is a good correspondence between the topic variables and the AIC variables, suggesting at least some relationship between the area of growth and an actual demonstration of that growth through the complexity of the response.
“I think you can see things through others’ perspectives and remain open minded and receptive to new ideas.”
“I believe that exposure to the arts will open my mind and allow me to see perspectives and connections that I otherwise wouldn’t. This is true, perhaps, because exposure and involvement in the arts activate areas of the brain outside of the logic/memory regions primarily used in my premed academic work.”
“Open-mindedness. Art allows me to learn things that I would not have learned otherwise and I can’t unlearn those things and some of those things can be applied to problem solving.”
“Through interactions with other people, actively stretching my boundaries, and constant exposure to new ideas and perspectives.”
“I think a person can only grow by learning about new ways to participate in the arts, expanding their view and giving them new experiences.”
“It really improves one’s self confidence, I think. I think it also makes one more open to new experiences.”
Creativity, Self-Expression, and Communication describes the other direction of this dimension, driven mainly by the topic variable topic..Creativity_Expression_and_Communication. Most responses that fall at this end of the dimension are pretty straightforward, anchoring on one or more of these three areas of growth.
“I think I can become more creative. I also think the arts allow me to be more at peace, which allows me to grow in all other areas of life. The arts also allow me to connect with other people and other cultures.”
“Become a more effective communicator.”
“Enhance your sense of self, creativity, expression, and respect for the work of others.”
“I will continue to grow in creativity and the ability to express myself”
“I think the arts teach you expression, which can extend into all other areas of your life.”
And some responses show mixtures of these themes. They connect Creativity, Self-Expression, and Communication with Receptiveness to New People, Perspectives, and Experiences, and help demonstrate the link the between them.
“I think arts can help build a person’s creativity, which is important in all aspects of life. Furthermore, art expands the range of experiences you can have, making you more openminded.”
“Intellectually you can expand your horizons and creativity, you can learn to appreciate others and see things from different perspectives, emotionally it can help you cope with different things”
“I think that diversity of experience can help everyone, and that the arts provide an emotional outlet for many people. These can help anyone grow in a way that allows them to understand their own creativity and the creativity of others with different opinions and emotions than their own.”
“In confidence, creativity, problem solving, gaining a larger perspective, seeing from other points of view, learning about other people and their thoughts”
Fig. 29 ABOVE: Biplot for Dimensions 1 and 2 for ‘Personal Growth’
Dimension 2: Self-Awareness and Exploration -vs- Awareness and Exploration of Others
Dimension 2 explains about 11% of the variation among responses to the othergrowth question, and this dimension is characterized by responses focused on Self-Awareness and Exploration in one direction, and by responses about Awareness and Exploration of Others in the other direction. This dimension reflects important aspects college-age student development — dimensions that are consistent with seminal literature on the topic {% cite chickering1969education chickering1973personality chickering1993education %}.
Self-Awareness and Exploration is the label given to describe one direction of this dimension; it is a synthesis of the topic variables of:
topic..More_Self_Aware
topic..Self_Exploration
LIWC..verb
LIWC..focuspresent
Responses at this end of the dimension focused on building awareness and a sense of oneself. Self-exploration and actualization — through an understanding of one’s emotions, abilities, or strengths — predominated.
“Creativity, emotions, expression, learn about yourself, hone your thoughts and feelings.”
“Art requires constant self-reflection that may lead to understanding oneself better. Art requires risks and is challenging which can help people grow and either learn from mistakes or gain confidence in their abilities.”
“I think that involvement in the arts allows people to tap into emotions that are normally kept hidden, and understanding all parts of yourself is important. This can be done through performing/participating, or from just observing the arts.”
“I think it helps your emotional and mental development. It allows for personal expression as well as brain development.”
“Continuing to expand my worldview and find inspiration for choices in my own life.”
“I think involvement in the arts can promote open mindedness, selfdiscovery, appreciation of beauty, improved self-esteem, and other personal developments”
“Boosts your self-esteem and self-expression, makes you more confident, helps creatively think and problem solve, makes you a good communicator.”
“Personal, cultural, social understanding, physical activity, mental health”
Awareness and Exploration of Others describes the other direction of this dimension, synthesizing the topic variables:
topic..Cultural_Appreciation
LIWC..Analytic
AIC..IC
AIC..ELAB
AIC..DIAL
topic..Expanded_Worldview
Responses in the direction of this dimension reflect more of a focus on others. Responses toward this end of the dimension suggest a stronger outward focus.
“Problem-solving, resilience, self-esteem, appreciation of others, happiness and fulfillment.”
“By expanding your worldview and your personal aesthetic. Also by sharing the experience of art with other people, you learn a great deal about different cultures and human perception.”
“Expand your cultural viewpoints. Learn about others points of view”
“Understanding the ideas/feelings of others. Effective expressive communication. Teamwork. Learning to work under diverse leadership. Attention to detail. Self-directed and motivated work.”
“Ability to understand the diversity of methods of expression and have a greater understanding of other cultures through their arts”
“You can grow in cultural understanding and acceptance of those different from you.”
“Broadened horizons, meeting different types of people.”
“You can broaden your horizons and come to appreciate people with different talents and interests, as well as the lives people live in other cultures (even within the same country).”
“Can gain creativity, will also be able to meet new people that are different from the traditional business people I always hang out with and they can give me a different perspective on things”
Demographic Factors for Dimension 2
Students who reported that their Frequent high school arts participation had lower mean principal component scores along Dimension 2, compared to students that reported Occasional high school arts participation (Table 1). Students reporting Frequent high school arts participation were thus more likely to have responses in the Self-Awareness and Exploration range of Dimension 2 (Table 1; Figure 1.1).
Students who reported attending Rural high schools had lower mean principal component scores along Dimension 2 that students attending Suburban high schools. (Table 1). Students in the Rural high school location group were more likely to have responses that fell into the Self-Awareness and Exploration range of Dimension 2 (Table 1; Figure 1.2).
TABLE 1: demographic contrasts for Dimension 2
| question_name | PC_num | demographic | comparison | estimate | adj.p.value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| sr_othergrowth | PC2 | hslocation | Rural-Suburban | -0.387490871 | 0.035748114 |
| sr_othergrowth | PC2 | hs_arts_freq | Frequently-Occasionally | -0.297790076 | 0.023928385 |
High School Arts Participation
Fig. 30 ABOVE: Density plot of hs_arts_freq contrasts Demographic variables that showed contrasts (Tukey adj.p.value < 0.05) between factor levels indicated differences that are unlikely to be due to chance. These differences may suggest an association between the direction of the demographic factors difference and the personal growth described by the accompanying dimension/principal component.
High School Location
Fig. 31 ABOVE: Density plot of hslocation contrasts Demographic variables that showed contrasts (Tukey adj.p.value < 0.05) between factor levels indicated differences that are unlikely to be due to chance. These differences may suggest an association between the direction of the demographic factors difference and the personal growth described by the accompanying dimension/principal component.
Dimension 3: Cultural Maturity -vs- Personal Skills
Dimension 3 explains about 10% of the variation among responses to the othergrowth question, and this dimension is characterized by responses focused on Cultural Maturity in one direction, and by responses about Personal Skills in the other direction. Once again, consistent with dimensions 1 and 2, dimension 3 provides a window into the personal growth around the self versus a focus on others.
Cultural Maturity is the label given to describe one direction of this dimension; it is a synthesis of the topic variables of:
topic..Cultural_Appreciation
topic..Understanding_and_Accepting_Others
LIWC..Authentic
LIWC..cogproc
LIWC..insight
Responses on the Cultural Maturity end of dimension 3 focus on growth in cultural understanding. In particular, there’s a theme among responses that points to Cultural Maturity as a competency in its own right, and complementary to personal skills of other types. responses on this end of the dimension demonstrate obvious recognition that Cultural Maturity is critical in a pluralist society.
“I think that involving myself with the Arts in relation to the immigrant community here in the U.S. might give me an even better understanding of the experiences of that community–thus making me a more effective lawyer for that community.”
“It can expand your worldview and enable you to understand others’ cultural perspectives. – breeds tolerance, acceptance, and understanding of differences. So, in that sense, it can act as a tool for social change.”
“By understanding deeper cognitive functions, connecting with others across and because of difference, its connection with newness and yet familiarity. Art performs communicative functions that words cannot. Art goes beyond words.”
“By broadening my world view and becoming more accepting of other cultures and belief systems.”
“I personally have learned how to work well with people with very different skill sets under a tight deadline. Aside from the concrete skills of time management and patience, there are more abstract values that can be gained. These vary from appreciation of different art forms to appreciation of different cultures.”
“Learn to appreciate jobs and career very different from my own. Learn more about other cultures”
“You can be more creative; learn to think differently. It can help you with hands-on skills, and how to lead.”
“Leadership skills, cultural appreciation, working with others, simple manual dexterity, and peace of mind through expression.”
“Improved understanding of other cultures and their own. Improved ability to comprehend metaphors and allusions made in all sorts of contexts. Improved ability to relate to fellow educated individuals.”
Personal Skills describes the other direction of this dimension, synthesizing the topic variables:
topic..Personal_Skills
LIWC..social
LIWC..Clout
Responses in the direction of this dimension tend to focus on individual, cognitive, problem-solving and related types of Personal Skills. Responses in this range tend towards skills that are more analytic, although there are responses that include social and cultural skills along with more personal, analytic ones.
“I think any opportunity to be creative and think outside of your normal perspective is a great mind stimulating experience. Whenever I write creatively or design something, I experience a sensation that makes my brain feel as though its fully functioning. That being said, I think everyone who participates in the arts can grow through personal development.”
“Think faster, solve problems quicker. More social talking points…”
“Problem-solving skills, the ability to work well/collaborate with others, an appreciation to all forms of artistic expression, creativity, ability”
“I can grow by developing better creative thought processing skills, better communication skills (both verbal and not), and better at working with or understanding others.”
“Build creative problem-solving skills, free your mind, critical thinking, social skills”
“Increased vocabulary, deeper analytical skills, relating current experiences to similar events across time and space.”
“Self-actualization, reflection, integrative thinking, adaptation to change, etc.”
Fig. 32 ABOVE: Biplot for Dimensions 3 and 4 for ‘Personal Growth’
Dimension 4: Social Maturity -vs- More Open-Minded
Dimension 4 explains about 7% of the variation among responses to the othergrowth question, and this dimension is characterized by responses focused on Social Maturity in one direction, and by responses about More Open-Minded in the other direction.
Social Maturity is the label given to describe one direction of this dimension; it is a synthesis of the topic variables of:
topic..Understanding_and_Accepting_Others
LIWC..focuspresent
LIWC..Clout
LIWC..social
Responses related to Social Maturity tend to differentiate intra-group relational and social skills as areas of growth. These responses provide a slight contrast with cultural appreciation (inter-group), as well as the more general themes of Dimensions 1 and 2 that relate to a greater outward focus on others.
“You can become more open-minded and respectful of others while gaining your own set of morals and beliefs through self-expression.”
“Arts can help deal with emotions and conflict and also teach planning skills.”
“As I said before, it can bring you to value the abstract ideals that life has to offer, rather than just the materialistic things that so many people tend to value these days.”
“Through the development of personal skills, an understanding of myself, and a transformation into who I want to be through community and participation in community (often done through the arts).”
“Just a person in terms of appreciation of life and beauty. I think it can also help develop social skills and nurture creativity that could easily be applied in other fields.”
“Sociability, expression, clarity of thought, world-view and personal and interpersonal insight, just to name a few.”
More Open-Minded describes the other direction of this dimension, synthesizing the topic variables:
LIWC..Analytic
topic..More_Open_Minded
Responses primarily reflect use of the adjective “open-minded”, and while there are strong similarities with Dimensions 1-3, the explicit reference to flexibility — beyond appreciation, understanding, or recognition — helps differentiate this dimension.
“As an engineer, I am often in a very analytical, mathematical, black-and-white mindset. The arts help me to think outside of the well-defined box and lend me creativity and a more open mind.”
“Open-mindedness, global view, introduction to creative arts through different perspectives.”
“Through involvement in the arts, one can grow as a person and become more open-minded, creative, and expressive; qualities that are hard to develop in the classroom.”
“Become more open-minded and feeling more connected to others.”
“Become more open-minded and forgiving of others.”
Selecting the Dimensions
Scree Plot and Explained Variance
This scree plot shows the explained variance of each of the dimensions and helps illustrate the criteria used for selecting the number of dimensions to be studied. In general, dimensions were included that helped account for at least 50% of the cumulative variance, leaving those dimensions that explained less than about 6% of the response variation uninterpreted.
Personal Growth| Personal Growth PC | eigenvalue | variance.percent | cumulative.variance.percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dim.1 | 3.92E+00 | 1.57E+01 | 15.66454 |
| Dim.2 | 2.72E+00 | 1.09E+01 | 26.55427 |
| Dim.3 | 2.61E+00 | 1.04E+01 | 36.98917 |
| Dim.4 | 1.70E+00 | 6.82E+00 | 43.80724 |
| Dim.5 | 1.66E+00 | 6.64E+00 | 50.45088 |
| Dim.6 | 1.57E+00 | 6.29E+00 | 56.7404 |
| Dim.7 | 1.38E+00 | 5.51E+00 | 62.24992 |
| Dim.8 | 1.23E+00 | 4.90E+00 | 67.15028 |
| Dim.9 | 1.02E+00 | 4.10E+00 | 71.24533 |
Loadings Table for Variables Included in the Analysis
The table of loadings shows the loadings of all of the variables for each of the principal components studied for othergrowth. Loadings with absolute values greater than 0.2 have been considered the most important for interpreting and describing each principal component.
| Personal Growth Variables | PC1 | PC2 | PC3 | PC4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| topic..Creativity_Expression_and_Communication | 0.3381 | 0.0013 | 0.0492 | 0.055 |
| topic..Spiritually_Emotionally_Mentally_Physically | 0.1992 | -0.0467 | -0.1162 | -0.0861 |
| LIWC..Clout | 0.1422 | 0.162 | 0.2136 | -0.4701 |
| LIWC..Analytic | 0.1356 | 0.2731 | -0.0281 | 0.4147 |
| LIWC..social | 0.1323 | 0.1496 | 0.2171 | -0.5015 |
| topic..More_Open_Minded | 0.1011 | -0.1546 | -0.0421 | 0.2095 |
| topic..Understanding_and_Accepting_Others | 0.0866 | 0.1822 | -0.3204 | -0.2443 |
| topic..Personal_Skills | 0.086 | 0.0097 | 0.2321 | -0.0212 |
| topic..Expanded_Worldview | 0.0201 | 0.2175 | -0.1714 | 0.0035 |
| LIWC..Tone | 0.0075 | -2.00E-04 | -0.0981 | -0.0891 |
| LIWC..insight | -0.0119 | -0.0576 | -0.4451 | -0.1416 |
| LIWC..cogproc | -0.0298 | -0.0384 | -0.4068 | -0.0639 |
| topic..Self_Exploration | -0.1044 | -0.2986 | 0.1887 | 0.1512 |
| topic..Cultural_Appreciation | -0.1339 | 0.329 | -0.2637 | -0.1119 |
| topic..More_Self_Aware | -0.1659 | -0.2152 | 0.1781 | 0.0071 |
| LIWC..prep | -0.191 | 0.1399 | 0.0031 | 0.1731 |
| LIWC..Authentic | -0.2027 | -0.0833 | -0.3649 | 0.0958 |
| LIWC..verb | -0.2067 | -0.3596 | -0.125 | -0.1335 |
| LIWC..focuspresent | -0.2125 | -0.3629 | -0.0545 | -0.2542 |
| topic..Connect_with_People_in_New_Ways | -0.2677 | 0.1927 | 0.0575 | -0.1159 |
| topic..Exposure_to_New_Experiences | -0.2745 | -0.0021 | 0.0933 | 0.0252 |
| AIC..ELAB | -0.2872 | 0.2357 | 0.0987 | 0.0082 |
| AIC..DIAL | -0.3033 | 0.2316 | 0.0742 | 0.0602 |
| LIWC..function | -0.321 | -0.121 | 0.0753 | -0.1801 |
| AIC..IC | -0.3419 | 0.2706 | 0.09 | 0.0414 |