Published annually since 1985, the Handbook series provides a compendium of thorough and integrative literature reviews on a diverse array of topics of interest to the higher education scholarly and policy communities. Each chapter provides a comprehensive review of research findings on a selected topic, critiques the research literature in terms…

In conducting research, the identified problem in the field will determine the research strategies chosen to address the problem. When a qualitative research strategy is deemed as the most appropriate strategy to get answers to research questions, the researcher should be aware of obstacles that can be encountered in the research process. If the…

Content analysis of five scholarly journals in the field of higher education from 1986-88 focused on the methodologies and topics of research reported there. Distribution of articles among 4 paradigms (functionalist, radical structuralist, interpretive, radical humanist), along 2 dimensions (social science, sociology), and according to 11 sets of…

Research on substantive issues and concerns of higher education is handicapped by higher education's lack of status and recognition as an academic discipline or professional specialty. Theory-based and policy-related research should be recast as disciplined inquiry, doctoral programs strengthened, and preparation of scholars, professors, and…

A cultural approach to research on higher education views the academic community as being both a disciplinary and an institutional cultural entity. The pros and cons of these two perspectives are examined with a view to finding new avenues for research; it is argued that academic identity provides a seminal perspective for cultural studies in…

New perspectives on social science research suggest five propositions: studies in higher education must not be value-singular; higher education researchers must not ignore "harbingers of the paradigm revolution"; they must take into account new interpretations of knowledge acquisition; they must not depend on prescriptive models; and they must…

The development of this annotated bibliography of 58 doctoral dissertations arose from an interest in doctoral study in general, and concern for the magnitude of the attrition problem at the doctoral level in particular. Dissertations date from 1970 to 1990. Among the dissertations summarized are those relating to such topics as: factors relating…

Discusses the complexity facing South African researchers in higher education as they try to overcome the heritage of the old, fragmented higher education system. Necessary paradigm shifts are identified, as are focus areas for improving the quality of South African higher education research at both national and institutional levels. (DB)

Proposes that higher education scholars distinguish among professional subjects taught to undergraduates as they do among traditional disciplines. Other distinctions may be more meaningful than the research-based dimensions used in the popular Biglan classification. A framework for differentiating collegiate career fields is proposed, evidence…

Results of a national survey concerning the difference in research training requirements of the Ed.D. and Ph.D. degrees in higher education as a field of study are presented, and the need for and assurance of a distinction between the two types of degree is discussed.

This study compared the ideas of researchers with those of practitioners in higher education regarding what is considered significant and useful literature in terms of content, methodology, and format. The findings were interpreted in terms of theories of action research and the quality movement. Data were compiled using focus groups of…

A descriptive profile of 72 U.S. doctoral programs for the study of higher education is presented. Attention is directed to program goals, academic offerings, organizational structure, faculty and student characteristics, and admissions and degree requirements. Directors of the 92 higher education programs listed in the ASHE-ERIC "Directory…

This paper offers some reflections on reconstructing the role of school law instruction in colleges of education, and specifically in administrator preparation programs. Three aspects of a school law course are discussed as they relate to the typical path of educational administrators' academic preparation. The "translational dimension" of school…

A total of 932 bibliographies on higher education topics are cited, nearly all since the 1960s. The bibliographies are listed under the following categories: comprehensive sources; history and philosophy of higher education; four-year institutions; two-year institutions; students; faculty; administrators and support staff; curriculum and…