THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEIVED LEARNING AND SATISFACTION WITH COLLEGE - AN ALTERNATIVE VIEW

Students and alumni reports of learning and development during college play an important role in research on education outcomes. An intriguing finding of this research. is the positive relationship between perceived learning and satisfaction with college. While studies have documented an associated between perceptions of learning and satisfaction, the nature of the relationship is not clearly defined. This study evaluates tow competing models of perceived learning and satisfaction. The first model represents a true relationship between learning and satisfaction, while the second treats the relationship as an artifact of a halo effect. Data came from subjects who completed learning and satisfaction questions as seniors and again two years after graduation. Analyses revealed that treating the learning-satisfaction relationship as an artifact of a halo effect provided the best representation of the data. Although not conclusive, results suggested that educational researchers and assessment practitioners should be careful in interpreting self-reports of learning and development, particularly as they relate to satisfaction with college.