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PSI CHI: The International Honor Society in Psychology

The International Honor Society in Psychology

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Predictors of Adjustment and Institutional Attachment in 1st-Year College Students

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by Cari A. Cohorn and Traci A. Guiliano* - Southwestern University

Category: Educational


The present study sought to synthesize and extend prior research by investigating predictors of several types of adjustment to college (i.e., general, social, academic, personal-emotional adjustment, and institutional attachment). The results showed that academic adjustment was positively correlated with the accessibility of faculty and negatively correlated with closeness of family relationships. The ability to make friends, self-esteem, and limited alcohol use predicted social adjustment. The ability to make friends also predicted personal-emotional adjustment, as did satisfaction with one's physical appearance and satisfaction with one's roommate. Examinations of the interrelations among these types of adjustment indicate that general college adjustment is most influenced by a student's academic and personal-emotional adjustment, whereas institutional attachment (i.e., loyalty to an institution) is determined by a student's social adjustment.


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