The following is a list of the developmental tasks encountered by college
students as identified by Dr. Arthur W. Chickering (commonly called the
7 Vectors).
Achieving competence
This involves the development of intellectual and social abilities as well
as physical and manual skills. The sense of competence is defined as the
confidence individuals have in their ability to cope with what comes and
to achieve successfully what they set out to do.
Managing emotions
The young adult's initial task is to become aware of personal feelings
and to recognize that they provide information relevant to contemplated
behavior or to decisions about future plans. As a larger range of feelings
is fully expressed, new and more useful patterns of expression and control
can be achieved.
Becoming autonomous
Mature autonomy requires both emotional independence - freedom from continual
and pressing needs for reassurance and approval - and instrumental independence
- the ability to carry on activities and cope with problems without seeking
help from others and the ability to be mobile in relations to one's needs.
Simultaneously, the individual must accept interdependence, recognizing
that one cannot receive benefits from a social structure without contributing
to it, that personal rights have a corollary social responsibility.
Establishing identity
Identity is confidence in one's ability to maintain inner sameness and
continuity; to reach this stage, one must understand one's physical needs,
characteristics, and personal appearance and be sure of sexual identification
and appropriate roles and behavior.
Freeing interpersonal relationships
As one matures, one should be able to express greater trust, independence
and individuality in relationships, less anxiety and defensiveness and
more friendliness, spontaneity, warmth and respectfulness. Developing tolerance
for a wide range of persons is a significant aspect of this task.
Clarifying purposes
To develop purpose, an individual must formulate plans and priorities that
integrate avocational and leisure-time interests, vocational plans, and
life-style consideration.
Developing integrity
This task involves making one's values both more personal and more human.
One examines and selects a personally valid set of beliefs that have some
internal consistency and provide a guide for behavior. At the same time
one drops a literal belief in the absoluteness of rules and adopts a more
relative view. Then one must also develop congruence, that is, begin to
act in accordance with these personal values.
