SATISFACTION AND STRAIN AMONG MIDDLE-AGED WOMEN WHO RETURN TO SCHOOL: REPLICATION AND EXTENSION OF FINDINGS IN A CANADIAN CONTEXT

This article reports on the questionnaire response of 276 women aged 35 and over who had returned to college. This study identifies a series of variables that influenced their satisfaction and strain in the student role. Analysis of survey data showed that both satisfaction and strain in the student role correlated significantly with a number of demographic and support variables. Both satisfaction variables and strain variables included the number of years since the student last attended school, age of student's youngest child, and children's psychological support. Multiple regression analysis found that children's psychological support and high grade point average significantly predicted satisfaction in the student role. Low grade point average and the presence of young children significantly predicted student strain. The article concludes by discussing the implications of these findings.