Research and teaching at a research university

This paper examines tensions between the research and teachingcomponents of the faculty role. It does so by reporting resultsfrom a case study of committed undergraduate teachers at aresearch university. Having agreed that research was the dominantelement in the university's academic reward system, samplemembers were cross-classified along two dimensions: First, theirown adaptation to the reward structure, as indicated by theirfive-year records of involvement in funded research; second,individuals' stated attitudes and beliefs toward the teaching andresearch roles. Although the 11 active researchers (ARs) withinthe sample reported somewhat more positive attitudes towardsresearch than did the 18 less-active researchers (LAs), we foundconsiderable overlap across, and variation within, the twosubsamples. Particularly noteworthy were the presence of a strongallegiance to the historic teaching mission of publicuniversities among both groups and, among the LAs, anoppositional cadre of politically adept senior faculty who hadachieved some success in preserving or expanding the place ofundergraduate teaching in the reward systems of their departmentsand colleges. The paper concludes by considering the case studyfindings in light of both recent theoretical work on intrinsicmotivation and the future of the teaching role.