What has not yet been adequately explored is what is more

The gap

Evidence profile

Sourced from the abstract and stated research gap and stated challenges of the source papers, classified as general, drawn from work published between 1979 and 2026, spanning 3 journals. Those papers have been cited 65 times in total.

Supporting evidence — 4 representative gaps

• Intention to Persist and Retention of First-Year Students: The Importance of Motivation and Sense of Belonging. (2012) · College student journal

  What has not yet been adequately explored is what is more predictive of persistence and retention, connectedness to the university environment or a student's motivation in regards to succeeding in higher education? Sense of Belonging, Motivation, and the University Environment How connected students feel to their university is an important construct to consider when looking at why students may or may not persist at an institution.

  generalabstractevidence 5/5
  Keywords: university environment motivation students adequately explored predictive persistence retention connectedness student regards succeeding higher education
• “We’ve got a bit of a family mantra that you don’t give up”: A cross-national study of first-in-family students’ persistence at university (2026) · Higher Education · cited 1× · doi

  The literature on first-in-family students tends to focus on the problems they encounter, rather than their persistence. There is a lack of cross-national qualitative studies on the 'mantras of persistence' that help first-in-family students succeed. The paper identifies a gap in the literature, which tends to focus on localized understandings of persistence rather than the shared symbolic, emotional, and affective labor first-in-family learners engage in to remain enrolled.

  generalstated research gapevidence 5/5
  Keywords: literature first-in-family students tends focus problems encounter rather
• “We’ve got a bit of a family mantra that you don’t give up”: A cross-national study of first-in-family students’ persistence at university (2026) · Higher Education · cited 1× · doi

  The paper identifies the challenge of early departure from university, which can have significant financial, emotional, and social repercussions for learners and their families. The study highlights the challenge of recognizing the importance of 'mantras of persistence' in improving student retention. The paper notes the challenge of moving beyond localized understandings of persistence to instead foreground the shared symbolic, emotional, and affective labor first-in-family learners engage in to remain enrolled.

  generalstated challengesevidence 5/5
  Keywords: paper identifies challenge early departure university have significant
• Student-Faculty Informal Contact and College Persistence: A Further Investigation (1979) · The Journal of Educational Research · cited 63× · doi

  Prior models of college attrition, such as those by Spady and Tinto, suggest that social and academic integration are key factors in student persistence, but the relationship between student-faculty informal contact and freshman year voluntary persistence/withdrawal decisions is not well understood. The study aims to fill this gap by examining the relationship between student-faculty informal contact and freshman year voluntary persistence/withdrawal decisions.

  generalstated research gapevidence 4/5
  Keywords: prior models college attrition spady tinto suggest social

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