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Conceptions of Quality in Four Different Disciplines

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Abstract

The paper is based on a book(written by the author and his colleague MarkkuLehikoinen) dealing with definitions of qualityand views on the applicability of differentmethods of quality assessment to four differentdisciplinary fields: physics, biology,sociology and history. The paper focuses onconceptions and definitions of quality voicedby scholars representing the differentdisciplines. The study involved semi-structuredin depth interviews with 33 experiencedscholars. The disciplines under study werechosen to represent diverse disciplinarycultures, with the aim of finding out about thepotential impact of (social and cognitive)cultural characteristics of the disciplines onconceptions of quality. The findings show bothcommon views across disciplinary fields anddisciplinary differences.

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Kekäle, J. Conceptions of Quality in Four Different Disciplines. Tertiary Education and Management 8, 65–80 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1017947005085

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