The idea that knowledge is a major determinant of policy in industry and government is discussed with reference to Harold Wilensky's book, "Organizational Intelligence: Knowledge and Policy in Government and Industry." Implications for academe's institutional research activities are considered. (LBH)

Seven institutional research maxims based on research and theory about how people cognitively process information are discussed: more may not be better; augment humans with models; chunk data wisely; know decision-makers; heuristics are not always helpful; arrange tables by patterns; and accept negative evidence and new hypotheses. (Author/MLW)

A study investigated the knowledge and skills of college and university institutional researchers (n=601) in relation to their perceptions of the effectiveness of their work. Analysis found that relationships between background characteristics, knowledge and skills in institutional research, and perceptions of effectiveness were minimal.…

Institutions of higher education are looked to by society as the training grounds and gatekeepers for college-trained workers. However, despite a long history of being viewed by many as unresponsive to labor force needs, the academy has not found ways of effectively meeting these demands, nor articulating why it is that they have difficulty doing…