University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 1-1-1986 Elements of an effective retention program : a study of attrition and retention at American International College. Joan B. Pennington University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1 Recommended Citation Pennington, Joan B., "Elements of an effective retention program : a study of attrition and retention at American International College." (1986). Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014. 4219. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1/4219 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ELEMENTS OF AN EFFECTIVE RETENTION PROGRAM: A STUDY OF ATTRITION AND RETENTION AT AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE A Dissertation Presented by Joan Bickford Pennington Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION May 1986 School of Education Joan Bickford Pennington All Rights Reserved 11 ELEMENTS OF AN EFFECTIVE RETENTION PROGRAM: A STUDY OF ATTRITION AND RETENTION AT AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE A Dissertation Presented by Joan Bickford Pennington Approved as to style and content by: Dr. Robert Grose, Merrber Matfio D. Fantirii, Dean School of Education iii ABSTRACT ELEMSNTS OF AN EFFECTIVE RETENTION PROGRAM: A STUDY OF ATTRITION AND RETENTION AT AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE MAY, 1986 Joan Bickford Pennington, B.A., American International College M.A., American International College, Bd.D., University of Massachusetts Directed by: Dr. Alfred E. Alschuler, Ph.D. This research project attempted to determine students' needs, then to design, implement, and evaluate an effective retention program responsive to these needs for freshmen students during their crucial first six weeks of college life. After first conducting a campus-wide survey to help determine sane of the specific needs of students at American International College, a further study was made by reviewing the theoretical literature which pertains to the psychological needs of college age individuals and to the attempts to foster their personal growth and development. Next, three periods of attrition/retention research were reviewed and a comparison made between these three eras and Paulo Freire's three stages of problem solving. Then, elements for designing and implementing an effective retention program were derived from summarizing the results from the needs survey and the review of theoretical and research literature. Based upon the elements from this summary, a retention program consisting of six interventions was designed and implemented to help the institution become more responsive IV to incoming freshman students' needs, and thereby enhance student- institutional fit and increase retention. As it happened, the interventions could not always be restricted to experimental subjects alone and, therefore the total amount of intervention input was calculated as point scores for all of the 262 randomly selected subjects (130 experimental and 132 comparison group subjects.) The program was evaluated and found generally effective in reducing the number of Drop-Outs from the experimental subjects group, which, overall had received a greater number of input points. The second hypothesis stated that subjects with the highest input scores would be the least likely to drop-out. In two of three t-tests, calculated to determine significance of differences, the results were significant for Males and Total Ss groups, when the program input level increased, the Drop-Out rate decreased - i.e. there was an inverse or negative relationship. One specific intervention was also found to make a significant difference in decreasing the number of Drop-Outs from the group vho attended the Survival I intervention. Statistically significant effects could not be determined for three other inter¬ ventions measured. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT . iv LIST OF TABLES CHAPTER I. PURPOSE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE EROBLEXl.1 Purpose of the Study.1 Significance of the Problem.2 II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE.5 Theoretical Background for the Research.5 Needs of College Students . 5 Erikson's Psychosocial Developmental Theory . 6 Community Psychology: A Model for Implementation.11 Research Literature on Attrition and Retention.13 Freire's Theoretical Views.14 Tne Magical Problem-Solving Stage- Era I Research.15 'Ihe Naive-Reforming Stage- Era II Research.16 The Critical Problem-Solving Stage - Era III Research.^0 Implications of Theory for an Effective Retention Program at A.I.C.30 III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research Hypotheses . .35 Environmental Setting and Related Problems . .36 Subjects and the Sampling Procedure . .38 Procedures and History of the Program .40 Early Discussion and Organizational Meetings . .40 Design and Administration of Survey of Needs . .43 Sutimary of Survey Results. .47 Recommendations for Closing the Gap in Services . .48 vi Beginnings for the Student Support Services (S.S.S.) . 50 Joint Training workshops for Faculty and S.S.S. 53 Components of A.I.C.'s Experimental Retention Program. 54 Survival I Workshop. 56 Personal Contact with S.S.S. 59 Freshman Night "Sundae Night Social" ... 62 Direct One-On-One Consultation/Counseling . 63 Study Skills Workshop/Course. 64 Pre-Registration Majors and Career Planning workshop. 65 Instruments used for Measuring the Effects of A.I.C.'s Retention Program ... 66 Limitations of this Experimental Retention Program. 70 Subjects. 71 External and General Factors . 71 Design and Implementation. 72 IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. 80 Results. 80 Discussion. 95 V. SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS. 98 Summary. 98 Recommendations.101 BIBLIOGRAPHY . 1°6 APPENDIX I.110 APPENDIX II.114 APPENDIX III.129 APPENDIX IV.137 APPENDIX V.143 vii LIST OF TABLES 1. Representativeness of Sample Due to Respondents' Characteristics . 44 2. Results of Student and Faculty/Administration Needs Survey . 45 3. Total Number and Percentage of ExSs and CSs Participating in Program's Interventions . 66 4. Assigned Input/Ratings for Interventions . 68 5. Number and Percent of Subjects with Each Score . 69 6. Frequency of Hale and Female Students Who Stay-In or Drop-Out at Different Levels of Input . 82 7. Summary of Statistical Differences in Input Levels for Stay-Ins and Drop-Outs in Sex Segregated Groups . 84 8. Number and Percentages of Stay-Ins and Drop-Outs as a Function of Input level for Total Ss (Combined Sexes) . 86 9. Significance of Survival I Workshop . 91 10. Significance of Personal Contact by S.S.S. 93 11. Significance of Dexter Counseling Center (CO) Input Points . 95 12. Dropping-Out vs. Staying-In as Related to Input Levels for Female Ss During First Semester . 130 12a. Dropping—Out vs. Staying—In as Related to Input Levels for Female Ss at Beginning of Second Semester 130 12b. Dropping-Out vs. Staying-In as Related to Input Levels for Female Ss During Third Semester . 131 13. Dropping-Out vs. Staying-In as Related to Input Levels for Male Ss During First Semester . 132 13a. Dropping-Out vs. Staying-In as Related to Input Levels for Male Ss at Beginning of Second Semester . 132 13b. Dropping-Out vs. Staying-In as Related to Input Levels for Male Ss During Third Semester . 133 viii 14. Frequencies and Percentages of Male Ss Who Stay-In or Drop-Out vs. Input Score/Level.. 15. Frequencies and Percentages of Female Ss Who Stay-In or Drop-Out vs. Input Score/Level.. 16. Frequencies and Combined Percentages of Male and Female Ss (Combined) Who Stay-In or Drop-Out vs. Input Score/Level.. IX CHAPTER I PURPOSE And SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PRUBLfcM Attrition of college students, and reduction of this "dropping¬ out" through use of retention measures are difficult problems whicn college communities must struggle to solve. Throughout the nation, more than fifteen million men and wanen will enter scxne three thousand institutions of higher learning during the 80's. But, evidence from national retention studies suggests that from five to six million of these students never will earn degrees. Furthermore, predictions for the 1980's are that as many as three hundred of the fifteen hundred private colleges in this country will have to close due to their inability to survive financially (Cope, 1978). understanding how to increase retention has practical value because reducing attrition of students not only directly affects a college's ungoing ability to function at its present level, but even more crucially, maintenance of its student enrollment may determine actual economic survival for small private colleges. Efforts directed tmard increasing retention, or the saving of students, are particularly critical due to two recent nationwide developments: (1) admissions are being drawn from a declining college-age population (a condition predicted to exist until 1992), and (2) both the availability and anounts of financial aid to students have been, and continue to be, seriously reduced. These problems appear to be especially severe for snail, private institutions such as American International College (A.I.C.), and were recently cited by the college's President, Harry Courniotes, 1 2 in his Annual Report as "the problematic issues, which will have to be