Secrecy, silence and isolation

Confronted with allegations that senior members of Delta Tau Delta had hazed pledges for at least three years, forcing them to endure sleep deprivation, binge drinking and psychological intimidation, university administrators were quick to voice their condemnation.

But even amid a public outcry about what Linda Clement, vice president for student affairs, called the worst incidence of hazing at the university in decades, administrators say there is no need for a change in university policy on hazing.

Administrators say they've taken a tough stance on hazing, investigating it as soon as they are made aware of the incidents. That policy works, they say, because recent incidents of hazing are isolated on the campus.

Because of that policy, there's no way to know exactly how much hazing goes on behind closed doors on Fraternity Row. But hazing experts say and a recent national study from the University of Maine shows the practice to be widespread at many universities nationwide.

Based off interviews with more than 11,000 undergraduate students at 53 universities, the study shows 55 percent of college students in clubs, teams and organizations say they've been hazed. Additionally the study concludes more students said hazing has affected them more positively than negatively, despite the fact that national fraternities, universities, the media and the public at large all condemn the practice.

Both the Delta Tau Delta and Zeta Beta Tau investigations were triggered by anonymous phone calls. And according to the University of Maine study, "secrecy and silence are common characterizations of the dynamics of hazing." Members of Delta Tau Delta told the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life repeatedly they didn't "feel comfortable giving names" and didn't "want to incriminate anyone."

Clement said the university's anti-hazing policy is solid. They respond to allegations immediately, she said, and as of three years ago, they've also placed residential fellows, who serve roles similar to resident assistants, in fraternity and sorority houses.

But in the wake of the most violent instance of hazing in years, the allegations against Delta Tau Delta raise questions for university administrators about how the fraternity could have hazed pledges for years in secret and how widespread the practice is at this university.

A common problem on college campuses

The University of Maine study ultimately concludes that "hazing is woven into the fabric of student life and campus culture in U.S. colleges and universities."

Seven out of 10 members of social fraternities said they were hazed, a percentage only student athletes matched. Six out of 10 members of club sports teams said they were hazed, as did five out of 10 members of performing arts and service fraternities and sororities.

Both university President Dan Mote and Interfraternity Council President Marty Bock called on students to speak up if they are aware of hazing, but the study indicates that doesn't frequently happen.

Close to 70 percent of students interviewed in the study said they were aware of hazing. But even when students said they had been hazed, 95 percent said they did nothing about it.

The study also showed that nine out of 10 students who have been hazed don't acknowledge it, some because they had the "choice" to participate or because their conception of hazing differed from how their school defined it.

As one student quoted in the study put it: "Hazing is one of those things that you know ... you know it is not something you can really define and you know it when you see it."

Other students didn't report it because they didn't want to get their group or team in trouble or because they feared reprisals from other members of the group or team. Students also minimized, rationalized or normalized hazing, saying it wasn't a "big deal."

If the Delta Tau Delta hazing allegations prove true, they'll be the second case of hazing at the university this academic year, but the administration's outlook on hazing has contrasted sharply with the portrait the study has painted.

"I have to believe these are two incidents in two groups and not in every Greek letter organization," Clement said.

But when asked if Delta Tau Delta could have been an isolated incident, Susan Lipkins, a psychologist who studies and advocates against hazing, had a simple answer.

"No. Absolutely not," she said. "It's the same as the termite guy saying there's only one termite or roach."

"Everyone before me did this"

Lipkins, who has interviewed dozens of fraternity members in writing the book Preventing Hazing, said fraternities initiate new members with physical and psychological challenges to maintain discipline within the group and continue traditions.

Over the years, she said, hazing within a fraternity often escalates as each class adds its own mark to the tradition.

"They are doing unto others what was done unto them," Lipkins said. "They feel they have a right and a duty to haze. It's a way of completing the circle."

From year to year, the increase in violence may not seem drastic, Lipkins said, but when accumulated over decades, she added that one fraternity's hazing ritual can often go from mundane to horrific.

"It's hard to read this and other accounts and not be amazed people would subject themselves to this," Clement said.

According to Lipkins, the people being hazed believe the benefits of joining the group outweigh the pain being inflicted on them.

"There's a sense there are benefits to joining the group that make it worth it," she said, adding that a Greek organization yields instant friends in college and in many cases can lead to job opportunities afterward.

It's also a matter of proving yourself, Lipkins said. As members of Delta Tau Delta repeatedly told OFSL: "Everyone before me did this; clearly I have to do it to get their respect. It was very important to get their respect."