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Mapping the field of research on African higher education: a review of 6483 publications from 1980 to 2019
Abstract
Following a global trend, higher education (HE) in Africa has also become a complex enterprise, potentially demanding specific expertise in higher education research. However, despite this, there is a dearth of analysis into the state of research on African HE. This paper seeks to fill this gap by mapping and analysing African HE research. We undertake a systematic review of 6483 articles and books focusing on African HE published from 1980 to 2019 in indexed and non-indexed journals and book-publishers. We particularly examine the evolution of publications, the journals and book publishers, the authors’ affiliations, the researched countries, the publications’ thematic classification, the most prolific authors, and the most influential publications. Based on this analysis, we draw four main conclusions. First, research on African HE is a rather recent phenomenon or has witnessed a recent rise or renewal. Second, a few selected journals and book-publishers, particularly those with a strong regional or international reputation, dominate the field. Third, four communities of researchers are more represented: the community researching teaching and learning issues, the community focusing on structural transformation of HE, the community focusing on the internal organisation of HE and the community focusing on societal engagement of HE. Four, South Africa dominates the field both as home to most of the authors (including the most prolific) and the empirical field of most publications (including the most influential). If South Africa is excluded, African HE research is weak, but some communities are emerging, particularly in West, East and Southern Africa.
Citation
In: Higher Education Volume 83 / Issue 1 (2020-11-16) , S. 199-233 ; eissn:1573-174XAdditional Information
The article Mapping the field of research on African higher education: a review of 6483 publications from 1980 to 2019, written by Nelson Casimiro Zavale and Christian Schneijderberg, was originally published electronically on the publisher’s internet portal on 16 November 2020 without open access. With the author(s)’ decision to opt for Open Choice the copyright of the article changed on 14 July 2021 to © The Author(s) 2020 and the article is forthwith distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.Sponsorship
Gefördert im Rahmen des Projekts DEALCitation
@article{doi:10.17170/kobra-202111055033,
author={Zavale, Nelson Casimiro and Schneijderberg, Christian},
title={Mapping the field of research on African higher education: a review of 6483 publications from 1980 to 2019},
journal={Higher Education},
year={2020}
}
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2022-07-01T13:03:24Z 2022-07-01T13:03:24Z 2020-11-16 doi:10.17170/kobra-202111055033 http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/13979 The article Mapping the field of research on African higher education: a review of 6483 publications from 1980 to 2019, written by Nelson Casimiro Zavale and Christian Schneijderberg, was originally published electronically on the publisher’s internet portal on 16 November 2020 without open access. With the author(s)’ decision to opt for Open Choice the copyright of the article changed on 14 July 2021 to © The Author(s) 2020 and the article is forthwith distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Gefördert im Rahmen des Projekts DEAL eng Namensnennung 4.0 International http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Africa higher education research systemativ review mapping the field 370 Mapping the field of research on African higher education: a review of 6483 publications from 1980 to 2019 Aufsatz Following a global trend, higher education (HE) in Africa has also become a complex enterprise, potentially demanding specific expertise in higher education research. However, despite this, there is a dearth of analysis into the state of research on African HE. This paper seeks to fill this gap by mapping and analysing African HE research. We undertake a systematic review of 6483 articles and books focusing on African HE published from 1980 to 2019 in indexed and non-indexed journals and book-publishers. We particularly examine the evolution of publications, the journals and book publishers, the authors’ affiliations, the researched countries, the publications’ thematic classification, the most prolific authors, and the most influential publications. Based on this analysis, we draw four main conclusions. First, research on African HE is a rather recent phenomenon or has witnessed a recent rise or renewal. Second, a few selected journals and book-publishers, particularly those with a strong regional or international reputation, dominate the field. Third, four communities of researchers are more represented: the community researching teaching and learning issues, the community focusing on structural transformation of HE, the community focusing on the internal organisation of HE and the community focusing on societal engagement of HE. Four, South Africa dominates the field both as home to most of the authors (including the most prolific) and the empirical field of most publications (including the most influential). If South Africa is excluded, African HE research is weak, but some communities are emerging, particularly in West, East and Southern Africa. open access Zavale, Nelson Casimiro Schneijderberg, Christian doi:10.1007/s10734-020-00649-5 Afrika Hochschulforschung Analyse publishedVersion eissn:1573-174X Issue 1 Higher Education 199-233 Volume 83 false
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