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The Value of Applied Research and Alternative Publishing

Ask a crusty old academic and he / she will tell you that unless research is in a peer-reviewed journal it has no value and should be discarded as “ junk ” work . In contrast , talk to a seasoned CEO and he / she will tell you that if university research has any value in the market it will need to be applied to solve business problems . This divergence of thought and perspective is changing the way universities and corporations disseminate and use information . There are some academic traditions that unnecessarily restrict the value of education and hinder the growth of the business community . Corporations are end users of information that apply research build products , enhance services , and improve operations . Failure to see the value of alternative methods of conducting , publishing , and using research beyond elitist journals defeats the purpose of academic studies . CEO’s, executives , a

Blogging as a New Form of Academic Scholarship

New technology does change the platforms by which modern college professors research and communicate new information. As technology changes so does the medium by which academic research and scholarship is formed. According to an article in the Journal of Innovative Higher Education blogging is a new way of publishing academic research and offers a number of benefits that traditional journals do not (Powell, Jacob & Chapman, 2012). It is important to understand that peer reviewed journals are still top of the line as they offer expert reviews of the information and are selective in their publications. The problem is that there selection process may or may not have anything to do with the quality of the scholarship and can limit new ideas based upon subjective quality measures such as writing style, university type, and kind of research. Likewise, peer reviewed journals are a slower process of disseminating information. After 6-12 months from submission date to publication date

Scale Development: Theory and Applications

The book Scale Development Theory and Applications by Robert Devellis provides a strong overview of the creation and development of survey scales for applied social research. He uses simple language with illustrations to make the complex statistical process as easy to understand as possible. It will help researchers develop surveys instruments that do not confound variables and create improper results. One of the more difficult things that researchers face is developing their own survey instrument. Certainly, a person can build a list of questions but these questions may confound variables making the results useless. When possible it is almost always better to use preexisting validated surveys that do not require much work. Unfortunately, for a large percentage of unique problems one has to start the daunting task of building their own. The book will move through an introductory background of measurement research and how important it has been throughout history. Duncan states i