This article presents the development and application of a model that can be utilized to compare the autonomy of principals in various historical and national contexts. Drawing on former conceptual work on autonomy in education, the model conceptualizes principal autonomy as two-dimensional. The first dimension is the decision making expected from…

The Swedish system of research funding has undergone major changes, while competitive funding schemes gradually have gained popularity, at the expense of institutional block grants. In recent years, there has been a strong drive to improve research performance in universities as a result of governmental desires, resulting in performance-based…

Universities play an important role in the development of society. However, it is not always clear what the objectives of collaboration between a Higher Education Institution (HEI) and external stakeholders from the surrounding society are. In this study, value-focused thinking was applied to construct structures of strategic, fundamental and…

Participation is the goal of Swedish disability policy, but it is difficult to achieve for adults with profound intellectual (and multiple) disabilities (PI(M)D). Since these adults are dependent on others in every aspect of their lives, others control their ability to participate in everyday life decisions. This study used observations, analyzed…

Global university rankings currently attract considerable attention, and it is often assumed that such rankings may cause universities to prioritize activities and outcomes that will have a positive effect in their ranking position. A possible consequence of this could be the spread of a particular model of an "ideal" university. This…

Following Ben-Porath [1967. "The Production of Human Capital and the Life-Cycle of Earnings." "Journal of Political Economy" 75 (3): 352-365], the influence of life expectancy on education and on human capital has attracted much attention among growth theorists. Whereas existing growth models rely on an education decision made…

This article provides results from a study of the hidden processes of consensus formation that precede and make possible official judgments and decisions of the Swedish Schools Inspectorate (SI). The research question for the study was: How is knowledge negotiated on the back stage of school inspection and presented on the front stage? The article…

The article describes and analyses some preliminary working methods for user involvement in child welfare. The models are based on the results of a national project in Sweden where children and young people have been involved as informants. How experiences and viewpoints from children and young people can be a source of knowledge in child welfare…

Peers have a paradoxical influence on each other's educational decisions. On one hand, students are prone to conform to each other's ambitious educational decisions and, on the other hand, are discouraged from ambitious decisions when surrounded by successful peers. In this study I examine how peers influence each other's decision to apply to an…

This paper tells the story of what must be done to make teaching in Illinois look more like the ever-evolving careers available in today's most innovative industries. This report was developed in collaboration with Advance Illinois' Educator Advisory Council (EAC)--a group of award-winning teachers who have been recognized for moving Illinois…

Reality-Based Learning, RBL, is a teacher-driven initiative introducing the core business administration subjects to first-year business students by means of making business plans. This paper empirically accounts for the development of RBL over three years. RBL is scrutinized for pros and cons by a proposed education development framework. When…

Information on the development and testing of a model of spatial diffusion and adoption of an agricultural innovation is presented. The data concern the practice of artificial insemination of cattle in southern Sweden. The model is intended to predict the time at which adoption occurred in terms of the time at which the innovation became available…

Power in the university is seen as the academic division of labor that creates a number of self-sufficient units responsible for the production of academic work. Two kinds of reforms in higher education, efficiency and participation by disenfranchised groups, have affected the power structure of higher education institutions. (Author/MLW)

Analysis of data from the United States and Sweden indicate that the combination of low decision latitude and heavy job demands is associated with mental strain and with job dissatisfaction. (Author/IRT)

The purposes of this study were: (1) to test several social decision schemes to obtain plausible explanations of different group processes in solving different disjunctive tasks; and (2) to study both dyads and tetrads solving a eureka and a non-eureka disjunctive task. Social decision schemes theory assumes that a group decision is a joint…