Student-instructor communication during a crisis: college students’ disclosures about academic struggles and perceived instructor supportiveness and flexibility during the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT This study investigates student disclosures of academic struggles to their instructors during the COVID-19 pandemic. An online survey was administered to U.S. college students (N = 458) who were enrolled in classes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students’ breadth, depth, and frequency of disclosures of academic struggles were examined in conjunction with students’ perceptions of instructor characteristics, such as instructor supportiveness and flexibility, contextual criteria for disclosure, and risk of disclosure. The study findings indicate that instructor supportiveness and instructor flexibility were significant predictors of the breadth of student disclosures. Students’ depth and frequency of disclosures also were significantly predicted by instructor supportiveness. Further, students’ perceptions of the risk of disclosure were significantly related to both instructor supportiveness and instructor flexibility. Finally, students’ disclosure of academic struggles to their instructors during the COVID-19 pandemic were significantly predicted by the contextual criteria important reason and conversational appropriateness. Analysis of open-ended survey responses indicated that students are willing to disclose their academic struggles to instructors who are open-minded and willing to self-disclose their own struggles. The implications of the present study results on instructor-student communication in times of crisis and post-COVID-19 are discussed.