Amaury Nora

Reporting Structural Equation Modeling and Confirmatory Factor Analysis Results: A Review

ABSTRACT The authors provide a basic set of guidelines and recommendations for information that should be included in any manuscript that has confirmatory factor analysis or structural equation modeling as the primary statistical analysis technique. The authors provide an introduction to both techniques, along with sample analyses, recommendations for reporting, evaluation of articles in The Journal of Educational Research using these techniques, and concluding remarks.

The Convergence between Two Theories of College Persistence.

Although several theories have been advanced to explain the college persistence process [6, 39, 44, 46], the two theories that provide a more comprehensive theoretical framework on college departure decisions are Tintos [44, 46] Student Integration Model and Beans [5] Model of Student Departure [18]. These two theories have received considerable attention in the literature [see, for example, 13, 21, 22, 24, 26]. However, no research exists on the extent to which these two theories converge and diverge in explaining decisions to leave college. The purpose of this article was to examine, empirically, the convergent and discriminant validity between these two theories and document the extent to which the two theories could be merged to illuminate better our understanding of the college persistence process.

Campus Racial Climate and the Adjustment of Students to College: A Comparison Between White Students and African-American Students.

Benefits associated with a college degree are multiple. From a societal standpoint, a college graduate is far less likely to commit a crime and approximately 30% less likely to be unemployed compared to a student who has simply earned a high-school diploma (Hossler, Braxton, & Coopersmith, 1989; Pascarella & Terenzini, 1991). From an individual perspective, each additional year of schooling past high school seems to prolong life by 0.4%, or nearly 2 percentage points, upon graduation from college (Hossler, Braxton, & Coopersmith, 1989). Moreover, earning a college degree is known to produce greater gains in occupational prestige (e.g., Lin & Vogt, 1996) and economic returns (e.g., Leslie & Brinkman, 1986) as compared to simply attaining a high-school diploma. A precondition for the attainment of these benefits is persistence to graduation. Although persistence rates have remained remarkably stable at roughly 45% as far back as 1885 (Tinto, 1982; Porter, 1990), there are notable variations when the ethnicity of the student is introduced. Compared to White students, African Americans are 20% less likely to complete college within a six-year period (Porter, 1990). For every two White students who drop out in that time frame, three African Americans have departed from a postsecondary institution (Porter, 1990). Several hypotheses have been advanced that may account for enrollment and persistence trends of minority students. Hauser and Anderson (1991) explored the extent to which declines in college participation rates could be attributed to changes in college aspirations and changes in high-school completion rates among African Americans. Tinto (1987) argued that overall differences in persistence rates between African Americans and non-minorities were primarily due to differences in their academic preparedness rather than differences in their socioeconomic backgrounds. Tinto contended that differences in ability arise from prior educational experiences at elementary and secondary school levels that tend to favor the educational achievement and persistence of nonminorities relative to minorities. Other researchers speculate these trends could be attributed to changes in the composition of federal financial aid packets and patterns of financing higher education exhibited by minority students (Mortenson & Wu, 1990; Olivas, 1985 Porter, 1990; St. John, 1994). Exposure to a climate of prejudice and discrimination in the classroom and on campus has gained attention as the main factor accounting for differences in withdrawal behavior between minorities and non-minorities (e.g., Fleming, 1984; Hurtado, 1992, 1994; Hurtado, Carter, & Spuler, 1996; Smedley, Myers, & Harrel, 1993). The role of perceived discriminatory behavior on the maladaptive behavior of minority students to college has been scrutinized through two conceptualizations. The first approach relies on Student-Institution Fit models (Bean, 1990; Spady, 1970; Tinto, 1993) and views prejudice and discrimination as a factor interfering with a students integration into his or her social and academic environments. A second, more recent approach uses transactional models of stress and coping behaviors as their theoretical premises (Munoz, 1987; Smedley, Myers, & Harrell, 1993). The transactional model (Munoz, 1987; Smedley, Myers, & Harrell, 1993) regards experiences of racism and discrimination on campus as psychological and sociocultural stressors. Like other stressors, experiences of prejudice and discrimination are associated with psychological distress that can lead to the maladjustment of students at their respective institutions. Unlike other stressors, however, experiences of discrimination are considered unique in that they (a) are present only among minority students and (b) heighten the feeling of not belonging at the institution with spillover effect on a students academic performance. Proponents of the Student-Institution Fit perspective argue that intolerance toward the minority student plays a key role for explaining his or her maladjustment with the institution. …

THE ROLE OF FINANCES IN THE PERSISTENCE PROCESS: A Structural Model

The study empirically examined the role of finances on college persistence by presenting a causal model that relied on several theoretical frameworks. A quantitative model was tested via linear structural equations for categorical data that incorporated constructs from the financial aid literature as well as the persistence literature. The research design was longitudinal in nature and analyses were conducted on a sample of 466 college students who were attending a large public urban commuter institution in the spring of 1989. In sum, results appear to suggest that financial aid, and its concomitant attitude, is important not only because it equalizes opportunities between affluent and low-income students, but also because it facilitates the integration of the student into the academic and social components of the institution as well as by influencing his or her commitment to stay in college.

Differential Impacts of Academic and Social Experiences on College-Related Behavioral Outcomes across Different Ethnic and Gender Groups at Four-Year Institutions.

The results of the study indicated that institutional experiences, academic achievement, and environmental pull factors contributed the most to persistence decisions. Furthermore, analyses revealed that differences in the effects of these factors for different ethnic and gender groups were important in explaining persistence decisions. No precollege factors (educational aspirations, prior academic achievement, attitudes toward learning, and support and encouragement to attend college) were found to improve the overall fit of the models for any of the groups in the study. For minorities, the biggest detrimental effects on dropout behavior were derived from pull factors in the form of family responsibilities and working off-campus. No significant positive effects from informal and formal interactions with faculty, close personal relationships with peers, and academic experiences during their first year in college were found to negate the large negative influences from the pull factors. For females, the most significant positive effect on college persistence came from mentoring experiences in the form of nonclassroom interactions with faculty.

Determinants of retention among Chicano college students: A structural model

This study tested a modified version of Tintos student attrition model on a Chicano student population in two-year colleges. Structural equation modeling and LISREL VI were used to examine the parameter estimates of the structural and measurement models of the hypothesized causal model. Measures of goodness of fit were examined to provide indices for the overall fit of the causal model in the study. The measurement and structural models were found to represent a plausible causal model of student retention among Chicano students. Although the measures used in assessing the fit of the model reflected the overall strength of the hypothesized model, the present study was not entirely supportive of Tintos model. The findings were only minimally supportive of the hypothesized relationship between measures of academic integration and retention. The results indicated that the hypothesized relationship between measures of social integration could not be substantiated. Moreover, measures of initial commitments were found to have a significantly large direct effect on the dependent variable, retention.

The Influence of Academic and Environmental Factors on Hispanic College Degree Attainment

This study used the NELS 88‑2000 data base to examine among Hispanic students precollege, college, and environmental predictors of (a) college first enrolled in (two‑year versus four‑year) and (b) undergraduate degree attainment for students who first enrolled in a two‑year or four‑year college. Hispanic students who attended a four-year college right after high school were much more likely to obtain a bachelors degree than their peers who first attended a community college. Furthermore, precollege variables were more salient in predicting bachelor degree attainment for students who started in two‑year colleges, while college-related variables were more salient for students who started in four‑year colleges.

The Role of Habitus and Cultural Capital in Choosing a College, Transitioning From High School to Higher Education, and Persisting in College Among Minority and Nonminority Students:

The concept of fitting in at a particular college has been linked to student persistence. Studies have identified habitus and cultural capital, psychosocial factors associated with a student’s fit at a particular institution. This study examined the dimensions of precollege psychosocial factors, determined the extent to which those factors were reflected in students’ college choices, and established the effects those factors exert on measures of student satisfaction. Overall, students choose colleges where they experience comfort, acceptance, and fit.

Student Characteristics, Pre-College, College, and Environmental Factors as Predictors of Majoring in and Earning a STEM Degree: An Analysis of Students Attending a Hispanic Serving Institution:

This study examined the demographic, pre-college, environmental, and college factors that impact students’ interests in and decisions to earn a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) degree among students attending a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). Results indicated that Hispanic students were well represented among STEM majors, and students’ decisions to declare a STEM major and earn a STEM degree were uniquely influenced by students’ gender, ethnicity, SAT math score, and high school percentile. Earning a STEM degree was related to students’ first-semester GPA and enrollment in mathematics and science “gatekeeper” courses. Findings indicate that HSIs may be an important point of access for students in STEM fields and may also provide opportunity for more equitable outcomes for Hispanic students.

Path Analysis: An Introduction and Analysis of a Decade of Research

The authors review the use and interpretations of path analyses in articles published in The Journal of Educational Research from 1992 to 2002 and discuss related issues. This article provides (a) a brief introduction to path analysis, (b) suggested guidelines and recommendations for reporting results, (c) a sample of a model path analysis, (d) evaluation of the JER path analysis articles, and (e) concluding remarks.