Differences in Scholarly Productivity for Faculty Employed in Comprehensive Colleges and Universities.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the differences in scholarly productivity for faculty employed in comprehensive colleges and universities and determine which combination of individual characteristics best predicts productivity. The national sample consisted of 363 faculty who held doctorates in languages. The conceptual framework originated from an integration of research on faculty productivity and motivation theory. Productivity was defined as the number of articles, books, manuals, and monographs published and of grants received during the past three years. Using stepwise multiple regression, the following variables were found to best predict productivity (multiple R = .47): primary interest in research rather than in teaching, higher academic rank, greater number of publications at time of tenure review, and a higher achievement motivation score. Variables which were not found to be significant predictors of faculty productivity included: tenure status, age, gender, the presence of children, or the rating of the doctoral granting university. Using discriminant function analysis predicting cases of low producers versus high producers, highly productive faculty were found to be married, have a primary interest in research, have higher achievement motivation, and have achieved a high academic rank. The model was able to predict 59% of the non-producers and 63% of the high producers. The results of this study indicate that theories of achievement motivation are useful in predicting faculty productivity only when achievement motivation is considered in combination with other variables. The findings suggest that: (1) faculty in comprehensive schools are predominantly midcareer, tend to cluster at the higher ranks, are not mobile, and are tenured and (2) gender differences may not be as great as previously assumed, when variables such as discipline and institutional type are taken into consideration.