EVALUATING RESEARCH CULTURE IN A STATE UNIVERSITY: A DESCRIPTIVE QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS IN WESTERN VISAYAS, PHILIPPINES
Keywords:
Research culture, research environment, research quality,Abstract
This descriptive quantitative analysis of the research culture at a state university focuses on the research environment (reputation, income, and productivity) and research quality (citation impact, strength, excellence, and influence). A total of 318 respondents were selected for the quantitative phase through stratified sampling. Data were collected using an 80-item validated and reliable researcher-developed survey instrument (CVR = 0.93; α = 0.989) and a semi-structured interview guide. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean and SD). Findings were analyzed across key indicators, including research infrastructure, income, productivity, reputation, citation impact, research strength, research excellence, and research influence. Results showed that the research environment was highly evident (M = 3.26, SD = 0.49), with strong performance in research infrastructure and research reputation, indicating well-established institutional support systems and academic standing. Research income and productivity were evident, suggesting consistent but developing levels of funding generation and scholarly output. In terms of research quality, the overall level was evident (M = 3.14, SD = 0.59), with citation impact and research influence performing relatively better than research strength and research excellence. These findings indicate that the university maintains a structured and functioning research culture, characterized by supportive systems and consistent research practices, while highlighting areas that may benefit from further enhancement. The study provides a descriptive baseline for understanding research culture in higher education institutions.
References
Aboagye, E., Jensen, I., Bergström, G., Brämberg, E. B., Pico-Espinosa, O. J., & Björklund, C. (2021). Investigating the association between publication performance and the work environment of university research academics: A systematic review. Scientometrics, 126(4), 3283–3301. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-020-03820-y
Achsan, H. T. Y., Suhartanto, H., Wibowo, W. C., & Putri, W. T. H. (2020). An approach for measuring research strength map of an institution. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 1566(1), 012009. https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1566/1/012009
Adams, J., & Szomszor, M. (2024). National research impact is driven by global collaboration, not rising performance. Scientometrics, 129(5), 2883–2896. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-024-05010-6
Adefuye, A. O., Coetzee, L., Van Vuuren, C. J., & Busari, J. O. (2020). Medical educators’ perceptions of research culture in a faculty of health sciences: A South African study. Teaching and Learning in Medicine, 33(5), 509–524. https://doi.org/10.1080/10401334.2020.1847653
Aga, F. J. (2022). Determinants of academic research quality: The case at three Ethiopian universities. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4248966
Ajotikar, V., & Ingale, K. (2023). Academicians’ insights into the research environment in management institutions. European Chemical Bulletin, 12(10). https://doi.org/10.48047/ecb/2023.12.10.733
Aksnes, D. W., Piro, F. N., & Fossum, L. W. (2023). Citation metrics covary with researchers’ assessments of the quality of their works. Quantitative Science Studies, 4(1), 105–126. https://doi.org/10.1162/qss_a_00241
Amtu, O., Souisa, S. L., Joseph, L. S., & Lumamuly, P. C. (2021). Contribution of leadership, organizational commitment and organizational culture to improve the quality of higher education. International Journal of Innovation, 9(1), 131–157. https://doi.org/10.5585/iji.v9i1.18582
Anderson, B., Shannon, K., Baca, K., et al. (2024). A scoping review to identify barriers and facilitators of research participation among chiropractic faculty. Journal of Chiropractic Education. https://doi.org/10.7899/jce-23-7
Armas, K. L., & Jugo, R. R. (2024). Strategic development planning for global integration: A comprehensive framework for state universities in the Philippines. International Review of Management and Marketing, 14(6), 167–177. https://doi.org/10.32479/irmm.17220
AUN. (2024). AUN strategic focus. ASEAN University Network. https://www.aunsec.org/discover-aun/aun-strategic-focus
Bara, S., & Chauhan, S. (2025). Insights of research scholars towards research culture in teacher education institutions. International Journal of Science and Research Archive, 17(3), 1052–1059. https://doi.org/10.30574/ijsra.2025.17.3.3262
Barlan, (2023). (Included in narrative citation but incomplete bibliographic details provided in text; full source not retrievable from provided data.)
Barroso-Méndez, M. J., Pajuelo-Moreno, M., & Gallardo-Vázquez, D. (2024). A meta-analytic review of sustainability disclosure and reputation relationship. Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal, 15(5), 1210–1254. https://doi.org/10.1108/sampj-04-2022-0168
Bhukya, R., & Paul, J. (2023). Social influence research in consumer behavior: A hybrid systematic literature review. Journal of Business Research, 162, 113870. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.113870
Blackburn, R., Dibb, S., & Tonks, I. (2023). Business and management studies in the UK REF 2021. British Journal of Management, 35(1), 434–448. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.12721
Booc, N. B. B. (2023). A structural equation model on organizational research culture. European Journal of Theoretical and Applied Sciences, 1(4), 78–91. https://doi.org/10.59324/ejtas.2023.1(4).09
Camilon, M. D. F., Callo, E. C., & Panoy, J. F. D. (2024). Factors associated with research productivity among faculty of HEIs. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Applied Business and Education Research, 5(11), 4497–4509.
CHED. (2016). CMO No. 48 s. 2016. Commission on Higher Education. https://ched.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/CMO-48-s.-2016.pdf
CHED. (2019). CMO No. 15 s. 2019. Commission on Higher Education. https://ched.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/CMO-No.-15-Series-of-2019.pdf
Chao, G. T. (2022). The research environment. In Routledge eBooks. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003015000-15
Creswell, J. W. (2021). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research(6th ed.). Pearson.
Creswell, J. W. (2022). A concise introduction to mixed methods research (2nd ed.). SAGE.
Crosling, G., et al. (2024). (Referenced in background synthesis; full citation details not provided in supplied text.)
Dela Peña, M. A. (2024). Research training needs of faculty members. International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation, 11(VII), 189–194. https://doi.org/10.51244/IJRSI.2024.1107010
Delosa, J. G., Potane, J. D., & Alano, I. M. (2024). Building a research culture: Interventions and innovations. MIER Journal of Educational Studies Trends & Practices, 344–367. https://doi.org/10.52634/mier/2024/v14/i2/2667
Dimyati, M., et al. (2022). Research strength index to identify performance of research universities. Journal of Science and Technology Policy Management, 14(3), 547–562. https://doi.org/10.1108/jstpm-06-2020-0096
Digo, G. S. (2022). Enhancing research support in HEIs. Journal of Research Policy & Practice of Teachers & Teacher Education, 12(1), 34–48. https://doi.org/10.37134/jrpptte.vol12.1.3.2022
Duyan, K. R. M. (2022). Publication perception of faculty researchers. International Journal of English Literature and Social Sciences, 7(6), 544–556. https://doi.org/10.22161/ijels.76.60
Fussy, D. S. (2024). Cultivating a research culture in Tanzanian higher education. Education Inquiry. https://doi.org/10.1080/20004508.2024.2342012
Galang, S. A. (2023). Organizational culture and leadership competence. International Journal of Social Science and Human Research, 6(4). https://doi.org/10.47191/ijsshr/v6-i4-13
Gopez, C., et al. (2024). Research productivity profiles of Philippine HEIs. SciEnggJ, 17(1), 134–147. https://doi.org/10.54645/2024171zlg-77
Henry, C., et al. (2020). Factors contributing towards research productivity in higher education. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 9(1), 203. https://doi.org/10.11591/ijere.v9i1.20420
Hermanu, A. I., et al. (2024). Research performance evaluation model in university. International Journal of Educational Management, 38(3), 693–710. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijem-05-2023-0235
Hipolito, M. C., & Santos, A. R. (2025). Faculty profiles and research productivity. International Journal of Advanced and Applied Sciences, 12(5), 182–195. https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2025.05.018
Huang, Y., Harvey, B., & Vincent, K. (2024). Sustainability programming and research excellence. Environmental Science & Policy, 155, 103725. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103725
Iqbal, M., Rasul, S. S. U., & Ali, A. (2023). Association of university culture with research productivity. Global Sociological Review, 8(1), 359–370. https://doi.org/10.31703/gsr.2023(viii-i).36
Jaffe, K., et al. (2020). Network analysis of research productivity. PLOS ONE, 15(5), e0232458. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0232458
Janer, S. S. (2022). Research capability of HEIs. International Journal of Current Science Research and Review, 5(10). https://doi.org/10.47191/ijcsrr/v5-i10-24
Kadikilo, A. C., Nayak, P., & Sahay, A. (2024). Barriers to research productivity. Cogent Education, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186x.2024.2351285
Kanaabi, M., Kasule, G. W., & Owino, P. (2022). Policy support and research productivity. The Uganda Higher Education Review, 10(1), 52–67.
Kashif, M., et al. (2022). Demystifying research culture in universities. South Asian Journal of Marketing, 3(1), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1108/sajm-04-2022-118
Khatoon, A., Daud, A., & Amjad, T. (2024). Citation quality factors. Artificial Intelligence Review, 57(3). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10462-023-10657-3
Kousha, K., & Thelwall, M. (2023). Factors associating with citation impact. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 75(3), 215–244. https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.24810
Ladipo, S. O., et al. (2022). Research productivity in Nigerian universities. International Journal of Research in Library Science, 8(2), 134. https://doi.org/10.26761/ijrls.8.2.2022.1532
Lambrechts, A. A., Cavallaro, M., & Lepori, B. (2024). European Universities initiative. Higher Education, 88(4), 1227–1247. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-023-01167-w
Launio, C. C., et al. (2024). Motivating factors and challenges in publishing. Journal of Scientometric Research, 13(3), 866–876. https://doi.org/10.5530/jscires.20041215
Lazim, Y. Y. (2022). Leadership and research environment. South Asian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2(6), 70–85. https://doi.org/10.48165/sajssh.2022.3106
Lindgreen, A., et al. (2020). How to get great research cited. Industrial Marketing Management, 89, A1–A7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2020.03.023
Lorenzo, M. P. (2021). ASEAN regionalism and research collaboration. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 20(5), 590–607. https://doi.org/10.1080/14767724.2021.1973888
Masinde, M., & Coetzee, J. (2021). Research productivity modeling. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 72(5), 1509–1530. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijppm-12-2020-0669
Meijer, A., & Webster, W. (2025). Research influence on policy. Information Polity, 30(2), 95. https://doi.org/10.1177/15701255251356399
Miotto, G., Del-Castillo-Feito, C., & Blanco-González, A. (2019). Reputation and legitimacy in HEIs. Journal of Business Research, 112, 342–353. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.11.076
Monsura, M., et al. (2022). Research productivity of faculty members. Journal of Pharmaceutical Negative Results. https://doi.org/10.47750/pnr.2022.13.S06.097
Montoya, E. F., et al. (2026). Research mentorship effectiveness. Multidisciplinary Reviews, 9(8), 2026391. https://doi.org/10.31893/multirev.2026391
Moradmand, A., et al. (2020). Factors influencing university research policy. Retrieved from Semantic Scholar.
Mutale, W., et al. (2023). Mentorship culture in universities. Annals of Global Health, 89(1), 15. https://doi.org/10.5334/aogh.4032
Naldo, T. R. S., & Ubayubay, R. M. (2024). Action research culture. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Analysis, 7(07). https://doi.org/10.47191/ijmra/v7-i07-15
Neil, K. L., et al. (2024). Research culture in tertiary institutions. PLOS ONE, 19(12), e0314866. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0314866
Nerona, C. L., & Quijano, M. (2023). Research culture of faculty. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Analysis. https://doi.org/10.47191/ijmra/v6-i3-49
Newman, J. (2024). Incentivising research impact. Higher Education Policy. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41307-024-00351-6
Niemczyk, E. K., & Rónay, Z. (2022). Academic autonomy and research roles. Higher Education Quarterly, 77(2), 327–341. https://doi.org/10.1111/hequ.12403
Obliopas, R. G. (2020). Research policy trends in Philippine SUC. Indian Journal of Science and Technology, 13(34), 3555–3560. https://doi.org/10.17485/ijst/v13i34.1324
Ocampo, L., et al. (2022). Research productivity and innovation potential. Journal of Open Innovation, 8(3), 148. https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc8030148
Olvido, M. M. (2020). Configuration of research culture. Recoletos Multidisciplinary Research Journal, 8(2), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.32871/rmrj2008.02.01
Onrubia, E. (2024). Faculty research productivity in HEIs. JPAIR Multidisciplinary Research, 56(1), 24–40. https://doi.org/10.7719/jpair.v56i1.878
Pacalso, S. S. (2025). Leave-benefit policy implementation. Journal of Education and Learning, 14(5), 100. https://doi.org/10.5539/jel.v14n5p100
Pascua, W. C. (2025). Motivational factors in research productivity. Asian Research Journal of Arts & Social Sciences, 23(5), 14–25. https://doi.org/10.9734/arjass/2025/v23i5677
Peyravinejad, Z., et al. (2025). Leadership in academic culture. Research in Educational Administration & Leadership, 10(2), 485–540. https://doi.org/10.30828/real.1551536
Pontika, N., et al. (2022). Indicators of research quality. Quantitative Science Studies, 3(4), 888–911. https://doi.org/10.1162/qss_a_00224
Quitoras, M. C. L., & Abuso, J. E. (2021). Best practices in research culture. Pedagogical Research, 6(1), em0087. https://doi.org/10.29333/pr/9355
Radushinsky, D. A., et al. (2024). Research performance evaluation. Sustainability, 16(18), 8180. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16188180
Rambe, P. (2023). Research excellence in African university. Studies in Higher Education, 49(8), 1397–1424. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2023.2265931
Rasool, T., & Dilshad, M. (2023). Research culture in public universities. Research Journal for Societal Issues, 5(2), 41–58. https://doi.org/10.56976/rjsi.v5i2.96
Regla, A., & Ballera, M. (2021). Research network analysis. IEEE ICISS, 1–6. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/ICISS53185.2021.9533262
Rogayan, D. V., & Corpuz, L. N. (2022). Research productivity in Philippine HEIs. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 11(1), 128. https://doi.org/10.11591/ijere.v11i1.22099
Roxas-Soriano, P., et al. (2020). Research culture in Philippine HEIs. EDUCARE Journal, 13(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.2121/edu-ijes.v13i1.1337
Ryazanova, O., & Jaskiene, J. (2021). Managing research productivity. Research Policy, 51(2), 104448. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2021.104448
Sengupta, A., & Rossi, F. (2022). Funding portfolios and knowledge exchange. Technovation, 121, 102686. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2022.102686
Sharif, M., Khan, U. A., & Hussain, L. (2024). Determinants of research culture. Journal of Social Sciences Development, 3(1), 52–63. https://doi.org/10.53664/jssd/03-01-2024-05-52-63
Sjögårde, P., & Didegah, F. (2022). Topic growth and citation impact. Scientometrics, 127(4), 1903–1921. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-022-04293-x
Sorz, J., et al. (2020). Research strengths indicators. Scientometrics, 125(2), 1095–1116. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-020-03672-6
Stanko, T., et al. (2022). COVID-19 and research culture. In Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-93907-6_17
Sukoco, B. M., et al. (2023). ASEAN research productivity. SAGE Open, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221145157
Sutton, E. (2020). Research impact in REF. Radiography, 26, S17–S19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2020.02.004
Thelwall, M., et al. (2023). Citation as quality indicators. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 74(8), 941–953. https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.24767
Tijssen, R., & Winnink, J. (2022). Research excellence in Africa. Science, Technology & Society, 27(3), 368–387. https://doi.org/10.1177/09717218221078236
Uy, C. S., & Callo, E. C. (2023). Research readiness in HEIs. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Applied Business and Education Research, 4(7), 2306–2319. https://doi.org/10.11594/ijmaber.04.07.13
Valdivieso, P. A., et al. (2021). Research output determinants. Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 21(4), 450–468. https://doi.org/10.1177/15381927211008684
Vieira, E. S. (2023). Research collaboration and citation impact. Scientometrics, 128(6), 3555–3579. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-023-04715-4
West Visayas State University. (2024). West Visayas State University research mandate. https://urdc.wvsu.edu.ph
Xun, X., & Barkhuizen, G. (2025). Institutional leadership and teacher research. System, 130, 103616. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2025.103616
Yadigarova, L. (2024). Factors affecting research productivity. Elmi Əsərlər, 91(1), 71–76. https://doi.org/10.69682/azrt.2024.91(1).71-76
Yoon, D. (2020). Job satisfaction and research environment. Cogent Business & Management, 7(1), 1818364. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2020.1818364
Zhang, F., & Wu, S. (2024). Predicting citation impact. Scientometrics, 129(7), 4137–4166. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-024-05086-0
Zhang, Y., Wang, Y., Du, H., & Havlin, S. (2023). Delayed citation impact. Journal of Informetrics, 18(1), 101468. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joi.2023.101468
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Jason P. Amar, Joel M. Bual (Author)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.