Boosting Students’ Sense of Belonging in Under 60 Seconds

This post was co-authored by Terrell Strayhorn and J’Quen Johnson.

If you had to leave your school or workplace suddenly without any notice, would someone miss you? If you disappeared unexpectedly, would someone come looking for you? If so, who are those people, and where would you be sorely missed?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then you’re familiar with the feeling that sits at the heart of today’s discussion: a sense of belonging.

Introduction

A sense of belonging is a basic need, a human right that profoundly impacts an individual’s ability to think clearly, work productively, and live optimally. Without this fundamental need in place, we are left to feel anxious, worried, unsettled, rejected, and alienated. But with it, we excel, flourish, get good grades, earn a promotion, make the team, and so much more.

As humans, we typically enjoy a sense of belonging when we’re made to feel “like we matter,” and we feel like we matter when we play important roles, realize that others depend on us, or command others’ attention such that our absence does not go unnoticed (Strayhorn, 2019, p. 15). Indeed, it’s when we feel heard, seen, respected, and valued as bona fide contributing members of the group or team. Figure 1 presents a visual summary of 7 core elements.

Fig 1. Core elements of belonging

Source: Terrell Strayhorn/Created by author

Belonging has many definitions. It refers to perceived social support and feeling accepted, cared about, important, respected, or valued by others in a group to which you wish to belong. It’s a motivation that takes on heightened importance in certain social contexts, especially for those who are subject to vulnerable stereotypes and low expectations, according to sources.

By heightened importance, we mean that there are certain times and spaces where people are more likely to feel judged, isolated, or out of place. For instance, our research shows that disabled individuals fear being judged if and when they reveal their impairment to others, which lowers their feelings of belonging.

A sense of belonging is important at home, at work, and at school for a variety of reasons. For instance, in everyday life, belonging has been linked to a range of positive outcomes, including joy, happiness, mental health, and well-being. In educational contexts, students who feel a strong sense of belonging are more likely to attend class, perform well academically, persist term-to-term, and complete a college degree.

As former athletes, we recognize the important role our coaches and teammates played in our academic success. They helped create the conditions that made us feel special, seen, cared about, and part of something bigger than ourselves. (Special shout-out to them and coaches/teammates everywhere!)

In our consulting work with institutions across the globe, we get lots of questions about belonging. What is it? What can it do for me, my students, or company? And how do you foster it?

Our response always starts with an undeniable, universal truth. Belonging is a feeling—it’s the sense of being accepted and valued within a community, whether it’s a classroom, workplace, family, or larger organization. It’s not magic, but it can produce magical results. It drives engagement, loyalty, and well-being, making it a critical component for hitting everybody’s bottom line. It can single-handedly transform an introvert into an inspiration and an outsider into an outgoing person. To foster belonging, leaders must cultivate inclusive environments, encourage open communication, and promote shared values, ensuring that everyone feels recognized and supported.

If we know anything at all from existing research, we know that belonging is a feeling, and it can’t be forced. It must be facilitated, fostered, and nurtured continuously. It can be activated through images, messages, signs, songs, and videos, just to mention a few. In fact, we recently built a short reel designed to boost belonging, which has been posted to our social media channels.

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In a recent class meeting of our Positive Psychology undergraduate course, we decided to put it to the test in an exploratory study that informs the rest of this co-authored blog.

Participants

To assess the efficacy of our brief reel-based video intervention, we pilot-tested the tool with a sample of 25 undergraduate students enrolled at a four-year, private, historically Black college or university (HBCU) located in the southeastern region of the United States. Forty percent of the sample identified as men, and over 90 percent were African-American or Black. Figure 2 presents a visual summary.

Fig 2. Gender representation among sample

Source: Generated by SPSS

The Intervention

As part of our consulting work focused on bringing science-to-society, we designed and developed a brief reel-like video intervention that, theoretically, had potential to boost belonging. The 20-second video delivers a powerful message of connectedness, community, and upward press toward true membership. It highlights shared values, mutual support, and affirms the belief that everyone has a place, space, and role to play (i.e., ego-extension).

Consisting of six major scenes characterized by words, song, and nature trail scenery, the video aims to resonate emotionally with viewers. For instance, at one moment, the video displays encouraging words that read: “You’ve got this! We are rooting for you.”

Data Collection

Data were collected in our undergraduate Positive Psychology course during the Fall semester in three easy steps. First, we asked students to respond to a short prompt using a scale ranging from 1 (not so great, anxious, alienation) to 5 (great, confident, belonging). They responded using the chat feature in Microsoft Teams, a video conferencing software.

Then, we showed a 20-second reel-based video twice. After watching the video, students shared their perceived belonging score again using the same scale (post-test/Time II).

Key Results

To assess the effectiveness of a 20-second reel-like-video-based intervention on college students’ sense of belonging, we conducted paired sample t-tests using students’ self-reported belonging scores before they watched the video (i.e., SOB1) and just after watching (i.e., SOB2). A paired sample t-test was conducted to evaluate group mean differences between Time I (pre-test) and Time II (post-test). The results indicate statistically significant differences in the overall scores from Time l to Time ll, t(21)= -2.711, p < 0.013. Interestingly, gain scores are greater for women (M_w = 0.3077) than for men (M_m = 0.1333).

Recommendations

The results from our exploratory pilot study suggest a number of useful recommendations. Thus, we recommend that:

• Online instructors create videos that welcome students to the class and speak directly to their anxiety, concerns, and worries about the course, letting them know that they are not the only ones feeling that way. Addressing these concerns head on and validating their feelings can go a long way in boosting their self-esteem and overall sense of belonging in class. Instructors can incorporate anecdotes, messages, or videos in their PowerPoint or lectures that affirm students’ sense of belonging on campus generally and in class specifically.
• Educators should never underestimate the power of words, especially not positive words that affirm students’ (capa)abilities, feelings, and resiliency. Words matter, and they can work wonders at times. Tell students to “keep going,” “hang in there,” or that “it gets better.” Show them you care by keeping your commitments, remembering their names, and giving them constructive, growth-minded feedback.
• Brief belonging interventions like the one featured herein can become part of a larger effort to reduce students’ worries, level their expectations, affirm their readiness, raise their confidence, and boost their belonging. Tying these efforts to basic needs services (e.g., food pantry, clothing closets) or social programs (e.g., mentoring) truly makes a difference!

Conclusion

While this pilot study was small in scope, the results offer incredibly promising insights into how even short, targeted video interventions can positively affect students’ subjective evaluation of college and belonging. By redefining belonging and success, we’re saving lives!

J’Quen Johnson is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of the Cumberlands and Director of Research at Do Good Work Consulting.