Author ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7346-8160
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3929-9164
N/A
N/A
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Spring 5-4-2020
College/Unit
Student Life
Department/Program/Center
Campus Recreation
Abstract
This study examines the relationship between campus recreation facility access and first-year retention of full-time, first-time undergraduate students at a public university for 2014–2015 through 2016–2017. Authors examine differences between facility users and nonusers by pairing facility swipe card data with student records. Statistical analysis includes logistic regression and matching approaches, controlling for student demographics, academic preparedness, academic goals, family characteristics, and various environmental factors. Results show a positive and significant relationship between recreation facility use and retention, including 7.1 to 8.4 percentage points higher retention for users versus nonusers, holding other variables constant. Subsample analysis suggests the relationship between recreation facility use and retention differs across student subgroups. Key study contributions include linking card swipe data on facility usage with extensive student records, clearly defining facility users and nonusers, and introducing a new robustness check based on assignment of students to residence halls different distances from recreation facilities.
Digital Commons Citation
Zegre, Sera Janson; Hughes, Rodney P.; Darling, Andrew M.; and Decker, Craig R., "The Relationship Between Campus Recreation Facility Use and Retention for First-Time Undergraduate Students" (2020). Faculty & Staff Scholarship. 2086.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/faculty_publications/2086
Source Citation
Zegre, S. J., Hughes, R. P., Darling, A. M., & Decker, C. R. (2020). The Relationship Between Campus Recreation Facility Use and Retention for First-Time Undergraduate Students. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice. https://doi.org/10.1177/1521025120921347
Comments
This is an accepted manuscript version. For the final publishers' version, see https://doi.org/10.1177/1521025120921347.