The Research...

The research...there's the rub, how to approach this topic? Social science research is like peeling an onion for me. Where does one begin when so many tendrils of so many domains and concerns intersect? I suppose the best thing is to just dive in and let it unfold as it will...The impetus of my current work stems from a reading of "Academically Adrift". Basically, the assertion made within the pages is that American undergraduates are faring poorly in terms of their acquisition of critical thinking and analytic skills. For the sake of brevity, critical thinking and analysis in this conceptualization includes the ability to apprehend and articulate the complexities of a situation or phenomenon cogently. Some students, upon graduation, according to the authors, lack this ability. The reasons for shortcomings are myriad. Some students arrive at college lacking pointed direction, some arrive without efficient study habits, some lack the social and economic capital that allows their more successful fellow students to thrive...the list goes on. Regardless of the reasons, consequentially, these students enter their respective vocations ill-equipped to perform and thrive amongst an increasingly globalized cohort.
My particular lens into this phenomenon concerns whether demographic specifics affect the acquisition of these critical thinking skills. In particular, does an incoming student's socio-economic status, i.e., privileged or disadvantaged family circumstances, inhibit or promote substantive learning in college? Moreover, does the acquisition of critical thinking, or lack thereof translate into favorable or unfavorable self-assessment of their subsequent respective vocational position? Along with an individuals particular SES, the question begs...does race/ethnicity and/or gender also play into how one experiences learning in college?
Let me qualify before I present a cursory explanation of my measures and method, this study is restrained by time and resource limitations. The data is secondary, taken from already existing General Social Survey (GSS) information. To conduct a comprehensive survey of the measures necessary to give a full reading of the dynamics laid out above was beyond time left as an undergraduate, to say nothing of the financial burden required to survey enough respondents necessary to result in significant findings.
As such, my limited study uses independent demographic variables of parental education  to express SES (bachelor's degree or above representing privilege, high school education or less representing disadvantage), race/ethnicity, i.e., white, Black, Hispanic, or other, and gender. At the other end, as dependent variables I use self-reported assessment of job complexity to gauge the level of vocational accomplishment. Admittedly, this study involves some semblance of extrapolation to make the connection between academic disadvantage and subsequent acquisition of limited critical thinking abilities, nonetheless, I believe significant results can help contribute to the greater body of knowledge regarding academic achievement and quality of working life and lend support to the assertions found in "Academically Adrift". At the end of the day, I fully expect to use this initial work as a prelude to a far more comprehensive study as I move forward with my education.