Students' Intention to Leave University: The Protective Role of Social Connections.
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| Title: | Students' Intention to Leave University: The Protective Role of Social Connections. |
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| Authors: | Mazzoni, Davide, Cutica, Ilaria, Chichua, Mariam, Brambilla, Marina, Rosina, Barbara, Gambirasio, Angela, Pravettoni, Gabriella |
| Source: | Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology. May/Jun2025, Vol. 35 Issue 3, p1-9. 9p. |
| Subjects: | Pearson correlation (Statistics), Research funding, School dropouts, Universities & colleges, Questionnaires, Descriptive statistics, Social integration, Intention, Psychology of college students, Social support, Student attitudes, Data analysis software, Social isolation, Well-being, Psychosocial factors |
| Geographic Terms: | Italy |
| Abstract: | Reducing students' dropout rates represents an important issue for the academic system and the society that is far from being completely understood and solved. While it is largely demonstrated that the quality of university students' social connections significantly impacts their well‐being, its relationship with the decision to leave university is largely unexplored. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between specific variables assessing students' connections (social exclusion, perceived social support, and psychological sense of community) and the intention to leave the university and the academic degree. An online questionnaire was completed by 7096 students from a large Italian university. The results showed that experiences of social exclusion were significantly associated with a higher intention to leave the university and the academic degree, while social support and sense of community were associated with a lower intention. The moderation model showed that the relationship between the experiences of exclusion and the intention to leave was no more significant if the respondents experienced a high sense of community. The results have important implications, suggesting that interventions aimed at increasing the students' sense of community could be potentially useful for reducing the students' dropouts due to negative experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Copyright of Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) | |
| Database: | Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection |
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| Abstract: | Reducing students' dropout rates represents an important issue for the academic system and the society that is far from being completely understood and solved. While it is largely demonstrated that the quality of university students' social connections significantly impacts their well‐being, its relationship with the decision to leave university is largely unexplored. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between specific variables assessing students' connections (social exclusion, perceived social support, and psychological sense of community) and the intention to leave the university and the academic degree. An online questionnaire was completed by 7096 students from a large Italian university. The results showed that experiences of social exclusion were significantly associated with a higher intention to leave the university and the academic degree, while social support and sense of community were associated with a lower intention. The moderation model showed that the relationship between the experiences of exclusion and the intention to leave was no more significant if the respondents experienced a high sense of community. The results have important implications, suggesting that interventions aimed at increasing the students' sense of community could be potentially useful for reducing the students' dropouts due to negative experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| ISSN: | 10529284 |
| DOI: | 10.1002/casp.70098 |
