Universities versus quality assurance and research funding policies: case studies in Argentine private sector

Abstract

Since the 1990s, Argentina has launched quality assurance and financing for improvement policies. One of the main weaknesses identified is the limited development of the research function; an issue more prominent in private than in public universities. Through a conceptual framework based on organizational theory and mixed methods, this study shows that private universities respond to changes in public policies through isomorphic modifications and in strategic ways, based on the principles delineated by the resource dependence theory.