Abstract
The amount of time, effort, and money expended in pursuit of a college degree makes it important that students choose a university that is a good fit for them. Unfortunately students often determine whether a university is a fit for them through trial and error. This research investigated student-university fit and its relationship with satisfaction and well-being. We assessed student-university fit by developing 18 fit factors and measuring needs for, and supplies of, those factors. We tested our hypotheses using polynomial regression analysis and response surface methodology. Data from 228 students suggest that student-university fit is predictive of students’ satisfaction with their university and psychological well-being.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Banning, J. H., & McKinley, D. L. (1980). Conceptions of the campus environment. In W. H. Morrill, J. C. Hurst, & E. R. Oetting (Eds.), Dimensions of intervention for student development (pp. 39–57). New York: Wiley.
Caldwell, D. F., Chatman, J. A., & O’Reilly, C. A. (2008). Profile comparison methods for assessing person-situation fit. In C. Ostroff & T. A. Judge (Eds.), Perspectives on organizational fit (pp. 356–361). New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Clarke, J. H. (1987). Improving student fit with the academic environment. Journal of College Student Personnel, 28, 115–122.
Conyne, R. K. (1978). An analysis of student-environment mismatches. Journal of College Student Personnel, 19, 461–465.
Cook, J. R. (1987). Anticipatory person-environment fit as a predictor of college student health and adjustment. Journal of College Student Personnel, 28, 394–398.
Dawis, R. V., & Lofquist, L. H. (1984). A psychological theory of work adjustment. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Edwards, J. R. (1996). An examination of competing versions of the person-environment fit approach to stress. Academy of Management Journal, 39, 292–339.
Edwards, J. R. (2008). Polynomial regression and response surface methodology. In C. Ostroff & T. A. Judge (Eds.), Perspectives on organizational fit (pp. 361–372). New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Edwards, J. R., & Harrison, R. V. (1993). Job demands and worker health: Three dimensional reexamination of the relationship between person-environment fit and strain. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78, 628–648.
Edwards, J. R., & Parry, M. E. (1993). On the use of polynomial regression equations as an alternative to difference scores in organizational research. Academy of Management Journal, 36, 1577–1613.
Edwards, J. R., & Rothbard, N. P. (1999). Work and family stress and well-being: An examination of person-environment fit in the work and family domains. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 77, 85–129.
Falk, D. (1975). Campus environments, student stress, and campus planning. In B. Bloom (Ed.), Psychological stress in the campus community (pp. 25–41). New York: Behavorial Publications.
Feldman, K. A., Smart, J. C., & Ethington, C. A. (2004). What do college students have to lose? Exploring the outcomes of differences in person-environment fits. Journal of Higher Education, 75, 528–555.
Francis, K. C., & Kelly, R. J. (1990). Environmental fit and the success or failure of high-risk college students. Educational Policy, 4, 233–243.
French, J. R. P., Jr., Rodgers, W., & Cobb, S. (1974). Adjustment as person-environment fit. In G. V. Coelho, D. A. Hamburg, & J. E. Adams (Eds.), Coping and adaptation (pp. 316–333). New York: Basic Books.
Gilbreath, B. (2004). Creating healthy workplaces: The supervisor’s role. In C. L. Cooper & I. T. Robertson (Eds.), International review of industrial and organizational psychology (pp. 93–118). Chichester, England: Wiley.
Gilbreath, B. (2008). Creating career-conducive organizations: A primary intervention approach. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 10, 8–31.
Gloria, A. M., & Kurpius, S. E. R. (2001). Influences of self-beliefs, social support, and comfort in the university environment on the academic nonpersistence decisions. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 7, 88–102.
Hackman, J. R., & Oldham, G. R. (1980). Work redesign. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
Harrison, D. A. (2008). Pitching fits in applied psychological research: Making fit methods fit theory. In C. Ostroff & T. A. Judge (Eds.), Perspectives on organizational fit (pp. 389–416). New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Huebner, L. A. (1980). Interaction of student and campus. In U. Delworth, G. R. Hanson, et al. (Eds.), Student services: A handbook for the profession (pp. 117–155). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Ironson, G. H., Smith, P. C., Brannick, M. T., Gibson, W. M., & Paul, K. B. (1989). Constitution of a job in general scale: A comparison of global, composite, and specific measures. Journal of Applied Psychology, 74, 193–200.
Jansen, K. J., & Kristof-Brown, A. L. (2005). Marching to the beat of a different drummer: Examining the impact of pacing congruence. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 97, 93–105.
Kristof, A. L. (1996). Person-organization fit: An integrative review of its conceptualizations, measurements, and implications. Personnel Psychology, 49, 1–49.
Kristof-Brown, A. L., & Jansen, K. J. (2008). Issues of person-organization fit. In C. Ostroff & T. A. Judge (Eds.), Perspectives on organizational fit (pp. 123–153). New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Kristof-Brown, A. L., Zimmerman, R. D., & Johnson, E. C. (2005). Consequences of individual’s fit at work: A meta-analysis of person-job, person-organization, person-group, and person-supervisor fit. Personnel Psychology, 58, 281–342.
Leyden, G., & Kuk, G. (1993). The role of supervision in a healthy organization: The case of educational psychology services. Educational and Child Psychology, 10, 43–50.
Livingstone, L. P., Nelson, D. L., & Barr, S. H. (1997). Person–environment fit and creativity: An examination of supply–value and demand–ability versions of fit. Journal of Management, 23, 119–146.
Moos, R. H. (1979). Evaluating educational environments: Procedures, measures, findings, and policy implications. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Moos, R. H. (1988). Psychosocial factors in the workplace. In S. Fisher & J. Reason (Eds.), Handbook of life stress, cognition and health (pp. 193–209). Oxford, England: Wiley.
Nafziger, D. H., Holland, J. L., & Gottfredson, G. D. (1975). Student-college congruency as a predictor of satisfaction. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 2, 132–139.
Nowack, K. M. (1991). Stress assessment profile. Woodland Hills, CA: Organizational Performance Dimensions.
Ostroff, C. (2008). General methodological and design issues. In C. Ostroff & T. A. Judge (Eds.), Perspectives on organizational fit (pp. 352–356). New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Ostroff, C., & Schulte, M. (2008). Multiple perspectives of fit in organizations across levels of analysis. In C. Ostroff & T. A. Judge (Eds.), Perspectives on organizational fit (pp. 3–69). New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Pervin, L. A. (1967). A twenty-college study of student-college interaction using TAPE (Transactional analysis of personality and environment): Rationale, reliability, and validity. Journal of Educational Psychology, 58, 290–302.
Porter, L. W. (1962). Job attitudes in management: Perceived deficiencies in need fulfillment as a function of job level. Journal of Applied Psychology, 46, 375–384.
Porter, S. R., & Umbach, P. D. (2006). College major choice: An analysis of person-environment fit. Research in Higher Education, 47, 429–449.
Rand, L. P. (1968). Effect on college choice satisfaction of matching students and colleges. Personnel and Guidance Journal, 47, 34–39.
Roberts, B. W., & Robins, R. W. (2004). Person-environment fit and its implications for personality development: A longitudinal study. Journal of Personality, 72, 89–110.
Rubio, C. T., & Lubin, B. (1986). College student mental health: A person-environment interactional analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 42, 205–212.
Solórzano, L. (2004). Best buys in college education (8th ed.). Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s.
Tracey, T. J., & Sherry, P. (1984). College student distress as a function of person-environment fit. Journal of College Student Personnel, 25, 436–442.
U.S. News & World Report. (2009). Best colleges 2009. Retrieved July 14, 2009 from http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/college/national.
Voluntary System of Accountability Program. (2009). Undergraduate education reports. Retrieved July 13, 2009 from http://www.voluntarysystem.org/index.cfm.
Westerman, J. W., Nowicki, M. D., & Plante, D. (2002). Fit in the classroom: Predictors of student performance and satisfaction in management education. Journal of Management Education, 26, 5–18.
Wiese, M. D. (1994). College choice cognitive dissonance: Managing student/institution fit. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 5, 35–47.
Williams, T. E. (1986). Student-institution fit: Linking campus ecology to enrollment management. The Campus Ecologist, 4(4), 1–2.
Wintre, M., Knoll, G., Pancer, S., Pratt, M., Poliyy, J., Birnie-Lefcovitch, S., et al. (2008). The transition to university: The student-university match (SUM) questionnaire. Journal of Adolescent Research, 23, 745–769.
Witt, P. H., & Handal, P. J. (1984). Person-environment fit: Is satisfaction predicted by congruency, environment, or personality? Journal of College Student Personnel, 25, 503–508.
Yang, L., Levine, E. L., Smith, M. A., Ipsas, D., & Rossi, M. E. (2008). Person-environment fit or person plus environment: A meta-analysis of studies using polynomial regression analysis. Human Resource Management Review, 18, 311–321.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gilbreath, B., Kim, TY. & Nichols, B. Person-Environment Fit and its Effects on University Students: A Response Surface Methodology Study. Res High Educ 52, 47–62 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-010-9182-3
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-010-9182-3