A Primer for Interpreting and Designing Difference-in-Differences Studies in Higher Education Research

Abstract

Published annually since 1985, the Handbook series provides a compendium of thorough and integrative literature reviews on a diverse array of topics of interest to the higher education scholarly and policy communities. Each chapter provides a comprehensive review of research findings on a selected topic, critiques the research literature in terms of its conceptual and methodological rigor and sets forth an agenda for future research intended to advance knowledge on the chosen topic. The Handbook focuses on a comprehensive set of central areas of study in higher education that encompasses the salient dimensions of scholarly and policy inquiries undertaken in the international higher education community. Each annual volume contains chapters on such diverse topics as research on college students and faculty, organization and administration, curriculum and instruction, policy, diversity issues, economics and finance, history and philosophy, community colleges, advances in research methodology and more. The series is fortunate to have attracted annual contributions from distinguished scholars throughout the world. Chapter 1: The Privileged Journey of Scholarship and Practice. Smith -- Chapter 2: Do diversity courses make a difference? A critical examination of college diversity coursework and student outcomes. Denson & Bowman -- Chapter 3: The Impact of College Students' Interactions with Faculty: A Review of General and Conditional Effects. Kim & Sax -- Chapter 4: Finding conceptual coherence: Trends and alignment in the scholarship on noncognitive skills and their role in college success and career readiness. Rowan-Kenyon, Savitz-Romer, Ott, Swan & Liu -- Chapter 5: Philanthropic Foundations' Social Agendas and the Field of Higher Education. Barnhardt -- Chapter 6: Toward a Holistic Theoretical Model of Momentum for Community College Student Success. Wang -- Chapter 7: Conceptualizing State Policy Adoption and Diffusion. Hearn, McLendon & Linthicum -- Chapter 8: Expanding Conceptualizations of Work/Life in Higher Education: Looking Outside the Academy to Develop a Better Understanding Within. Sallee & Lester -- Chapter 9: A Historiography of College Students 30 Years after Helen Horowitz's Campus Life. Hevel -- Peer review: From "sacred ideals" to "profane realities". Johnson & Hermanowicz.-Chapter 11: Geospatial Analysis in Higher Education Research. Hillman -- Chapter 12: Towards a New Understanding of Labor Market Alignment. Cleary, Kerrigan & Van Noy.