Positive Youth Development and Undergraduate Student Retention

2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 419-444 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia Demetriou ◽  
Candice Powell
Keyword(s):  
College Student ◽  
Student Retention ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
Positive Youth Development ◽  
College Retention ◽  
Future Research ◽  
College Student Retention ◽  
Developmental Needs ◽  
Traditional Age ◽  
Undergraduate Retention

The primary theoretical tradition in the study of college retention has been sociological. A review and synthesis of common themes of development among traditional-age, college students suggests that a developmental perspective on the retention of youth in college may have more to offer than the dominant sociological paradigm. This article argues that a key question in examining undergraduate retention should be are colleges and universities meeting the developmental needs of the youth enrolled in their institutions. The Positive Youth Development (PYD) perspective is proposed as a more beneficial paradigm than current models used to examine college student retention. Opportunities and resources to support features of positive developmental settings in the college context are explored, as are potential limitations and directions for future research. The conclusion discusses the overall benefits of using a developmental and strengths-based perspective to study undergraduate retention.

Examining college student retention: a closer look at low self-control

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 953-964
Author(s):  
Amber L. Stephenson ◽  
D. Alex Heckert ◽  
David B. Yerger
Keyword(s):  
College Student ◽  
Propensity Score ◽  
Student Retention ◽  
Propensity Score Matching ◽  
College Retention ◽  
Self Control ◽  
College Student Retention ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Low Self Control ◽  
Support Students

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to comprehensively explore the association between low self-control and college student retention.Design/methodology/approachCross-sectional survey data were obtained from 369 undergraduate students in the USA and combined with follow-up data on retention. Factor analysis was used to develop and validate the abbreviated eight-item low self-control instrument. Propensity score matching, an analytic technique that permits the assertion of causality without the need for experimental design, was used to examine the relationship between low self-control and second-semester college retention. Use of propensity score matching permitted the pairing of survey respondents under the defined circumstance of low self-control with those respondents not having low self-control under multiple relevant covariates.FindingsThe results showed a relationship between low self-control and college retention. Specifically, in the matched sample, those students with low self-control were 8 percent less likely to be retained at the institution at the onset of the second year than their counterparts with higher self-control.Practical implicationsThe results of the study prompt the important question of how colleges and universities can alter their structures and processes to better support students with low self-control. Key managerial and administrative implications from the findings of this study revolve around the recognition, motivation, and subsequent performance appraisals of those students with low self-control.Originality/valueThis study extends the quite limited research on how low self-control correlates with retention and subsequently offers insights on how to further support students with low self-control as a way to improve retention outcomes. Additionally, the validated eight-item survey provides a quick, low-cost assessment tool for interested researchers and managers.

Lifestyle and Personality Predictors of College Student Retention

2002 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cyndi R. McDaniel ◽  
James H. Thomas ◽  
Diana Harvey ◽  
Yvette Thompson ◽  
Perilou Goddard
Keyword(s):  
College Student ◽  
Student Retention ◽  
College Student Retention ◽  
Personality Predictors

Student Variables that Predict Retention: Recent Research and New Developments

NASPA Journal ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert D. Reason
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Education Research ◽  
College Student ◽  
Student Retention ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Individual Student ◽  
Higher Education Research ◽  
College Student Retention ◽  
New Developments ◽  
Changing Demographics

This article reviews recent research related to the study of college student retention, specifically examining research related to individual student demographic characteristics. The increasing diversity of undergraduate college students requires a new, thorough examination of those student variables previously understood to predict retention. The retention literature focuses on research conducted after 1990 and emphasizes the changing demographics in higher education. Research related to a relatively new variable —the merit-index—also is reviewed, revealing potentially promising, but currently mixed results.

Anti-Black Racism and Historical Trauma: Pushing the Positive Youth Development Paradigm

2021 ◽  
pp. 0044118X2110078
Author(s):  
Anna Ortega-Williams ◽  
Troy Harden
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
African American ◽  
Prosocial Behavior ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
Positive Youth Development ◽  
African American Youth ◽  
Historical Trauma ◽  
Youth Work ◽  
Developmental Needs ◽  
Development Paradigm

Positive youth development (PYD), while embraced in many sectors of youth work, has faced criticism for its primary emphasis on positive personal change and adaptation, without a strong emphasis on social justice and culture, especially relevant for African Americans. Additional models of PYD addressing these conceptual gaps have emerged, however few explicitly address anti-Black racism and historical trauma impacting African American youth development. In this paper, expanded models of PYD, specifically Empowerment-Based Positive Youth Development (EBPYD) and Critical Positive Youth Development (CPYD) will be examined for their strengths and limitations in responding to (1) anti-Black racism and (2) historical trauma among African American youth. Key strategies of these models, such as promoting prosocial behavior and civic engagement will be reconceptualized and expanded to account for developmental needs imposed by historical oppression and contemporary racism against African American youth. Implications for PYD programing will be discussed.

A Multilevel Approach to Assessing the Interaction Effects on College Student Retention

2009 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 287-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haiyan Bai ◽  
Wei Pan
Keyword(s):  
College Student ◽  
Social Integration ◽  
Student Retention ◽  
Interaction Effects ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
First Year ◽  
College Student Retention ◽  
Multilevel Approach ◽  
The Social ◽  
First Year Retention

The present study utilizes a multilevel approach to assess the effects of four different types of intervention on college student retention, focusing on the interaction effects between the student characteristics and the types of intervention. The program effects on a 3-year trend are also explored. The findings of the present study reveal that the social integration programs improved the first-year retention rates for female students, the advising programs and the social integration programs worked better in the first year for students from more selective colleges within the university, and the first-year experience programs had a significant lasting effect across the 3 years on retention for elder students and male students. It is also found that the advising programs were significantly more effective on the first-year retention rates than the general orientation programs. This study provides empirical evidence for researchers and administrators in higher education to improve the effectiveness of intervention programs for students with specific characteristics.

Queering College Student Retention

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 544-566 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Michael Denton
Keyword(s):  
College Student ◽  
Student Retention ◽  
Queer Theory ◽  
Campus Climate ◽  
Institutional Transformation ◽  
College Student Retention ◽  
Psychological Traits ◽  
Sexuality And Gender ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Retention Theory

Retention literature and concepts warrant examination through the lens of queer theory, a poststructural body of thought about sexuality and gender, to understand their implications for queer students. Five themes found in the retention literature are addressed from a queer perspective: framing retention as an economic and labor problem; campus climate; the focus on programs, policies, and services; psychological traits; and positivistic approaches. Queering retention involves deconstructing retention binaries; problematizing the production of normative subjects through retention theory; focusing on institutional transformation; and examining retention as heteronormative domination. Queer failure and futurity are offered as possible new frames for retention. This essay seeks to raise questions, tensions, and complexities with no clear or simple solutions. Tentative and limited implications for practice and research are offered; however, they raise more questions than provide answers.

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