Examined factors related to suicidal behavior and relationships between institutional response to such behavior and the behavior itself. Students (N=838) responding to a questionnaire indicated they believed social and family problems account for three-fourths of suicide threats and attempts. Depression was most commonly viewed as related to…

Describes the Student Learning Center at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, which identifies and provides support services for high-risk courses, rather than high-risk students. Presents an evaluative research study of the supplemental instruction provided to an American history class and the effects of students' achievement and persistence.…

Describes a study of 208 community college students to determine reasons given for deciding to withdraw, the relationship of student characteristics to those reasons, and patterns of reenrollment over 1 to 3 years. Discusses the relationship of gender, age, ethnicity, and academic preparedness to persistence. (58 citations) (KRG)

Discusses demographic statistics that reveal a declining number of African American students entering American colleges and universities, along with a disproportionately high attrition rate for those who do. Suggests that the focus on retention of these students is insufficient; programs are needed to help minority students progress to degree…

Compares student achievement in introductory computer science courses before and after the introduction of a competency-based course syllabus. Finds little difference in the performance of 1988 and 1989 summer students. Fall competency-based students had a higher dropout rate but increased performance. (DMM)

Two theories concerning students' decisions to leave college are compared, and the convergence and discriminant validity of the two theories are examined empirically. The extent to which the theories could be merged to help researchers understand the role of institutional and noninstitutional variables in student persistence is discussed. (MSE)

A study of 136 graduate social work students found that burnout (strain) was significantly related to each of 3 stress indicators and 2 outcome measures (intention to quit school and physical and psychological symptoms). Direct stress-to-outcome relationship was nonsignificant. Evidence of a buffering influence of social support was limited. (MSE)

A study assessed the validity of the Tinto model of student attrition for community college students, and extended and refined the model by examining the mediational influences of a comprehensive set of psychological measures on the model's constructs. Results confirm the model's generalizability to this population, and show psychological measures…

A study was conducted to assess the impact of a career-planning course in terms of time taken to graduate, graduation rate, credit hours taken, number of course withdrawals, and cumulative GPAs. Student course participants (N = 544) were compared to a matched sample of non-course participants (N = 544) after 5 years. Results showed that the 2…

The school choice debate evokes compelling arguments by advocates and opponents alike. As the controversy continues, urban school districts are losing significant resources to charter schools. Districts seeking to compete in the race to reclaim dollars lost to the school choice battle should emulate the factors that have propelled parents to seek…

Multiple linear discriminant function analyses were performed using academic, performance, and personality variables to discriminate among groups of transfers, persisters, and dropouts two years after college matriculation. Analysis of all variables combined added no predictive power beyond that by either subset alone. The results held up on…

Despite much research on dropouts, little information exists on the education of dropouts after they leave high school. That a substantial proportion of dropouts complete high school within a few years appears not to be widely known. Without understanding the nature and extent of this phenomenon, the severity and impact on society of the dropout…

This study of the persistence behavior of undergraduates at America's 4-year colleges and universities used data from the "High School and Beyond" study, a national survey of 28,000 high-school seniors. "Persistence" is described as the flow of students through college over a 6-year period. Four categories of persistence were…

A study was conducted at Shelby State Community College (SSCC) in Tennessee to determine the extent, causes, and solutions to the problem of student retention. The study involved: (1) a comparative analysis of headcounts to assess the extent of the dropout problem, which indicated that enrollments declined sharply from 5,289 in 1983 to 3,399 in…

In fall 1987, a study was conducted at Central Community College (CCC) to investigate patterns in student course withdrawals at the college's three campuses. At CCC, students may enroll in a "whole" course (i.e., all credits represented by one listing on the schedule) or in one or more parts of the course by individual units. For example,…