Attachment theory, organizational identification, and communication engagement strategies of successful college students: A retention study

Abstract

Institutional attachment (belongingness) is the single strongest predictor of college student retention (Credé & Niehorster, 2012) and the preponderance of retention research has focused on the first-year student experience. The present study investigated attachment theory, organizational identification, and the communication engagement strategies of 189 graduating seniors from two universities. As graduation is the ultimate goal of retention, more can be learned from seniors who have successfully navigated the college experience. Attachment theory explicated varying approaches that students use to develop belongingness. College seniors demonstrated a high level of organizational identification and levels differed between attachment styles. Quantitative analysis demonstrated functional outcomes for both secure and preoccupied attachment styles for student engagement. In contrast to previous research (Bernier et al., 2004; Larose et al., 2005; Mattanah et al., 2011), which has associated a preoccupied attachment style with dysfunctional outcomes, the preoccupied style of attachment in the present study demonstrated the highest level of organizational identification and proved to be the most engaged student. Qualitative thematic analysis of responses to four scenarios describing college student challenges revealed insight as to the communication strategies based on the four-attachment style model. Implications for attachment theory, retention research, and student support services are discussed.