Consequences of Dropping Out of School: Findings From High School and Beyond

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Abstract
The dropout problem has recently been the focus of considerable concern and the subject of much research. Nevertheless, the lack of a careful and systematic assessment of the consequences of dropping out still exists. The purpose of the present study was to examine the personal, social, and economic consequences of dropping out of school. The High School and Beyond (HS&B) data base was used to investigate the experiences of dropouts and high school graduates in 1986, 4 years after the projected date of graduation. Specifically, dropouts and graduates with no postsecondary education were compared on (a) self-esteem, (b) alcohol use, (c) political/social participation measures, (d) work satisfaction, (e) salary of current job, (f) periods of unemployment, and (g) number of jobs. Multiple-regression analyses were used to determine the degree to which dropping out explained variance in those measures when race, urbanicity, geographic region, socioeconomic status, and academic achievement were held constant. Dropouts differed from graduates with no postsecondary education on many personal and social adjustment measures. Results also indicated that male and female dropouts have different personal, social, and economic experiences.

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