Describing and explaining research productivity

This article describes results from a study of academic productivity in Australian higher education. It estimates the output (in terms of quantity of publications) of individual staff and academic departments across different subject areas and types of institution. Concerning research productivity, Australian academics resemble their colleagues in other countries: the average is low, while the range of variation is high. Most papers are produced by few academic staff. Several potential correlates of productivity, including level of research activity, subject area, institutional type, gender, age, early interest in research, and satisfaction with the promotions system, are examined. A model linking departmental context to personal research performance through department and personal research activity is developed and tested. The results support the view that structural factors (such as how academic departments are managed and led) combine with personal variables (such as intrinsic interest in the subject matter of one's discipline) to determine levels of productivity. There is also evidence that research and teaching do not form a single dimension of academic performance.     

An analysis of the scholarly productivity of instructional technology faculty

The resumés of 132 instructional technology (IT) faculty were analyzed in an effort to assess the scholarly productivity of IT faculty. Faculty were surveyed to identify leading basic and applied IT journals and to determine overall publication patterns. The findings indicate that individuals who are now full professors have a higher publication rate than faculty at lower ranks in instructional systems/educational technology programs. On an annual basis, individuals in educational psychology programs published more applied, basic, and overall research than faculty in other academic affiliations.     

Writing method and productivity of science and engineering faculty

The present study aimed to describe the methods of writing used by university faculty and to explore relationships between method and productivity in writing. The survey reported here examined the cognitive strategies, tools, work scheduling, environment, and rituals used by 121 science and engineering faculty members in writing technical documents such as journal articles. The most commonly reported methods (e.g., the cognitive strategy of mentally planning large units of text structure and selecting a pen or pencil for a tool) were uncorrelated with reported productivity. Selecting a quiet work environment was the only typical habit that was associated with high productivity. Three other aspects of writing method were also related to high productivity, but they were not widely employed. These were using a dictation machine, preparing detailed written outlines before beginning a first draft, and the ritual of exercising vigorously before or during a writing session.     

A Bayesian analysis of the institutional and individual factors influencing faculty technology use

This study answered questions about which faculty come to use technology in their teaching and used a novel statistical analysis to develop a model that captures the primary factors influencing faculty technology use. It used a sample of 16,914 faculty within the 2004 National Study of Postsecondary Faculty to explore explanations for faculty technology use. A total of 41 variables were included to capture individual-level influences (both demographic and professional) and institution-level influences (e.g., level of resources, Carnegie classification, public or private control) on technology use. All of the variables were incorporated into a Bayesian network analysis that produced a model of seven variables that classified 69% of the sample accurately. Four of the seven variables point to the important influence of the faculty's instructional workload on whether and how much faculty use technology. Carnegie classification was the only institution-level variable to make it into the final model. The faculty's highest degree and teaching/research field also had direct and moderating influences on technology use. This model offers insights into who is using technology, why they do so, and how more faculty may be encouraged to acquire greater skills in using technology.     

Market conditions,productivity, and promotion among university faculty

This paper contrasts the performance levels and promotion experiences of 371 faculty members under three different market conditions reflecting the supply and demand for university faculty (buyer's market, seller's market, and stable market). The central questions examined are, What is the effect of market conditions upon (1) the length of time it takes for promotion; (2) the promotion rate; (3) the productivity of assistant and associate professors before each promotion; and (4) the productivity of full professors after attaining that rank? Findings are most consistent with a market model indicating that faculty promoted during a buyer's market remain in rank longer before being promoted and exhibit a greater rate of productivity than faculty promoted during other market conditions. There is also support for the elite model in that the impact of “tight” market conditions on productivity is greatest for faculty below the rank of full professor.     

Correlates of faculty publication productivity: A cross-national analysis

This study is a cross-national empirical analysis ofthe correlates of faculty publication productivity ina ten-country sample. The countries included in thestudy are as follows: Australia, Brazil, Chile, HongKong, Israel, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the UnitedKingdom, and the United States. Publicationproductivity was measured as number of articlespublished over a three-year period. By reviewing thefindings of related literature on the professoriate inthe developed world, the study seeks to determine theextent to which these hold for less developed academicsystems as well, and more broadly, to identifysimilarities and differences in the patterns ofpublication productivity across the examined nations.The statistical analyses conducted for each countryreveal differences that clearly challenge theunqualified application of established researchproductivity models to other national contexts.     

Research productivity and perceived teaching effectiveness: A survey of economics faculty

The relationship between research productivity and teaching effectiveness has long been a controversial topic among university professors. This study utilizes a nationwide survey of economics faculty to examine the relationship between research productivity and classroom performance, using self-reported measures of research output and teaching evaluation scores, and to solicit the participants' opinions on this issue. Findings indicate a very weak relationship between research output and teaching effectiveness. However, individual and institutional characteristics seem to explain some differences in research output and teaching evaluation scores. Further, faculty opinions on the research-teaching relationship seem to be influenced by institutional and individual characteristics.     

Institutional and technical constraints on faculty gross productivity in American doctoral universities

Scholars disagree about the manner and extent of environmental structuring of university activities. This study supports arguments that the environment highly structures the relationships between faculty and the academic products of undergraduate instruction, graduate instruction, and research. Multiple correlation coefficients exceeded 90 percent for regressions of faculty size on counts of undergraduate and graduate enrollments and published articles for all universities classified as Research I or II or Doctoral I or II, demonstrating how constrained is doctoral faculty gross productivity in doctoral universities in the United States. Possible institutional and technical constraints are discussed. The regressions reveal economies of scale and economies of scope for some mixes of faculty academic activities, but not for others. Implications on productivity are explored for university type, control, and science emphasis. A typology for productivity studies is also outlined.     

To what degree does thepromotion system reward faculty research productivity?

This study explores the research question: Does the promotion system in Taiwan reward faculty research productivity? By conducting event history analyses, I have demonstrated that the simple answer to the question is ‘yes.’ After controlling for the effects of demography, education, institutions and seniority, the discrete‐time logit models indicate that the number of research publications predicts the odds of promotion well. Although the promotion system is unquestionably effective in rewarding research productivity for at least some faculty, whether the system is truly universalistic or equitable remains an open question. Female and younger faculty members are clearly disadvantaged in seeking promotion. Future research is recommended to study how particularism operates in the Taiwanese academic community.     

Research productivity of foreign- and US-born faculty: differences by time on task

Similar to trends in postsecondary education across the world, today’s US universities are an increasing mix of native and foreign-born scholars. US institutions are experiencing a growing number of international faculty members, but there is limited literature examining foreign-born faculty who work in US institutions and how outputs from foreign-born faculty compare to US-born natives. Using data from the 2004 National Survey of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF:04), this study examines difference in faculty members’ research productivity at doctoral-granting institutions by foreign/US-born status controlling for select individual and institutional characteristics. Findings show that foreign-born faculty members spend more time on research and less time on undergraduate instruction than US-born peers, and this may contribute to their higher levels of production. Implications are discussed that consider how to ensure diverse faculty communities that lead to strong research and knowledge production.     

Higher education faculty perceptions on technology integration and training

The purpose of this study was to examine how faculty technology literacy and technology training impact the integration of technology into their pedagogy. This required a quantitative examination of how faculty technology literacy skills relate to pedagogical practice (integrating technology into their pedagogy), while controlling for training. Respondents surveyed in this study consisted of faculty members from the fifteen peer institutions of the University of North Dakota. In this second article, three of the original research questions are addressed. The inferential results of the study showed significant correlations between technology literacy and pedagogical practice integration.     

Study of factors influencing research productivity of agriculture faculty members in Iran

The purpose of this research is to analyze the relationship between individual, institutional and demographic characteristics on one hand and the research productivity of agriculture faculty members on the other. The statistical population of the research comprises 280 academic staff in agricultural faculties all over Tehran Province. The data regarding research productivity and demographic characteristics were extracted from the faculty members’ profiles. Questionnaires were utilized to collect information concerning individual and institutional variables. The reliably of the questionnaire was calculated to be between 0.74 and 0.97 using the Cronbach’s Alpha. The regression analysis revealed that from among demographic characteristics two variables, namely, academic rank and age ( \textR_\textAD ² {\text{R}}_{\text{AD}}^{ 2}  = 0.265), among individual characteristics, three variables, namely, working habits, creativity as well as autonomy and commitment ( \textR_\textAD ² {\text{R}}_{\text{AD}}^{ 2}  = 0.097), and among institutional characteristics four variables namely, network of communication with colleagues, resources of facilities, corporate management and clear research objectives ( \textR_\textAD ² {\text{R}}_{\text{AD}}^{ 2}  = 0.151) were significant predictors for agricultural faculty members’ research productivity.     

Foreign-born women faculty work roles and productivity at research universities in the United States

Using the data from the 2004 National Study of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF:04) survey, the study examined foreign-born women faculty members’ work roles and productivity in the areas of teaching, research, and service in comparison with their US-born counterparts at research universities in the US. The findings provided some evidence to suggest that foreign-born women faculty members’ patterns of engagement in work activities contradicted the gendered division of labor in academia. The findings indicated that foreign-born female academics were significantly more engaged in research that was evident in the number of scholarly outputs they produced compared to US-born women faculty colleagues. On the other hand, they seemed to be less involved in teaching and service functions of their work than their US-born women peers. The study could serve as a good starting point to further examine foreign-born women faculty socialization into faculty roles and their academic work culture.     

Applying productivity indices as an innovation for motivating individual and institutional initiatives for faculty renewal

The enthusiasm of faculty for their respective academic pursuits is recognized as a most important issue in most American institutions of higher education. Numerous approaches have been described and advocated to enhance faculty satisfaction with their work with a growing appreciation for the value of renewal programs. Self renewal through challenging work assignments is deemed a most practical approach and can be achieved practically within tightening financial restraints. A major handicap to the exploitation of self renewal programs has been a lack of tangible measurements of achievements in the academic functions being pursued. This paper proposes the use of functional productivity indices as tools for motivating renewal opportunities and assessing experiences.     

The use and nonuse of tax deferred annuities by Ohio faculty

Employees of institutions of higher education are entitled to voluntarily contribute to a tax deferred annuity (TDA). Congress created this tax shelter to encourage and assist university faculty to supplement their retirement income. The TDA has been available for over 20 years, and this study measures its use by a large random sample of currently employed faculty of the State of Ohio. A major finding is that only one-half the sample participates in the TDA program. The study provides statistics on the demographic characteristics of participants and nonparticipants.     

Bias and the intended use of student evaluations of university faculty

This study examines whether the intended use of data obtained from student evaluations of university faculty biases the ratings. The paper reviews and critiques previous research done in the area. Previous studies produced contradictory results, but the results were confounded by several methodological problems. The research reported here remedied some of the problems in previous studies. The findings indicated that, while students are aware of the intended use of ratings as stipulated in written directions, different uses do not result in statistically significant differences in the ratings. Implications for the use of student ratings in the evaluation of faculty are discussed.     

Factors influencing faculty satisfaction with online teaching and learning in higher education

Faculty satisfaction is considered an important factor of quality in online courses. A study was conducted to identify and confirm factors affecting the satisfaction of online faculty at a small research university, and to develop and validate an instrument that can be used to measure perceived faculty satisfaction in the context of the online learning environment. The online faculty satisfaction survey (OFSS) was developed and administered to all instructors who had taught an online course in fall 2007 or spring 2008 at a small research university in the USA. One hundred and two individuals completed the web‐based questionnaire. Results confirm that three factors affect satisfaction of faculty in the online environment: student‐related, instructor‐related, and institution‐related factors.     

Gender and use of instructional technologies: A study of university faculty

Instructional technologies have the potential to help highereducation faculty address increasing demands on their time and energy. Thisstudy investigated technology use by faculty at medium-sized, publicuniversity in the midwestern United States. Because a number of studies haveshown gender differences in technology use, survey data were analyzed alonggender lines. Results showed that males rated their knowledge and experiencewith some innovative technologies higher than did females. For frequency ofuse, no significant differences were found, with the exception of video,where females indicated slightly more frequent use. Both rated technologiesas important to instruction. For factors influencing technology use, femalesrated time to learn a technology, increased student learning, ease of use,training, and available information in discipline as more important than didmales. Such incentives as release time, merit pay, contribution to promotionand tenure, monetary rewards, and recognition by the university were ratedmore important by women, as were the barriers of lack of time and lack ofcontribution to professional advancement. These findings suggest that genderdifferences in technology use by university faculty may exist and need to beaddressed.