> >practically speaking, there is absolutely NO incentive for me to
>>finish, not in my discipline. not an economic one. i can get a
>>perfectly happy job as a researcher, writer, editor, etc with the
>>master's.
>
>That explains why to not start one, but not why to not finish one.
True to a certain extent, but most individuals are not fully made aware of the high rate of attrition from Ph.D. programs, the poor chances of getting tenure-track jobs, the varying rates of tenure denials, etc. _before_ making a choice of going to grad school. We only get to know these facts if we seek them on our own. Until very recently, professional organizations such as the Modern Language Association, the American Historical Association, etc. didn't even undertake empirical studies on the above; they only did so after being pressured by grad unionists, "tenured radicals" like Cary Nelson, etc. for some time. To this day, grad programs nowhere candidly tell the truth to prospective grad students.
Things may be changing slightly, now that the scarcity of good academic jobs, the plight of adjuncts, etc. have come to be reported in the mass media occasionally.
Yoshie