Promoting a research culture and scholarship at a higher education institution

Abstract

This article offers a glance at strategies related to the creation of a research culture at higher education institutions that desire to reposition academic staff to commit to scholarly work and research outputs. The departure is that these institutions need to focus on a multidimensional and holistic approach to create a research culture in which a sustainable research environment can be established for academia to contribute significantly to research. The dimensions of a research culture and ethos, focussing on the coordination of goals, regular communication and professional rewards, is proposed as a tool with the potential to contribute towards the promotion of a research culture. In this article strategies employed by the previous Technikon Witwatersrand (now merged into the newly formed University of Johannesburg) will be discussed, especially with reference to promoting a research culture and ethos and scholarship. It is suggested that a research culture, although multifaceted, needs to be created to promote scholarship in higher education institutions.