Raymond Callahan's superintendent vulnerability thesis suggests that school superintendent behavior is subject to the political winds of local school boards, in turn dominated by the economic values of American businessmen. This thesis inspired a body of research termed "dissatisfaction theory," which describes the sequence of events resulting in school board incumbent defeat and superintendent turnover. The Robertsdale School District ethnographic study of three years in a district's political life portrays a community's increasing discontent with its public schools, board, and superintendent. It describes citizens' frustration at being unrepresented and unheard and focuses on the campaign of a challenger who unseats an incumbent board member, eventually becomes board president, and "eases out" the old superintendent. After illustrating the dissatisfaction theory model, this article evaluates numerous verification studies and offers conclusions and recommendations. The theory's most practical application is alerting beleaguered superintendents to potential causes of dissatisfaction. School officials and their boards need to be aware of socioeconomic changes and accompanying value shifts in their community that impact public education policy. The board must avoid elitism and heed special interest groups to prevent the recurrence of a disruptive, vicious cycle. Included are 1 figure and 33 references. (MLH)