Journal of The First-Year Experience & Students in Transition, 2008, Vol. 20, No. 1, pp. 53-70 55 Intended and Unintended Consequences of First-Year Learning Communities: An Initial Investigation David Jaffee Adam C. Carle Richard Phillips University of North Florida Lucy Paltoo University of Florida Abstract. Most of the research on first-year student learning communities (FLCs) focuses on the impact of these programs on student success and reten- tion. This paper reports on the investigation of the impact of FLCs on social community, peer friendships, and classroom dynamics. The researchers identify sociological principles that account for the positive effects of FLCs on these phenomena but also show how these principles predict potential unintended negative consequences of FLCs. Collecting data from three types of first-year classes, the researchers examined the relationship between student participa- tion in learning communities and reported level and intensity of various social group dynamics. The results suggest that FLCs can produce both positive and negative consequences. First-year student learning communities (FLCs) have become an es- tablished feature of the higher education landscape. One of the purposes of FLCs is the formation of a irst-year “peer cohort” that provides a sense of community for its members. A large literature base extols the beneits of FLCs, but less attention has been paid to the unanticipated, and occasionally