Need for Relatedness at College Questionnaire (NRC-Q) Revised Version

Abstract

The Need for Relatedness at College Questionnaire (NRC-Q) Revised Version is a specialized psychometrics instrument developed to assess the degree to which college students are motivated to attend higher education institutions based on their intrinsic need for social connection and belonging. Rooted conceptually in Self-determination Theory (SDT), the 12-item scale measures various facets of relatedness, including connections with peers, faculty, and family/friends from home.

Developed and validated by Guiffrida et al. (2008), the NRC-Q-R provides valuable insights into the social motivational drivers underlying student persistence and engagement in the college environment. It specifically operationalizes the construct of Relatedness across four distinct dimensions, making it a crucial tool for understanding the social adjustment and retention of diverse student populations.

Keywords

Relatedness, College students, Motivation, Self-determination Theory, Higher education, Peers, Faculty, Psychological needs, Student adjustment.

Authors

Douglas Guiffrida, Ana Gouveia, Andrew Wall, Derek Seward.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the NRC-Q Revised Version is to quantify the motivational drivers related to the fundamental human need for Relatedness among individuals enrolled in college. Specifically, the instrument aims to differentiate between various sources of relatedness that influence a student’s decision to attend or remain in college, examining how these social needs translate into educational goals.

By assessing these distinct dimensions—including relational needs directed toward peers, academic staff, and important networks from the student’s home environment—the NRC-Q-R helps researchers and practitioners understand the social supports necessary for student success and adjustment, particularly within diverse student populations. It provides a structured way to analyze how the need for belonging influences academic commitment.

Construct

The NRC-Q-R measures the psychological construct of the Need for Relatedness within an academic context. This construct is derived from Self-determination Theory (SDT), where relatedness is defined as the innate, essential desire to feel connected to, cared for by, and belonging with significant others. In the context of higher education, the scale operationalizes this need across four distinct subscales, recognizing that relatedness motivations can be complex and multidimensional.

The scale’s conceptual framework acknowledges that a student’s motivation is often tied not only to their immediate campus environment but also to their pre-college support structure. The items are framed around the statement “I go to college…” to directly link the feeling of connection and belonging to the pursuit of educational attainment and persistence.

Validity

The original development and validation study conducted by Guiffrida et al. (2008) established the structural, convergent, and discriminant validity of the NRC-Q-R. The use of Factor analysis confirmed that the instrument accurately captures the hypothesized four-factor structure, lending strong support to its construct validity and confirming that the subscales measure distinct, yet related, motivational components.

Evidence of validity ensures that the NRC-Q-R is a robust and appropriate tool for measuring the specific dimensions of relatedness motivation in college settings. The validation process affirmed that the instrument successfully differentiates between the social goals related to peers, faculty, and family/home support, providing a nuanced perspective on student motivation.

Reliability

The reliability of the NRC-Q-R was established during its validation phase, typically assessed through measures of internal consistency, such as Cronbach’s alpha, for both the total scale and each of the four subscales. High reliability coefficients indicate that the 12 items within the established factors consistently measure the same underlying construct of relatedness motivation.

A reliable instrument ensures that the results are stable and reproducible across different samples of college students. This stability is critical for researchers and practitioners who use the scale to predict outcomes such as student retention, academic engagement, and overall psychological adjustment in the academic setting.

Factor Analysis

The structure of the Need for Relatedness at College Questionnaire (NRC-Q) Revised Version was determined through rigorous Factor analysis, resulting in a stable and reliable four-factor model. This structure successfully partitions the 12 items into distinct subscales, confirming the multidimensional nature of relatedness motivation in college students.

The four empirically derived factors are:

• Factor 1: Relatedness with Peers (Items 2, 9, 12). This factor measures the motivation derived from forming new, comfortable relationships with fellow students and integrating into campus social life.
• Factor 2: Home, Give Back (Items 1, 4, 11). This factor reflects the motivation to attend college driven by an altruistic desire to help family and elicit pride from home support systems.
• Factor 3: Relatedness to Faculty (Items 3, 5, 7). This factor measures the need for supportive and instructional relationships with academic mentors, faculty, and staff, highlighting the importance of adult guidance on campus.
• Factor 4: Home, Keep Up (Items 6, 8, 10). This factor addresses the need to maintain existing relationships with friends and family from home who are also pursuing or have pursued higher education, emphasizing continuity of social networks.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report questionnaire; Psychological needs assessment.

Format: 12 items, scored on a 7-point Likert scale. The response anchor ranges from 1 (“does not correspond at all”) to 7 (“corresponds exactly”).

Language Available: English (Primary validation language).

Population Group: College and University Students (Undergraduate population).

Age Group: Typically utilized with traditional college-aged students (18–25 years), but applicable to any enrolled student population.

Population Details: Developed and validated using samples of students enrolled in higher education institutions, with a specific focus on applications in diverse student populations, consistent with the publication venue.

Test Methodology: Quantitative assessment utilizing a closed-format, subjective response structure to measure motivational reasons for attending college related to social connection and belonging.

Keywords

College adjustment, Student retention, Social integration, Relatedness motivation, Academic success, Psychometrics, Factor structure, SDT.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not specified.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not specified.

Correspondence Address: Not specified.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The instrument was developed and validated in 2008 and published in the Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. Usage for non-commercial research purposes typically requires proper citation of the original article (Guiffrida et al., 2008).

The original PDF of the instrument and related validation documentation is publicly accessible. The original PDF can be downloaded here: https://urresearch.rochester.edu/fileDownloadForInstitutionalItem.action?itemId=21709&itemFileId=70237

Reference’s

Guiffrida, Douglas., Gouveia, Ana., Wall, Andrew., Seward, Derek. (2008). Development and Validation of the Need for Relatedness at College Questionnaire (NRC-Q). Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 1(4), 251–261.

Items of the Need for Relatedness at College Questionnaire (NRC-Q) Revised Version

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

I go to college . . .

1. To be able to help my family.
2. To meet friends who can relate to me and around whom I am comfortable.
3. To connect with a mentor who will support me and look out for me.
4. Because I want to make my family and friends from home proud of me.
5. Because I am interested in connecting with faculty who have expertise in my areas of interest.
6. To relate to my friends from home who have gone to college.
7. To get to know faculty and staff whom I can learn from and feel comfortable around.
8. To help me talk to my friends or family members.
9. To become a member of an interesting and fun student organization.
10. To keep up with family members or friends from home.
11. To give back to my family.
12. To make new friends.