Analysis of the relationship between performance data and changes in faculty size of 40 departments in a College of Arts and Sciences during a time of financial stress found that the rational choice model was applied to decision making. There was a systematic relationship between objective, evaluative data and policy decisions. (MLW)

Attempts are made to account for the failure of generalized planning models for higher education. The reasons offered by survey research are judged to be inadequate. New foundations are laid for the construction and use of planning models, relying heavily on the notion of diverse institutional theories that guide decision making. (Author/JMD)