Differences between declining colleges and colleges not experiencing decline were investigated, along with dysfunctional organizational consequences that may be associated with decline. Attention is directed to 12 negative attributes resulting from conditions of decline, seven of which were found to be significant: no innovation, scapegoating, resistance to change, low morale, no credibility, non-selective cuts, and conflict. The sample of 334 colleges was made up of 127 public and 207 private institutions, of which 180 were small, 120 were medium, and 34 were large. Of the colleges, 20% had experienced declining enrollments during the last 5 years, 42% had greater than 5% growth, and 38% were stable between plus and minus 5%. Questionnaires were completed by 3,406 respondents (department heads, administrators, and trustees). Schools were categorized as declining based on: (1) reported decline with 100% agreement among respondents; (2) actual data indicating declines in enrollments and revenues (adjusted for inflation) between 1977 and 1981; and (3) findings that there were more years of decline than of growth during the period and that the overall change was negative. Multivariate analyses of covariance were used to compare declining and stable institutions on the 12 attributes, using the three definitions of decline. (SW)