Validity and Limitations of College Student Self-Report Data

Critics of student self-reported data claim that the accumulatedcorpus of research documenting student learning on the basis ofsurvey responses stands on shaky ground. This volume argues thatscholarship on proper use of student self-report data is woefullyunderdeveloped and contributing authors offer several importantinsights to assist IR practitioners in identifying potentiallimitations associated with self-report data.
Volume editors Serge Herzog, director of institutional analysisat the University of Nevada, Reno, and Nicholas A. Bowman, postdoctoral research associate in the Center for Social Concernsat the University of Notre Dame, have assembled contributingauthors who are leading scholars in the field of college studentself-reports. Combined, the chapters draw on data from a mix ofcolleges and universities, capturing student growth at differentstages of the undergraduate experience, and even beyondgraduation.
This is the 150th volume of the Jossey-Bass quarterly reportseries New Directions for Institutional Research. Always timely and comprehensive, New Directions forInstitutional Research provides planners and administratorsin all types of academic institutions with guidelines in such areasas resource coordination, information analysis, program evaluation, and institutional management.