More Value to Defining Quality

Abstract There are lots of definitions of quality, and also of quality in education. Garvin (1984 Garvin, D. A. 1984. ‘What does product quality really mean?‘. Sloan Management Revalue System, 26: 25–43. Google Scholar) discerns five approaches: the transcendental approach, the product‐oriented approach, the customer‐oriented approach, the manufacturing‐oriented approach and the value‐for‐money approach. Harvey and Green (1993 Harvey, L. and Green, D. 1993. ‘Defining quality’. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 18: 9–34. Taylor & Francis Online , Google Scholar) give five interrelated concepts of quality as: exceptional, perfection (or consistency), fitness for purpose, value for money and transformative. A new definition of quality is needed to explain recent quality issues in higher education. This article describes a quality concept with four constituents: object, standard, subject and values. The article elaborates on the values. Four value systems derived from Beck and Cowan (1996 Beck, D. and Cowan, C. 1996. Spiral dynamics, Malden: Blackwell. Google Scholar) are transformed into four value systems on quality and quality management: control, continuous improvement, commitment and breakthrough. These value systems make it possible to explain some recent developments in quality management in higher education.