Scholarly Communication In The 21st Century: Trends In Promoting And Evaluating Scientific Research In Texas A&M University At Qatar

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the current scholarly communication process, looking for trends in promoting and evaluating scientific research in Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ). In addition, this study considers the importance of performance metrics for professional promotion and academic recognition according to TAMUQ’s academics. This study collected data by conducting eight interviews with faculty members dealing with research output and an online survey which obtained 56 responses of researchers and faculty members. The results show that although the majority of academics are accustomed to scholarly communication and faculty promotion, a significant part of them are not aware of important components of these processes. Most academics are active in research and share/publish their research output; however, there is lack of awareness on scholarly communication elements, such as repositories and research measurement. Besides that, the institution does not have policy for faculty promotion and academics request a process review, prioritizing quality over quantity. The study concludes with recommendations to support academics in becoming familiar with the different aspects of scholarly communication and to improve the promotion practices by encouraging some aspects of scholarly metrics.