Interaction of Absences and Grades in a College Course

Summary The validity of four causal models of the relationship between absences and grades was tested in 496 undergraduate psychology students. As predicted, absences were negatively correlated with grades; the results are consistent with two causal models of this relationship. Absence from class appeared to cause lower grades but low grades also appeared to cause more frequent absences from class. These findings were interpreted as suggesting that absences and grades can interact to produce a spiral of declining academic achievement in some students.