College student retention has become the area of research that has done the most to integrate various administrative factors and academic disciplinary concerns in the research agenda of higher education. V. Tintos model has long been cited as the major theory in explaining dropout behavior. As his theory is so intertwined with path analysis, empirical researchers have needed to examine some major concerns, which have previously been largely unintended. The main purpose of this essay is to explore Tintos model in the context of causal modeling and to discuss its methodological difficulties and ramifications and ensuing issues. Empirical studies using Tintos theory are cited for illustration. (Contains 6 figures and 49 references.) (Author/SLD)