The Impact of Rural, Suburban and Urban Upbringing on Undergraduate Students’ Experiences with Nature and Science Identity

Department

College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-17-2026

Abstract

Environmental upbringing could potentially influence experiences with nature and scientific identity. Individuals raised in a rural environment are expected to engage with nature more than people with an upbringing in a suburban or urban area. Undergraduate students randomly enrolled in environmentallyrelated science courses at a predominately white institution and Historically Black College/University in the Southeastern United States were asked to complete a Qualtrics survey containing sociodemographic and likert scale questions. A Kruskal-Wallis test was used to compare the impact of upbringing on experiences with nature and scientific identity. The mean ranks indicated the students’ upbringing did not significantly impact their experiences with nature; however, there was a significant difference between the mean ranks of agreement with the statement “I want to gain additional knowledge on animals, plants, and ecological dynamics” (p = 0.031). Students who reported being of rural upbringing on average agreed more strongly with this statement than students of suburban or urban upbringing. Student upbringing did impact science identity for the three statements: “I am interested in learning about science and scientific topics” (p = 0.027), “The methods used in scientific fields are interesting to me” (p = 0.044), and “I am interested in the way science can be used to help people” (p = 0.045). Students who self-reported a rural upbringing on average agreed more strongly with these statements compared to the students of suburban or urban upbringing. The evidence suggests that upbringing can influence aspects of environmental experiences and science identity in undergraduate students.

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