Faculty research culture in faith-based higher education institution in the Philippines : a case study

Abstract

Research and publication have become central to higher education institutions. Faculty with strong research competence are valuable assets, and a sustainable research culture is essential for knowledge generation, academic excellence, and institutional growth. There is an increasing need to cultivate a supportive research environment where faculty can actively engage in research and contribute to scholarly work. This study sought to identify institutional policies and practices, faculty characteristics, challenges, coping mechanisms, and institutional strategies to promote faculty research culture in faith-based higher education institutions (FHEIs). This qualitative single-case study explored the faculty research culture at an FHEI in the Philippines. The participants, selected through purposive sampling, consisted of five faculty members and five administrators. The study was anchored in expectancy-value theory and self-efficacy theory, which explain how value and confidence influence research engagement. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed that faculty research culture is shaped by institutional support, summarized as BRIGHTS (budget commitment, research agenda alignment, incentives and recognition, goal-driven evaluation, holistic support systems, training and capacity development, and scheduling and workload flexibility); faculty characteristics, summarized as MIND (motivational orientation, intellectual curiosity, nurtured research resilience, and dedication to scholarship); constraints, identified as CLIPS (constrained collaboration, limited time, insufficient research capacity, publishing barriers, and scarce resources); and coping strategies, described as GRIP (growing research competence, relational research collaboration, integrating work-life balance, and participation in scholarly and faith communities). In addition, institutional strategies for promoting research culture in FHEIs, summarized as ADVANCE (anchoring research in mission, developing research capacity, valuing research contributions, allocating research time, nurturing research collaboration, creating research accountability, and expanding research dissemination), highlight the importance of mission-driven and structured support systems. Future research may explore mission-oriented research culture in other FHEIs using varied research designs and examine the roles of administrators and faculty characteristics in cultivating a strong and sustainable research culture in FHEIs and higher education institutions.