This thesis addressed the effects of growth management on drought susceptibility in field-grown cotton and assesses the underlying yield component responses to drought and mepiquat chloride (MC) application. For both the 2021 and 2022 seasons, aggressive MC management consistently reduced plant height, number of mainstem nodes, and the length of the fourth internode below the plant terminal. Yield was more stable in response to drought for aggressively managed plants, yet aggressive MC management penalized yields relative to untreated plants in high yield situations. Aggressive MC treatment produced greater seed surface area, seed number boll-1, and boll mass than untreated plants, but fewer bolls per unit land area than untreated plants under well-watered conditions. We concluded that aggressive MC management stabilized yields in response to drought-stress, but penalized yield overall. We can conclude that lint yield reductions due to irrigation or MC management were primarily associated with changes in boll density.