Factors Influencing the Utilization of Academic Research Results in Evidence-Based Management of Chinese Primary and Secondary Schools

Abstract

Evidence-based management (EBMgt) advocates management and decision-making, based on the best scientific evidence. This has potentially great significance to the reform and development of schools. The purpose of this study is to examine whether school leaders in China use evidence-based management when facing decisions, and what types of evidence school administrators consult during their daily management. The study also seeks to identify any relationship that might exist between the adoption of EBMgt in school management, demographic characteristics, attitudes toward EBMgt and skills in EBMgt. The data were gathered from 355 school leaders. The results show that the academic research results are not widely used in the EBMgt of schools. However, school administrators have a relatively positive attitude toward EBMgt, and there is no significant difference in the attitude of principals and other school administrators. In contrast to the existing studies in the medical field, the results of this study show that there is no significant difference in the application of EBMgt between those with a longer or shorter duration of work experience or with different education levels. The study found that attitudes to and the skills in evidence-based management have a significant, positive impact on the adoption of scientific research results in the EBMgt of schools.