Individual and institutional/environmental factors that distinguish "vital" professors from a "representative" group of their colleagues were investigated. Of concern was whether the faculty vitality concept discriminates among professors in meaningful ways (i.e., regarding their professional attitudes, practices, achievements). The focus was professors in small liberal arts colleges. The study is based on research conducted at the University of Minnesota by Clark and Corcoran. The faculty vitality concept is applied in a distinctive type of institution where the vital professor may be a stimulating teacher or a faculty leader but not necessarily a prolific scholar. Campus administrators and faculty offered names of full professors they regarded as vital, based on a broad definition. A comparison group of "representative" full professors was also identified. Participants were 50 "vital" and 40 "representative" professors from four respected private institutions in the Southeast. A structured personal interview employing mostly open-ended questions was used to gather data. A coding scheme was developed from the interview responses to help identify patterns, themes, attributes, and experiences that distinguish vital and representative faculty. The findings and implications for research and practice are considered. Included are 14 references. (SW)