Freshman Attrition and the Residential Context

After controlling for students’ pre-college characteristics and individual levels of academic and social integration in the institution, the residence unit context was found to be reliably related to attrition/retention among men, but not among women. For men, those living in a residence unit characterized by comparatively higher levels of occupant commitment to the institution and to personal goals were significantly more likely to enroll as sophomores than were freshmen in units with lower levels of commitment among the residents.