attrition

Definition of Attrition

(noun) In a study, a decrease in participation by research participants.

Reasons for Attrition

• participants die
• participants lose interest
• participants move
  

Attrition Pronunciation

Pronunciation Usage Guide

Syllabification: at·tri·tion

Audio Pronunciation

International Phonetic Alphabet

• American English – /əˈtrɪʃən/
• British English – /əˈtrɪʃn/

Usage Notes

• Plural: attritions
• Longitudinal studies are typically impacted by attrition.
• To negate the impact of attrition, the initial sample size must be quite large, which causes added expense and time.
• Participants leave a study because of (adjective) attritional or (adjective) attritionary or (adjective) attritive reasons.

Additional Information

• Quantitative Research Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
• Word origin of “attrition” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com

Related Terms

• attribute
• cohort
• control group
• correlation
• data
• descriptive statistics

Contributor: C. E. Seaman

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Cite the Definition of Attrition

ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)

Seaman, C. E. 2015. “attrition.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary, edited by Kenton Bell. Retrieved September 30, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/attrition/).

APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)

Seaman, C. E. (2015). attrition. In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/attrition/

Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)

Seaman, C. E. 2015. “attrition.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary, edited by Kenton Bell. Accessed September 30, 2023.https://sociologydictionary.org/attrition/.

MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)

Seaman, C. E. “attrition.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2015. Web. 30 Sep. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/attrition/>.