Recently Published Dissertations

The Institutional Research Officer and Vice President of Student Services from North Arkansas College, and the Mathematics Facilitator at the local educational cooperative have initiated a tracking study to determine (1) if area students who take college preparatory math courses in high school place into, and succeed in, subsequent college-level math courses at North Arkansas College and (2) if area students who come to college for a degree have taken sufficient college preparatory coursework in high school. The study disclosed that (1) students who take a high school course more rigorous than Algebra 2 place into, and succeed in, College Algebra at a high rate, and (2) most students have not taken sufficient college preparatory coursework in math. The second, and more important part of the project, has been to bring college and high school personnel together to work on solutions.     

Editorial

The purpose of this research was to determine whether or not a hypothesized Institutional orientation existed as a a learner orientation distinct from those previously identified by Houle (Goal, Activity, Learning) and Burgess (Religious). And if it exists, to what extent it played a significant role in determining the participatory behaviour of adult learners in three different adult education institutions (local church, community college, Red Cross). The data obtained from the 30‐item composite instrument (Reasons for participation in learning activities) were submitted to a one‐way ANOVA, the Scheffe‘t‐test and chi‐square analysis. The results indicated that the Institutional orientation does exist as a distinct adult learner orientation. Chi‐square analysis of the data indicated that the church‐sponsored group was significantly different from the other two groups in the degree to which the Institutional orientation of the adults affected participation, and in the reported degree of commitment to the sponsoring institution, as well as the reported frequency of attendance at educational activities sponsored by the institution. It was concluded that the Institutional orientation does play a significant role among some adult participants. Further, that sociological aspects of the study of adult participation need to be considered if we are to understand fully all of the dynamics at work that precipitate and sustain participation in voluntary educational activities.     

Identifying distinctive groups in a college applicant pool

In a time when most post-secondary educational institutions must distribute limited resources more efficiently, segmentation analysis affords a way to direct planning to yield strategic benefits. The Automatic Interaction Detector is recommended to the institutional research community as an analytical tool for effectively identifying distinctive subgroups within an educational market. In this application, AID is used to segment the Boston College applicant pool according to subgroups' relative probabilities of enrolling. The findings illustrate that AID can make a useful contribution to market research and that the technique has broader applicability—to other student groups and to other educational policy questions.An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Twenty-First Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research, Minneapolis, May 1981.     

The Effect of Loans on the Persistence and Attainment of Community College Students

This study informs public policies regarding the use of subsidized loans as financial aid for community college students. Using logistic regression, it analyzes the National Center for Education Statistics’ Beginning Postsecondary Students (BPS 90/94) data to predict persistence to the second year of college and associate’s degree attainment over five years. During the period under study, loans did not contribute to higher persistence and attainment rates. Loans are observed to have a negative effect on persistence and no effect on degree attainment. Estimates of the interaction effects of borrowing and income status are insignificant but demonstrate the need for further testing. The findings are attributed to a combination of the high uncertainty of degree completion among community college students and the negative affective component of indebtedness. Earlier versions of this paper were presented at the American Education Finance Association Annual Meeting (Austin, Texas, March, 2000) and at the AIR Forum (Cincinnati, Ohio, May 2000). It has also appeared as a working paper of the Institute for Higher Education Law and Governance at the University of Houston, Texas (IHELG Monograph 01–07).This paper is based upon work supported by the Association for Institutional Research, the National Center for Education Statistics and the National Science Foundation under Association for Institutional Research Grant No. 99-128-0.     

Pricing policy and the college choice process

Following the presentation of a marketing management paradigm for higher educational institutions, this paper discuses some aspects of the pricing policy process in colleges and universities. A statistical model of the college choice process is developed, and some empirical results related to the effects of price, among other factors, on the collegechoice decision-making behavior process of high school seniors are presented and interpreted. The two most important factors affecting the college choice process are seen to be college quality and price-related considerations. Marketing implications of these results are discussed.Presented at the Annual Forum of the Association For Institutional Research, Houston, Texas, May 1978.     

The effects of background,coursework, and involvement on students' grades and satisfaction

Research during the 1970s and 1980s identifies grades and satisfaction with college as important educational outcomes, both in their own right and because of their relationship to other outcomes such as persistence. Building on previous research, this article examines the relationship between grades and satisfaction using a latent variable model that includes a variety of factors found to influence grades and satisfaction. The covariance structure analyses indicate that the model provides an accurate representation of the data and explains a substantial proportion of the variance in satisfaction and grades. Results suggest that satisfaction exerts a stronger influence on grades than grades exert on satisfaction. These findings suggest that popular recursive models of educational outcomes should be reevaluated, and that non-recursive models may provide a more accurate representation of educational effects.Presented at the Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research, Louisville, KY, May 13–16, 1990. CARD Research Report No. 90-05.     

Replicating Freeman's recursive adjustment model of demand for higher education

During the 1950s and 1960s, most colleges and universities enjoyed rapid student enrollment increases and liberally expanded their programs and physical facilities accordingly. But the economic, fiscal, and social developments of the 1970s have reduced income sources, increased costs, and diminished traditional student populations. Richard Freeman's work on the demand for higher education and the future worth of a college degree has become a major source of controversy among academicians. To establish a relationship between college attendance and the college job market, Freeman employed a three-equation model to analyze the causative supply and demand determinants. In this paper, we examine the viability of Freeman's Recursive Adjustment Model as a management tool for explaining and predicting enrollments and the job market using macro and micro cases.Presented at the Nineteenth Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research, San Diego, California, May 1979.     

Beyond Traditional Measures of STEM Success: Long-Term Predictors of Social Agency and Conducting Research for Social Change

Despite the importance of preparing socially responsible graduates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to address the current state of poverty and inequality, very few studies in higher education have examined the development of STEM students’ outcomes critical to promoting a more equitable society, typically focusing on the impact of one program or course. To address this gap in the literature, this study used frameworks of undergraduate socialization as well as social justice perspectives in STEM education to examine the undergraduate experiences and institutional contexts that predict STEM bachelor’s degree recipients’ development of two democratic educational outcomes seven years after college entry: social agency and values toward conducting research that will have a meaningful impact on underserved communities. The study utilized multilevel modeling on a national longitudinal sample of 6341 STEM bachelor’s degree recipients across 271 institutions. Longitudinal student data from the 2004 Cooperative Institutional Research Program’s (CIRP) Freshman Survey and 2011 Post-Baccalaureate Survey were merged with institutional data from the Integrated Postsecondary Educational Data System and CIRP Faculty Surveys. Various undergraduate socialization experiences and institutional contexts were found to predict STEM bachelor’s degree recipients’ democratic educational outcomes, including academic majors, participation in student organizations and research, experiences with faculty, and peer and STEM faculty normative contexts. Implications of the findings for research, policy, and practice are discussed.     

A three-decade comparison of college faculty characteristics,satisfactions, activities,and attitudes

Information about personal background, professional activities, job satisfactions and dissatisfactions, and career appraisal was gathered by means of a questionnaire administered to a 25 percent random sample, stratified by rank, of full-time faculty in Minnesota's accredited, nontheological colleges and universities. Results of the survey are compared to results of earlier surveys in 1956 and 1968 using the same instrument with similar samples. Preliminary analysis suggests that the professoriate has remained relatively unchanged across the two and a half decades of the surveys, that the educational level of the faculties has risen sharply over the years, that Minnesota college teachers find their careers satisfying, and that most of them would make the same career selection again if given the opportunity.Presented at the Twenty-First Annual Forum of The Association for Institutional Research, Minneapolis, May 1981.     

College impact,student impact: A reconsideration of the role of students within American higher education

American college students tend to be viewed in terms of inputs and outcomes, due in part to the assessment movement and long-standing interest in college impact. A more complete view is one in which the relationship between students and the college environment is both reciprocal and dynamic. This ecological perspective portrays students as actively shaping their educational environments, with these environments simultaneously providing the potential for transforming the individual. Data from the Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) are used to explore the ecological perspective.     

美国著名大学院校研究机构解读

本文以2006年的<美国新闻与世界报道>中的"Top National Universities"前50名中的10所大学为研究对象,对这些学校的院校研究机构从职责、组织管理和工作人员情况等角度进行了分析,最后得出一些启示:理念先行,切实重视院校研究;建立院校研究机构,明确其职责范围;重视院校研究的人员建设.     

Analyzing the curricula of doctor of philosophy in educational technology-related programs in the United States

The purpose of this study was to analyze on-campus and online PhD programs in educational technology-related fields in the United States. In particular, it sought to evaluate the most common program titles; core, elective, and research courses based on program curricula. The research design was quantitative content analysis and data were collected from six different sources. The study found 44 institutions offered campus-based degree programs and four offered online degree programs in educational technology-related fields with 27 different program titles. In addition, 324 core courses, 157 elective courses, and 260 research courses were further analyzed. The results revealed that the most common program titles were Curriculum and Instruction, Learning Design and Technology, Instructional Technology, Learning Technologies, Instructional Design and Technology, and Educational Technology. The most common core courses were Instructional Design, Advanced Instructional Design, Curriculum Theory, Needs Assessment, Internship in Instructional Technology, Instructional Systems Design, and Theories of Learning and Instruction. The most common elective courses were Multicultural Education, Foundations of Distance Learning, Educational Foundations, and Message Design. The most common research courses were Quantitative Methods, Qualitative Methods, Qualitative Research, Educational Research Methods, Multivariate Analysis, Introduction to Qualitative Research in Education, and Mixed Methods. Furthermore, this study provided discussion and implications for current study as well as recommendations for future research.     

Table of Contents

Defining Institutional Diversity Aspects of Institutional Diversity Diversity Versus Diversification Versus Differentiation Interactions With the Environment Overview of the Monograph Historical Context of Institutional Diversity Growth During the Colonial Period Establishing American Higher Education Failure of the National University Idea Institution Building The Changing Curriculum Rise of the Research University Transition From Elite to Mass Higher Education The Postwar Period Conclusion Theoretical Contexts Population Ecology Resource Dependency Theory Institutional Theory Conclusion Benefits of Institutional Diversity Meeting the Needs of All Types of Students Increased Institutional Effectiveness Provide Models Support Reform Through Competition Serve the Political Needs of Interest Groups Protecting Academic Freedom and Autonomy Support Elite and Mass Higher Education Improve Social Mobility Minority-Serving Institutions Conclusion Causes of Homogenization Academic Drift Prestige-Maximizing Activities Statewide Coordination Conclusion The Future of Institutional Diversity Research and Practice Market Smart and Mission Centered Policymakers Campus Leaders and Administrators Faculty Students Conclusion References Name Index Subject Index About the Author     

Are the Factors Affecting Dropout Behavior Related to Initial Enrollment Intensity for College Undergraduates?

We use data from the 1990/1994 Beginning Post-Secondary Survey to determine whether the factors associated with long-term attrition from higher education differ for students who initially enrolled part-time as compared to for students who initially enrolled full-time. Using a two-stage sequential decision model to analyze the initial enrollment intensity decision jointly with attrition, we find no evidence of correlation in the unobservables that necessitates joint estimation, but substantial evidence that the factors associated with attrition differ by initial enrollment status. The timing of initial enrollment, academic performance, parental education, household characteristics, and economic factors had a substantially greater impact on those initially enrolled full-time, while racial and ethnic characteristics had a greater impact on those initially enrolled part-time. The results of our study suggest that separate specifications are necessary to identify at-risk full-time as compared with at-risk part-time students. The data employed here were generated while working under a grant supported in part by the Association for Institutional Research, the National Center for Education Statistics, and the National Science Foundation under the Association for Institutional Research 1999 Improving Institutional Research in Post-secondary Educational Institutions Grant Program. The Spencer Foundation Small Grants program provided funding for the analysis. Leslie Stratton gratefully acknowledges additional support from a 2001 Faculty Excellence Award from Virginia Commonwealth University. Referees from the 2005 Southern Economic Association meetings and from Research in Higher Education provided very helpful comments. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Spencer Foundation, the Association for Institutional Research, the National Center for Education Statistics, or the National Science Foundation.     

Student Research Projects and the Institutional Review Board

Graduate social work students often are required to complete an evaluation or research project. Research instructors work with their students to assure that these projects are rigorous as well as ethical. This study focuses upon the relationship of student projects and the Institutional Review Board (IRB). The IRB aims to strengthen research ethics and to assure that study participants are not exploited. Sixteen MSW research instructors' shared their experiences guiding students through the IRB. Study participants identified benefits and challenges of having students experience the IRB, as well as recommendations on how to facilitate the review process. Additionally participants reflected upon how they determine IRB review requirements.     

教育社会学中的新制度学派:基于问题史的研究

本文批判性地总结了1970年代以来美国教育社会学界兴起的新制度学派的发展轨迹,新制度学派提出三个基本的理论命题:(1)现代教育是伴随世俗个人主义而出现的一种独特的社会实体,本质上是一种制度神话和理性仪式;(2)教育组织是松散联接的系统;(3)现代教育的效果主要是对人和知识进行合法化分类。在对经典社会学家韦伯和涂尔干的继承上,新制度学派与美国当时盛行的结构功能理论和冲突论有明显的差异,认为现代教育不是维持地方国家或者特殊阶层需要的地域性事业,而是超越民族-国家和特殊群体利益的世界性制度。新制度学派对教育社会学的贡献,不只是对教育组织和教育效果的深度理论分析,而且其对教育扩张和课程内容的经验研究已经成为当代教育社会学中一个重要的学术传统,在问题意识上有其独特的价值。在借鉴新制度理论时,必须坚持中国经验本位,避免简单地套用和比附新制度理论,应解释和揭示中国教育经验内隐的深层机制,以中国经验丰富和发展新制度理论。     

The relationship between perceived learning and satisfaction with college: An alternative view

Student and alumni reports of learning and development during college play an important role in research on educational outcomes. An intriguing finding of this research is the positive relationship between perceived learning and satisfaction with college. While studies have documented an association between perceptions of learning and satisfaction, the nature of the relationship is not clearly defined. This study evaluates two competing models of perceived learning and satisfaction. The first model represents a true relationship between learning and satisfaction, while the second treats the relationship as an artifact of a halo effect. Data came from subjects who completed learning and satisfaction questions as seniors and again two years after graduation. Analyses revealed that treating the learning-satisfaction relationship as an artifact of a halo effect provided the best representation of the data. Although not conclusive, results suggested that educational researchers and assessment practitioners should be careful in interpreting self-reports of learning and development, particularly as they relate to satisfaction with college.Presented at the Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research, Atlanta, Georgia, May 10–13, 1992.     

论民办高校院校研究水平的提升策略

民办高校在发展过程中存在着诸多障碍,究其原因,管理水平落后是一个重要因素。"院校研究"引入我国已近30年,对推动我国高等教育发展和提升高校管理水平起到了重要作用。文章通过探讨院校研究的相关内容,分析了我国民办高校院校研究工作中存在的问题,提出了确保院校研究作用发挥,解决民办高校发展问题,推动民办高校健康持续发展的对策。     

Table of Contents

Executive Summary Foreword Overview Defining Interdisciplinarity The Disciplines, Interdisciplinarity, and the University Interdisciplinarity, Learning, and Cognition Interdisciplinarity and the Practice of Research Faculty and Institutional Structure: The Conflict of Interdisciplinarity Best Practices Related to Interdisciplinary Education Implications for Practice and the Future of Interdisciplinarity Defining Interdisciplinarity Conceptualizing the Disciplines Conceptualizing Interdisciplinary Knowledge Conclusion The Disciplines, Interdisciplinarity, and the University The Historical Influence of the Disciplines on Teaching and Learning Interdisciplinary Initiatives in Twentieth-Century American Higher Education Conclusion Interdisciplinarity, Learning, and Cognition The Disciplinary Basis of College Student Learning Defining Interdisciplinary Curricula in Higher Education Conclusion Interdisciplinarity and the Practice of Research Challenges to the Practice of Interdisciplinary Research Facilitating Interdisciplinary Research in Higher Education Conclusion Faculty and Institutional Structure: The Conflict of Interdisciplinarity Interdisciplinarity, Faculty, and Change in Higher Education Achieving Institutional Goals and Interdisciplinary Faculty Engagement Fostering Faculty Connections Across Institutional Boundaries Modifying Activity Systems to Encourage Interdisciplinarity Conclusion Best Practices Related to Interdisciplinary Education Dedicated Organizational and Physical Space Student-Centered Pedagogy Focus on Problem- or Theme-Based Learning Curriculum Shaped Through a Variety of Interdisciplinary Learning Experiences Culminating Capstone Project or Student Portfolio Focus on Collaborative Learning Rather Than Mastery of a Particular Content Use of Independent Study, Internships, and Experiential Learning Goal of Preparing Students for a Complex, Modern Interdisciplinary Future Conclusion References Name Index Subject Index About the Author