The Degradation of an Educational Research Group: A Case Description

related to other departments in the college. From the beginning, the research group was labeled illegitimate for a number of reasons: First, the valued activity at the college was, and still is, instruction; those engaged in activities outside the instructional domain were immediately suspect. Often it has been heard from campus colleagues, What do you You don't teach, so what do you do? Repeated efforts to communicate the group's research mission have encountered little receptivity. It has been difficult to get colleagues to listen or read explanations of the group's mission. Products of the group's efforts have been often ignored or the assumptions upon which the studies were based have been questioned. Actually, to be ignored by colleagues is one of the worst forms of degradation. These rituals tended to degrade the group. Second, the initial staffing included some individuals who were ill-prepared to conduct research studies. During the next few years, researchers were added to the staff; however, the time required to help some staff members acquire research skills and to formulate the