Abstract
Ability and personality test scores of 256 males, categorized by college persistence seven semesters after matriculation, were subjected to stepwise discriminant analysis. A combination of personality and ability variables distinguished between groups (p<.001); personality variables alone did not. The most powerful discriminator was overall ability. Authoritarianism, natural science ability, and nonconformity also entered into the discrimination. Results indicate: (a) the most able, most autonomous group included those who withdrew; (b) the most authoritarian, those who became seniors; (c) the most nonconforming, those who “continued” without becoming seniors, and (d) the highest in ability to think abstractly and scientifically and to solve problems, the academic dismissals who with difficulty succeeded in gaining reinstatement.
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Morgan, M.K. Male university attrition: A discriminant analysis. Res High Educ 2, 281–289 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00991172
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00991172