Introduction
The Psychological Model of Student Departure is one of the most popular models in higher education. It has been used to explain student departure from colleges and universities worldwide (Renn & Reason, 2013). It is based on the premise that college students often leave school due to a lack of support from their peers and faculty. This theory has been used by many college counseling centers and student affairs departments to help guide their approach to helping students who are struggling with academic or personal issues. This model is based on three core concepts: motivation, cognition, and behavior (Dewberry & Jackson, 2018).
Motivation is the desire or need to leave school. Motivation includes fear of failure, boredom with the material being taught, or simply not wanting to attend class anymore (Renn & Reason, 2013). Understanding and processing information to decide on one’s life objectives and the choices made by those around them, such as going to school, requires cognitive aptitude. Behavior is how one acts on those thoughts; it includes external behaviors and internal processes.
Basic Tenets of the Model
The model is based on four basic tenets: First, students are always motivated to leave if they cannot succeed in their current environment or do not feel that their time at school has been worthwhile (Elder, 2021). Second, students who leave will be more likely to pursue a different career path than one that involves their previous education experience. Third, students who leave will have difficulty finding employment after graduation due to poor job-related skills such as communication and organization skills. Fourth, students who leave will have less success in their adult lives due to diminished abilities for critical thinking as well as a lack of confidence in their abilities to solve problems independently without outside help from others around them.
Strengths and Weaknesses of the Model
The strengths of this model include its ability to explain why students leave their college while others stay on campus and its applicability across different institutions and educational levels. It also explains why certain types of students are more likely to depart than others (Tight, 2020). It further explains why some students stay at their current institution even though they may be unhappy there or find it difficult or impossible to fulfill their needs at home or elsewhere.
The first weakness of this model is that it does not consider the fact that students are leaving for many different reasons, not just academic performance. For instance, some students might leave because they do not feel their teachers care about or understand them (Tight, 2020). Others might leave because they do not feel like their teachers are adequately preparing them for the future and giving them the skills they need to survive in life after high school.
Another weakness is that this model does not factor in cultural differences between schools and districts around the country. Students who attend different schools may have very different experiences at each school, which affects how they view themselves as learners and performers in general (Roksa & Kinsley, 2019). For example, suppose a student goes to a school where many students from low-income families speak languages other than English as their first language. In that case, they will likely have more trouble making friends at their new school than someone who attends a school where everyone speaks English fluently.
Relevance to Today’s Student Services Professionals
The model, developed in the early 1900s, is essential for understanding student motivation and behavior. In many ways, it is still relevant today—the model was initially designed to help educators understand how students would react to various interventions (Savage et al., 2019). Some interventions may have fallen out of favor over the years, but others have remained important parts of the education system. One of the most exciting aspects of the model is that it was developed by psychologists interested in understanding what motivated students’ decision-making processes (Renn & Reason, 2013). The model was thus able to integrate psychological theories with educational theory, providing much-needed insight into how students make decisions about their futures.
One thing that has changed since this period is student demographics. Today’s students may not be as “normal” or “typical” as previous generations were (Elder, 2021). This behavior may impact how people understand why students behave in specific ways. For example, today’s students may be more likely to choose careers related to their interests rather than ones that appeal only to particular male or female groups.
Conclusion
There are many theories on why students leave college early, but the psychological model offers one of the most concise and compelling reasons for student departure. Departure from college is a multifactor process influenced by multiple social, emotional, and cognitive factors (Dewberry & Jackson, 2019). Building on Elder’s belief that college is one of the most idealistic periods in an individual’s life, theorists developed the idea that an attitude shift occurs during college, which catalyzes student departure (Elder, 2021). The same motivational factors that drive a student to seek higher education are reversed once they have spent time in college, resulting in student departure.
References
Dewberry, C., & Jackson, D. J. (2018). An application of the theory of planned behavior to student retention. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 107, 100-110. Web.
Elder, A. C. (2021). Holistic factors related to student persistence at a large, public university. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 45(1), 65-78. Web.
Renn, K. A., & Reason, R. D. (2013). College students in the United States: Characteristics, experiences, and outcomes. Stylus Publishing. Kindle Edition.
Roksa, J., & Kinsley, P. (2019). The role of family support in facilitating academic success of low-income students. Research in Higher Education, 60(4), 415-436. Web.
Savage, M. W., Strom, R. E., Ebesu Hubbard, A. S., & Aune, K. S. (2019). Commitment in college student persistence. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 21(2), 242-264. Web.
Tight, M. (2020). Student retention and engagement in higher education. Journal of further and Higher Education, 44(5), 689-704. Web.