Research Blog #2: Scouting the Territory

My topic idea has changed since the first blog. I have acquired great interest in the college experience of first-generation college students. Do they have characteristics that deem them susceptible to poor performance or lack of academic integration? If yes, what are these characteristics? Does the fact that they are first-generation students make them any different than second+-generation students?
I think this topic suits me better than any of my previous topics because I can closely relate to first-generation students. I am a first-generation college student and am excited to explore the possible ways this circumstance affects education.
Through a quick online search, I found terms related to first-generation students such as cognitive/intellectual development, college experience, performance, characteristics, and engagement. There are also studies focused on the characteristics of first-generation students that dispose them to sub-performance in academic and social settings.
These articles seem useful for further reading:

• First-generation college students: Characteristics, experiences, and cognitive development
• [http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF01680039]
• First- and Second-Generation College Students: A Comparison of Their Engagement and Intellectual Development               
• [http://www.jstor.org/stable/info/3838799]

Both of these articles provide arguments focused on first-generation students. The first article in particular follows a scientific study of thousands of first-generation students. There are controversial arguments that explain the ineffectual trait of being a first-generation. I hope to find some more arguments that have different perspectives/ideas.
Though I have not yet formed a direction for my research project, these studies should help me cultivate/frame some ideas.