The effects of organizational commitment, organizational rank, and interaction process on two different types of absenteeism were investigated in college fraternities. Two predictions regarding the effects of organizational commitment on excused and unexcused absenteeism were contrasted. Further, the degree to which commitment mediated the effects of rank and interaction process on absenteeism was assessed. Results indicate that (a) commitment was related to unexcused absenteeism but not excused absenteeism, (b) rank had strong direct effects and weak indirect effects, mediated by organizational commitment, on absenteeism, and (c) interaction process was associated with organizational commitment and indirectly related to unexcused absenteeism. Several constraints on our conclusions and their generalizability to other types of organizations are noted.
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