Synopses & Reviews
In honor of the twenty-fifth anniversary of New Directions for Institutional Research, this issue provides an overview of the field of institutional research and a status report on the profession. The authors present the results of various national studies that examine the professional preparation of institutional researchers and the size and primary task of the IR office. Chapters explore the role IR plays in improving an institution?s ability to learn; review organizational behavior theories that shed light on the researcher?s relationship with the institution; and discuss the three tiers of organizational intelligence that comprise IR--technical/analytical, contextual, and issues intelligence.
Synopsis
This is the 104th issue of the quarterly journal New Directions for Institutional Research,
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 105-110) and index.
About the Author
J. FREDERICKS VOLKWEIN is director, professor, and senior scientist at the Center for the Study of Higher Education, Penn State University.
Table of Contents
Editor's Notes (J. Fredericks Volkwein, with Steven LaNasa).
1. The Four Faces of Institutional Research (J. Fredericks Volkwein).
2. On the Nature of Institutional Research and the Knowledge and Skills It Requires (Patrick T. Terenzini).
3. Knowledge, Skills, and Effectiveness in Institutional Research (William E. Knight, Michael E. Moore, Corby A. Coperthwaite).
4. A Profile of Institutional Researchers from AIR National Membership Surveys (Sarah B. Lindquist).
5. A Comparison of Findings from Regional Studies of Institutional Research Offices (John A. Muffo).
6. Emerging Perspectives on Organizational Behavior: Implications for Institutional Researchers (Frank A. Schmidtlein).
7. Teaching Institutional Research to the Learning-Inhibited Institution (Mark Bagshaw).
8. The Role of Institutional Research: From Improvement to Redesign (Marvin W. Peterson).