Research handbook on university rankings: theory, methodology, influence and impact

Gathering unique and thoughtful contributions from leading international scholars, this timely Research Handbook offers diverse perspectives on university rankings twenty years after the first global rankings emerged. It presents an in-depth analysis that reflects the current state of research on rankings, their influence and impact.

Front Matter -- Copyright -- Contents -- Boxes -- About the editors and contributors -- Foreword: reflections on rankings -- Abbreviations -- 1. Introduction: putting rankings in context - looking back, looking forward -- PART I CONCEPTUAL AND THEORETICAL FRAMINGS -- 2. The reality underneath the rankings: trends in global science -- 3. How do we know what we know? Empirical methodologies for studying college rankings -- 4. Rankings and global knowledge governance -- 5. Theorizing university rankings by comparison: systematic and historical analogies with arts and sports -- 6. Researching and understanding the influence of rankings on higher education institutions: logics, methodologies and conceptualisations -- 7. Benchmarking and zeitgeist: university ranking in post-turbo-globalized neoliberalism (Post-TGNL) -- PART II METHODOLOGICAL TENSIONS -- 8. Multidimensional taxonomy of university rankings -- 9. What do global rankings try to measure? Global university ranking methodologies since 2003 -- 10. Rankings and internationalization: an unfortunate alliance -- 11. Gender equality: a neglected or rhetorical dimension of rankings in higher education? -- 12. University rankings and the third mission of higher education -- 13. How future-proof are world university rankings? The case of the Most Innovative Universities ranking -- PART III INSTITUTIONAL BEHAVIOUR AND THE QUALITY AGENDA -- 14. Quality assurance and rankings: some European lessons -- 15. Higher education system rankings and benchmarking -- 16. Institutional responses to university rankings: a tale of adaptation and cognitive framing -- 17. Reimaging university identities through rankings in Japan: the transformation of national policies and university behaviours in the broader East Asian context.

18. Striving for excellence in the age of rankings: insights from two leading research universities in Latin America -- 19. Conflating perception and purpose: the University of Louisville and the prominence challenge -- 20. Are university rankings still important? Perspectives from Greater China -- PART IV EQUITY, TEACHING AND STUDENT CHOICE -- 21. The implications of rankings for equity in higher education -- 22. University rankings and students' information needs: what is the relation? -- 23. Does teaching count? The relationship between US News & -- World Report faculty resource measures and students' experiences with faculty -- 24. Teaching and learning in university rankings: a critical review and reassessment -- 25. Learning gain in excellence frameworks and rankings -- PART V (GEO)POLITICS OF HIGHER EDUCATION -- 26. Ideas for theorizing the geopolitics of higher education in the global rankings era -- 27. A critical review of the history, achievements and impacts of China's quest for world-class university status -- 28. The geopolitics of university rankings: not all regions and university networks stand equal -- 29. The treacherous adventure of ranking African universities -- 30. Reputational risk rating and the commercialisation of higher education -- 31. University rankings and governance by metrics and algorithms -- 32. The business of university rankings: the case of Times Higher Education -- PART VI POLICY ISSUES AND RESPONSES -- 33. Do rankings promote academic excellence? World-class universities in perspective -- 34. Why research matters: Latin America facing world-class universities and rankings -- 35. Football lessons for universities or how to go beyond ranking -- 36. Are global rankings compatible with higher education policy? -- 37. Global rankings and the dynamics of global convergence and local divergence in higher education.