Predicting the Persistence of Traditional and Nontraditional University Undergraduates Using the Psychosociocultural Model PDF Download

Author: Lauren Remenick Maroon
Publisher:
ISBN:
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Languages : en
Pages : 117

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Book Description
Nontraditional students are increasingly more common in higher education but have lower persistence rates than their traditional peers. While educational researchers have developed several models to predict college persistence using both cognitive (e.g. entrance exam scores) and noncognitive (e.g. academic motivation) factors, most of these models were created for traditional students. The psychosociocultural (PSC) model was created to better predict academic outcomes specifically for underrepresented students using psychological, social, and cultural factors. However, the PSC model has never been used to study nontraditional students. To address these limitations, this study used the PSC model to predict the persistence of traditional and nontraditional undergraduate students at a large public research university. Students were considered nontraditional if they were 25 or older; worked an average of 30 or more hours a week; had children; or were enrolled part-time for the majority of the spring, summer, and fall semesters in 2019. It was hypothesized that (1) nontraditional students will have lower rates of persistence than traditional students; (2a) psychological, social, and cultural dimensions will predict persistence among all students; (2b) nontraditional students will have stronger relationships between the three PSC dimensions and persistence than traditional students; (3a) loneliness, self-efficacy, support from family and friends, comfort on campus, and sense of belonging will predict persistence among all students; and (3b) nontraditional students will have stronger relationships between the six variables of the PSC model and persistence than traditional students.