Power in University Budgeting: A Replication and Extension

The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Jeanne Logsdon with the collection of some of the data and J. Richard Harrison for research assistance with the analysis. This study examines the determinants of power and budget allocations on two campuses of a large, state university system. As in previous studies, faculty positions and budget allocations were a function of student enrollment and departmental power, and departmental power was related to the amount of a department's grant and contract funds as well as enrollment. An additional variable in this study, the level of paradigm development characterizing the department's scientific field, was found to predict the levels of grant and contract funds obtained as well as to help explain budget allocations. In a comparison of resource allocation on the two campuses, it was found that for the campus that faced less scarcity of resources, enrollment was more highly related and departmental power less strongly related to allocations.