Commitment is a self-control technique to induce weight loss. Tow targets of commitment contingencies, completion of the study and behavior change, were examined among 42 female and 3 male subjects who made a monetary deposit to enroll in the 10-week program. The treatment consisted of self-monitoring of eating and exercise behavior. Subjects were…

The subject mortality problems of an experimental design which covers the period of student recruitment through posttesting over a 13-month period, is detailed in this study. Out of an effective applicant pool of 72 students randomly assigned to experimental and control groups, only 38 students remained at the end of the study with complete test…

The central thesis of this article is that the process of eliminating validity threats depends fundamentally on no-difference findings, a fact that has not been made explicit by researchers. The implications of this neglect are explored using examples from a number of different substantive areas such as psychology, health, and medicine.…

This 2003 study was designed to collect data on the outcomes of short stay students, or former students who leave British Columbia's colleges, university colleges, and institutes after completing between 9 and 23 credits. Out of 2,273 former students eligible for surveying, 871 completed the survey, for a response rate of 38%. The survey collected…

Tracking and two statistical methods (probability weighting and sample selection modeling) were studied as ways to minimize bias attributable to sample attrition in school-based studies. Data on student smoking from 30 middle schools illustrate that sample weighting yields the best results, with estimates superior to sample selection and much less…

Simple methods for detecting attrition (nonresponse) in longitudinal evaluations are reviewed, focusing on regression-based analyses of data from a longitudinal evaluation. The approaches are illustrated with data from the Fort Bragg Evaluation, an evaluation of a major demonstration in children's mental health services. (SLD)

A meta-analysis of school-based substance abuse prevention studies revealed that the mean proportion of subjects retained dropped from 81.4 percent at the three-month followup to 67.5 percent at the three-year followup. Researchers should interpret their results in light of these normative data and adopt second-effort strategies to reduce…

Explores advisors' perspectives on the characteristics of late-admits: how they differ from students who apply earlier, the forces that influence their late decision to attend college, and whether late-admits possess attributes that would put them at risk for attrition. Reveals distinct differences between traditional age (18 to 20) and…

This article emerges from a recent review of evidence, conducted by the authors and others, on the lifelong barriers to widening participation in higher education in England. This has led us to a consideration of the quality and relevance of the research activity in this large field of endeavour, and to the creation of a typology of the kinds of…

One of the six national goals in the United States is to achieve a 90 percent graduation rate by the year 2000. In the last 50 years, high school graduation has become the norm. Concurrent with the new expectation of high school graduation came the dominance of the word "dropout" to describe those without diplomas. Many Americans view…

This paper reviews "The Status of the American Public School Teacher, 1985-86," a report on a survey conducted by the National Education Association (NEA), with the aim of locating specific results or findings in that report that have implications for future research on the teaching profession. Periodic surveys of school teachers conducted by the…

An analytical framework is described through which voluntary attrition can be predicted. The approach incorporates Marshallian Utility Theory and a Maximum Likelihood Estimation procedure to evaluate a specific individual's propensity to attrit. The approach was tested twice at the United States Air Force Academy where it was able to correctly…

A critical review of the literature suggests the following: (1) negative changes in physical health, mortality rate, and mental health status usually accompany widowhood; (2) social-psychological variables such as the individual's characteristic ways of coping with stress and the adequacy of the social network may attenuate widowhood's negative…

This research-subject attrition study evaluated differences between 45 subjects who completed a 22-month longitudinal study and 34 who dropped out. Subjects were blue-collar employees. Discriminant analysis proved to be a useful tool for determining some of longitudinal data bias. Attrition was predicted by situational rather than personality…

This paper describes the contours of a program of research focused on Australian youth and the transition they make within and between education and work. The project was initiated in 1978 and centered on longitudinal mail surveys. Questionnaires were sent to three cohorts aged 24 to 25 years old, 20 to 21 years, and 15 to 16 years. Samples…