THE CONVERGENCE BETWEEN TWO THEORIES

This study tested the convergent and discriminant validity between two theories of college persistence; the Student Attrition Model and the Student Integration Model. The study examined conceptual similarities for each theory to explain departure decisions and examined how both theoretical frameworks enhanced the understanding of the processes affecting departure decisions when tested simultaneously on the persistence criterion. A longitudinal research design was used, and the student population was drawn from the fall 1988 entering freshman class of a large southwestern comprehensive urban institution. An initial survey and a follow-up survey yielded 466 useable responses. The Student Attrition Model accounted for 44 % of the variance observed in Persistence and for 60.3 % of the variance observed in Intent to Persist. The Student Integration Model accounted for 38 % of the variance observed i