PDF P Are People in Ifugao, Philippines Entrepreneurial?

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International Journal of Management & Entrepreneurship Research, Volume 3, Issue 6, July 2021

Malinao & Hernando, P.No. 208-217 Page 208

ARE PEOPLE IN IFUGAO, PHILIPPINES ENTREPRENEURIAL?

1

Client William M. Malinao &

²

Fernando G. Hernando

1

College of Business and Management, Ifugao State University, Lagawe, Philippines -3600

2

College of Education, Ifugao State University, Lagawe, Philippines – 3600

__________________________________________________________________________

Corresponding Author: Client William M. Malinao

Corresponding Author Email: clint13william@gmail.com

Article Received:20-06-21 Accepted: 30-06-21 Published:15-07-21

Licensing Details: Author retains the right of this article. The article is distributed under the terms of

the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 4.0 License

(http://www.creativecommons.org/licences/by-nc/4.0/), which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the Journal open access page.

___________________________________________________________________________

ABSTRACT

A person's target and option depend on different processes of thought. These cycles of thinking and motives either drive or drag the participant to the creative exercises of entrepreneurship.

This research explored the entrepreneurial traits, reasons, difficulties, and obstacles faced by Ifugao citizens in the Philippines while doing business. The relationship between the above variables and the entrepreneurial aspirations of Ifugao individuals was also calculated. Data were collected from 263 Ifugao, both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries of the programs of various government agencies in the province using snowball sampling through a research questionnaire and semi-structured interview. Using means, the Mann-Whitney U test, and the rank order correlation of Spearman, this paper finds that considering the difficulties and obstacles they face, Ifugao individuals retain the character of becoming an entrepreneur.

Overall, five traits that are common to respondents have been identified. Ifugao people stay inspired, and it motivates them to persevere constantly in carrying out entrepreneurial practices.

Finally, the findings of this study indicate that training, seminars, and workshops, the positive perceived image of entrepreneurs, and motives have a significant impact on the entrepreneurial purpose of Ifugao people, which is essential for entrepreneurial success.

Keywords: Entrepreneurial Characteristics, The Perceived Image on Entrepreneurship, Motivations, Problems and Challenges, Entrepreneurial Intention, Ifugao People, Philippines.

___________________________________________________________________________

OPEN ACCESS

International Journal of Management & Entrepreneurship Research P-ISSN: 2664-3588, E-ISSN: 2664-3596

Volume 3, Issue 6, P.No. 208-217, July 2021 DOI: 10.51594/ijmer.v3i6.239

Fair East Publishers

Journal Homepage: www.fepbl.com/index.php/ijmer

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INTRODUCTION

All United Nations Member States adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable development in 2015. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They recognize the importance of ending poverty and other deprivations for all. Anchored with it is the Ambisyon Natin by 2040 of the Philippines. By 2040, Filipinos enjoy Matatag, Maginhawa at Panatag na Buhay. It contains strategies that fall under three pillars of (1) "Malasakit" (enhancing the social fabric), (2) "Pagbabago" (inequality-reducing transformation), and (3) "Patuloy na Pag-unlad"

(increasing growth potential of the economy). Under Pillar 3 on inequality-reducing transformation, expanding economic Opportunities in Industry and Services through Trabaho at Negosyo is one way to achieve it. Based on the Ambisyon NAtin 2040 or the Philippine Development Plan, part of its long-term vision is that 70% of its countrymen must have a stable job in their own country (National Economic and Development Authority, nd).

The economic driver of any economy is entrepreneurship. It is necessary for economic growth and essential for the owners of businesses to generate and increase profits to provide a return on investment. The backbone of economic growth has been known to be entrepreneurship. It has been well-founded that, to a large extent. The degree of economic development of a country depends on the level of the region's entrepreneurial activities. In many nations, business activity is the key to growth and prosperity (Lv et al., 2011; Dvorsky et al., 2018).

The strategic advantage comes from its creative talents, managerial experience, technological know-how, and adaptability to its managers/owners' internal and external market environments.

It is now well known that entrepreneurs can be created and nurtured through practical entrepreneurship skills learning programs. According to studies, entrepreneurs must have distinctive features, behaviors, and principles to be competitive in the business world that offers an incentive for them and separates them from others. Entrepreneurs have to be devoted to what they do (Bosire & Nzaramba, 2018; Harper, 2003).

Ideally, an entrepreneur is someone who plays a vital role in a country's economic growth. An entrepreneur can be considered a person who has the initiative, capacity, and drive to set up his own business or company and always look for high achievement. They are the social impact catalyst who works for the common good. They are consistent in searching for possibilities, discovering them, and seizing them primarily for economic gains. An entrepreneur is a person who, alone or in partnership with his friends, can articulate and execute the desire, skill, inspiration, and creative ability to create a company or industry of their own. Their goal is to gain profit by manufacturing or selling products or services that are socially beneficial. They are enriched by the intrinsic qualities of adventurism, the ability to face risks, the desire to innovate, and imagination. They are ready to make dynamic improvements in the manufacturing process, incorporate technologies, and find new uses for raw materials (Kanchana et al., 2013).

They are bound to weaknesses as an entrepreneur. That is the more significant reason why an entrepreneur wants to mask their vulnerabilities. And, to overcome these vulnerabilities, primary education and ongoing on-the-job investment are therefore essential for the development of entrepreneurial skills. Entrepreneurship skills are vital to the company's creation and survival (Amatori, 2016). Although there is no blueprint for becoming a successful entrepreneur, entrepreneurial success is correlated with specific skills and characteristics. Skills are, therefore, the knowledge displayed in some circumstances by acts or a particular result.

Skills are gained and improved by training (Zehra, 2016).

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Entrepreneurs need to be self-reliant, concentrated on the opportunity, able to take chances, and need to prosper in competition. According to the research undertaken by renowned authors, the attributes capable of reflecting the entrepreneurial actions of individuals are the need for success, locus of control, risk-taking tendency, tolerance for uncertainty, innovativeness, and self-confidence. In addition, an entrepreneur must be sufficiently creative to produce new technologies or new quality products, develop new manufacturing processes, reach a new market, create a new supply source, or establish a new organization or company structure. An entrepreneur must also have a deep need to do something, who, with their initiative, tries to solve challenges themselves, set expectations, and aim for these goals. As a result, they display higher success in complex tasks and be creative in the sense of searching for fresh and improved ways to enhance their performance (Gurol & Atsan, 2006). Another is that entrepreneurs need not be averse to risk-taking. In general, entrepreneurs are described as being more likely to take chances than other groups (Entrialgo et al., 2000). Therefore, entrepreneurs' personality characteristics concerning entrepreneurial orientation are an integral part of the whole entrepreneurial environment of enterprises (Kozubikova et al., 2018).

A company can prosper if business owners have ample entrepreneurship expertise, interest, and business capabilities. These skills support start-ups and are also beneficial during a company's life cycle. Moreover, the role of an entrepreneur in the growth of an economy cannot be overlooked. Therefore, the growth of an organization depends on the development of the skills necessary to carry out a smooth running of day-to-day business operations. However, the biggest hurdle to economic development is the lack of dynamic entrepreneurs who can introduce markets and processes to promote economic growth (Abdul, 2018).

In the Philippines, universities and colleges have empowered entrepreneurs to expand their educational and civic services to the communities. The social duty of state universities and colleges is to educate communities and improve lives through the transmission of information and technology through instruction, conferences, lectures, and professional advice (Dugyon, 2016). Also, in cooperation with the local government unit, the Department of Trade and Industry is accountable for the country's objective of an internationally competitive and creative industry and services that lead to sustainable development and job creation. Continuous learning to supervision and assistance is then built to keep the company competitive both locally and internationally. Ifugao State University and the Department of Trade and Industry, in collaboration with the Local Government Unit of Lagawe, with their extension programs and services, are making efforts to promote and track programs empowering local entrepreneurs and businesses town.

A current competitiveness indicator framework in the Philippines is used to shape the structure

behind the Index. It aims to measure how many final products can be produced using a limited

number of inputs. Local economic growth and competitiveness at regional, national and global

levels are incorporated into the system. Economic Dynamism as part of its pillar is generally

correlated with activities that stabilize market and industry growth and increase jobs. It is a

concrete representation of productivity since it compares the production of the local economy

to the resources available in the region. In terms of concept, Dynamism would be channeled

into a blend of entrepreneurial spirit and financial institutions. Localities are understood to be

the hubs of economic activity. It can be noted that when grouped according to 3

^rd

and 4

^th

municipality classification, the municipality of Lagawe ranked 369

^th

, 16

^th

, 182

^nd

on local

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economic growth in the year 2018, 2019, 2020, respectively (Cities and Municipalities Index, 2020).

Lagawe, Ifugao, known as Burnay, is a fourth-class municipality and the capital of Ifugao Province in the Cordillera Administrative Region. Lagawe, Ifugao, with God-loving and inspired citizenship, is working for a better business hub in Cordillera, Philippines, living in an environmentally balanced and prosperous environment, improving and cultivating a sensitive and resilient business community under the stewardship of local governance. Nevertheless, for Ifugao Chapter, there are only 43 companies from the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In Lagawe, Ifugao, there is a business or market day transaction (Saturday, Tuesday, and Thursday). It shows that enterprises in the municipality are still on the road to growth (See, 2015).

In the study conducted by Dugyon (2016), extension program beneficiaries have modest participation. While attempts are carried out, the continuity of businesses in the municipality is still fading. Given the Government's interventions with its member institutions, the new venture's failure rate should not be overlooked. Although programs to mitigate ignorance is running a company, entrepreneurs still face growth obstacles. Despite the efforts made, the number of failed businesses has not decreased (Fong, 2018). Therefore, this research seeks to uncover the reasons behind the city's limited business transactions.

Furthermore, this research aimed to assess the entrepreneurial side of Ifugao individuals.

Specifically, this study seeks to uncover the entrepreneurial characteristics, motives, problems, and challenges, the perceived image of entrepreneurs, and the business intentions of Ifugao individuals. Behind the small number of entrepreneurs in Lagawe, Ifugao, this research could dig deeper into the root cause. It will be a good starting point to determine if they are actually in the field of business. Furthermore, this research would make it possible for the government agencies to formulate programs to be extended to the entrepreneurs. Finally, in the research literature, the existence of Ifugao people on entrepreneurship is considered a missing item, which is a field that has not yet been explored. The conduct of this study is, therefore, considered essential.

METHODOLOGY

Using the mixed approach, both quantitative and qualitative, was more effective with the subjects of the paper. Among the styles of Quantitative Research Design, three were applied to examine the goals and address the hypotheses: Descriptive, Comparative, and Correlational Research. And to verify the information obtained in the descriptive process, qualitative design was used to generate more detailed and practical data through personal interviews. The investigator, therefore, used a questionnaire and a semi-structured interview.

Non-beneficiaries and recipients of DTI/LGU/IFSU Extension programs for 2019 were

respondents to the report. DTI was not, however, able to supply the data requested last

September 21, 2019. In this analysis, a snowball sampling design was used to assess the

unknown population size. The researcher used a modified questionnaire in a close-ended form

using the 4-point Likert scale to collect relevant data for defined research problems, given the

number of populations covered under this analysis. The questionnaire developed was tested for

validity and reliability. Two sets of questionnaires were prepared during this review. For the

non-beneficiaries, one was for the beneficiaries of the 2019 DTI/LGU/IFSU Extension

programs. The instrument consisted of multiple parts responding to the study's problems. The

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research instrument test was performed as a preliminary test with entrepreneurs from Kiangan and Lamut, Ifugao, for the final version of the questionnaire. Via Cronbach alpha, the reliability test was determined. The outcome is demonstrated below:

Table 1

Cronbach Value of Six Attributes about the Perceptions of Entrepreneurs in Lagawe, Ifugao, Philippines

Attributes Cronbach Alpha Remarks Entrepreneurial Characteristics .92 Excellent Perceived image on Entrepreneurship .71 Good

Motivations .93 Excellent

Barriers in pursuing business .91 Excellent

Challenges .90 Excellent

Entrepreneurial Intent .91 Excellent

Except in section B, all of the 121 metrics composed of six attributes have outstanding findings on internal consistency. Due to a high Cronbach value, which suggests that specific metrics are redundant, some elements have been excluded. Jozsa and Morgan (2017) noted that the development of scales is not harmed by duplicated items, although most writers say that the scale needs to be shortened or certain items excluded with very high alpha. While many writers preferred a maximum alpha of .90, some authors propose .91-.94 depending on the field of research. In this analysis, Cronbach alpha parameters of .91-.93 used by Nilsson et al. (2017) were used to prevent repetition and omission of several objects. Means, the Mann-Whitney U test, and Spearman's rank-order correlation were used in this study through the help of SPSS.

Figure 1. Schematic diagram of operational framework

The variables in the study are entrepreneurial characteristics (need for achievement, locus of control, risk-taking propensity, tolerance for ambiguity, innovativeness), motivations, the perceived image of entrepreneurs, problems and challenges, training, seminars, and are considered independent variables while Entrepreneurial intention as the dependent variable.

Fig. 1 displays the relationship between the variables.

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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Entrepreneurial Characteristics, Perceived Image, Motivations, Problems, and Challenges

Table 2

Descriptive Statistics

Indicators Mean Descriptive Interpretation

Entrepreneurial Characteristics 2.96 Agree

Perceived Image on Entrepreneurs 2.86 Agree

Motivations 2.98 Agree

Barriers in Doing Business (Non-Beneficiary) 2.74 Agree

Challenges Encountered (beneficiary) 2.98 Agree

Training, Seminars, and Workshops (Beneficiaries) 3.02 Agree

Results from the study assert that people in Ifugao possesses the characteristics to be a good entrepreneur. Results reveal that Ifugao individuals think their skills/competencies would help them to operate an organization effectively. Respondents claimed that it is essential to have a creative mind, pursue good opportunities from unsatisfied needs. Proper preparation and hard work are necessary to be efficient. Ifugao individuals have unique ideas and turn these concepts into tangible goods and services that the market will access. They view themselves as risk- takers, but the number of rivals in the market quickly discourages them. Findings show that respondents believe that ignorance, laziness, and failure to enhance skills/competencies are sources of organizational misfortunes.

Ifugao People's perceived images on entrepreneurship are all perfect except that entrepreneurs are stressed people who are constantly under struggle. Therefore, it can be construed that the respondents hold a sturdy perception of the image they want to become.

Autonomy and flexibility, wealth creation, a sense of achievement, and ambition are the primary reasons behind people in the Ifugao venture and wanted to pursue business.

No definite plan, stiff market competition, creating a compelling product, pricing, promotional strategies, good location, distribution channels, supply chain, the low purchasing power of consumers, partnership, and networking, technological advancement, greater distances to markets and areas of production and additional capital for expansion are the significant challenges that the respondents or beneficiaries of different extension programs of the various government agencies have identified.

Non-beneficiaries are still afraid of venturing into business because it is excessively risky. They are scared to fail because they don't have enough knowledge and skills to run a business. More so, the lack of support from relatives, experts, and the Government makes them hesitant to start their business. The difficulty of processing business permits and enough capital are the identified barriers to start-up.

Also, respondents who are beneficiaries of various government programs firmly claim that training, seminars, and workshops helped them manage their business. However, as they grow their business and expand their markets, problems and challenges are becoming more complex than before.

The outstanding idea for an entrepreneur is a solid focal point for discussion: they are

responsible individuals who can be role models for young people. They are the wealthy

individuals who live extravagantly, and they are the noble individuals who play a critical role

in society. As eminent scholars have already said, role models play an influential role in

developing human attitudes. Therefore, it is plausibly argued that these ideas, values, and

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perceptions of these prospective entrepreneurs are essential factors in developing one's entrepreneurial character, potential career attitude, and entrepreneurial intentions.

Socialization can be seen to have a significant effect and influence on the entrepreneurial aspirations of the respondents. An individual may be socialized formally and informally at home, at school, and in other spheres of interaction. The most significant influences influencing early socialization were family history, parental role-modeling, formal schooling, and education, thus developing an attitude towards entrepreneurship.

In the mainstream, the mindset regarding the probability of action and subjective assessment of the consequences and rewards of that outcome affect behavioral intentions.

The Theory of Expected Actions describes this phenomenon better. Although one's decision to become an entrepreneur may be believed to be premeditated by his desire to do so, this intention is only formulated soon before the final decision is made in most situations.

Mann- Whitney U Test on Significant Differences Table 3

Significant Differences in Entrepreneurial Characteristics Perceive Image on Entrepreneurship, Motivations, Entrepreneurial Intent of People in Ifugao when Group according to Beneficiary/Non-Beneficiary.

Category

Mean Rank

Mann- Whitney U

Std. Test Statistic

Asymptotic Sig.

(2-sided test) Remarks Entrepreneurial

Characteristics

Beneficiary 42.735 480.500 -0.922 0.357 Not Sig.

Non- Beneficiary

39.250

Perceived Image Beneficiary 37.853 563.500 0.544 0.587 Not Sig.

Non- Beneficiary

40.589

Motivations Beneficiary 44.088 457.500 -1.052 0.293 Not Sig.

Non- Beneficiary

38.879 Entrepreneurial

Intent

Beneficiary 45.118 440.000 -1.223 0.222 Not Sig.

Non- Beneficiary

38.597

Since the decision to reject the null hypothesis is violated, it is therefore concluded that the perception of beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries in Lagawe, Ifugao, Philippines do not differ in terms of entrepreneurial characteristics, perceived image, motivations, and entrepreneurial intent.

Spearman’s Rho Test on Significant Relationships Table 4

Significant Relationship between Variables

Variables Sig (2-

tailed)

Correlation Coefficient

Interpretation (Correlation)

Decision Entrepreneurial

Characteristics

Entrepreneurial Intent

.140 .167 Insignificant Accept Ho Entrepreneurial

Characteristics

Perceived Image .000 .40** Moderate

Positive

Reject Ho Perceived Image Entrepreneurial

Intent

.011 .29* Low Positive Reject

Ho

Perceived Image Motivations .000 .39** Moderate

Positive

Reject Ho

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Motivations Entrepreneurial Intent

.044 .28* Low Positive Reject

Ho Challenges/Barriers Entrepreneurial

Intent

.125 .147 Insignificant Accept Ho Trainings, Seminars and

Workshops

Entrepreneurial Characteristics

.000 .45** Moderate

Positive

Reject Ho Trainings, Seminars and

Workshops

Entrepreneurial Intent

.000 .42** Moderate

Positive

Reject Ho

**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).

The result indicates that there is no correlation between entrepreneurial characteristics and intent. However, there is sufficient evidence to suggest a weak relationship between perceived image and entrepreneurial intention. It is also the same on the relationship between motivation and intent. Lastly, training, seminars, and workshops initiated by the different government agencies are significantly correlated to the Ifugao people's entrepreneurial characteristics and intentions to do business.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

Generally, this study assesses whether people in Ifugao are entrepreneurially inclined by determining their entrepreneurial characteristics, motivations, problems, challenges, and perceived image on entrepreneurship. Also, this paper establishes the relationship between entrepreneurial factors, causes, the perceived image of entrepreneurs, training, seminars, and workshops on entrepreneurial intent among people in Lagawe, Ifugao, Philippines, using Spearman's Rho Test. Based on the findings, the following are concluded: Ifugao people possess the characteristics to be a good entrepreneur, they are highly motivated, and they see entrepreneurs positively. Lastly, the perceived image of entrepreneurs, motivations, training, seminars, and workshops is significantly correlated to Ifugao people's intentions to be an entrepreneur.

Hence, this paper recommends that government agencies pay particular attention to positively

influencing Ifugao's attitudes towards entrepreneurial activity and increasing their self-efficacy

for creating a new firm. Business mind setting and business start-up should be the starting point

of extension programs of the Government and the university. In building, upgrading, and

expanding infrastructural facilities such as rural highways to facilitate the transport of products,

the Government and the private sector could join hands. The majority of the respondents are

still selling, promoting and persuading, developing ideas, managing, organizing, leading and

captaining, computing, planning. Hence, different government agencies should strengthen

training and workshops on business planning, management, marketing, and technology

integration. Regular monitoring and impact assessments are needed to ensure the success of

businesses assisted by the different government agencies. The Government must guarantee

access to funds for small and midsize enterprises by offering government subsidies and support

through the development of a credit guarantee system, the settlement of collateral problems,

and the provision of start-up processing and bureaucracy for young SMEs and local raw

materials suppliers. The Government should continue to subsidize the establishment of a

standardized start-up and improve the growth capacity of businesses within the municipality.

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Acknowledgments

Individuals who gave general assistance, helpful encouragement, and other contributions toward completing this study have our most gratitude and admiration. But, above all, we thank our Almighty God for leading, protecting, and providing us with all wisdom and understanding.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors have declared no conflict of interest.

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Striving to publish in international journals: A case study of a small university in rural Philippines

Dizon Tayaban & Rosemary O’Leary

To cite this article: Dizon Tayaban & Rosemary O’Leary (2022): Striving to publish in international journals: A case study of a small university in rural Philippines, Journal of Public Affairs Education, DOI: 10.1080/15236803.2022.2093602

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Striving to publish in international journals: A case study of a small university in rural Philippines

Dizon Tayaban^aand Rosemary O’Leary ^b

aIfugao State University-Lagawe;^bUniversity of Kansas

ABSTRACT

This article analyzes a recent Peace Corps Response project led jointly by a Filipino scholar and a U.S. scholar at a rural university in the Philippines with the goal of coaching faculty who seek to make it in the world of international scholarly research and publishing. The articlefirst highlights ten major challenges including lack of internet, university bureaucracy, limited time, lack of training, clashing incentives, and lack of knowledge about professional opportunities. Ideas for leveling the playing field for scholars around the world are pre- sented, including: Increased internet access, open access to the scholarly literature, streamlined university processes, more in-country research funding opportunities, individualized research consultations, group seminars offered by national and international professional organizations, enhanced graduate education on research process and methods, grant and fellowship opportunities that reach beyond elite institutions, funds to attend international conferences, and additional scholarly networking opportunities.

KEYWORDS Faculty research and publishing

Many scholars and practitioners around the world decry what is often called a“Western centric”(Roberts,2020) or“U.S. centric”domination of scholarly journals (Hou et al.,2011;

Perry,2016). Others lament what they call a“North-South”divide in the academic literature (Gulrajani & Moloney,2012). What is typically meant by these researchers is that in most academic disciplines there are too few research articles from scholars with roots in Southeast and Central Asia, Latin America, North Africa and the Middle East, and too many from the United States and Europe.

We think it is safe to say that we in the academy want scholars from around the world to be successful at research and publishing. Whether faculty publish in research journals, for example, is part of the accreditation review of many organizations. We also acknowledge that in order to be fully informed, inclusive, scholars doing the best research possible, we need data and knowledge from a plethora of perspectives–especially from scholars in non- Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. As Bertelli et al. (2020) put it,“new data on the developing world can challenge and extend theories with new arguments that can inform”research around the world.

To paraphrase Hawk (2016, pp. xvi–xvii), the lack of research published in our journals by colleagues in economically developing countries “is not a victimless crime.” Just as journalism scholars like Hawk have documented that more accurate news about Africa is catalyzed when the reporting comes directly from African journalists living in African

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countries, so the same might be said about research situated in non-OECD countries.

Simply put, based on Hawk’s research, there is a danger that well-meaning research set in economically developing countries done solely by Westerners will yield Western biases and lenses, inaccurate comparisons with Western phenomenon, distorted images, and leave out crucial variables and analyses.

The recommendations of most who seek to magnify the voices of scholars from non- OECD countries nearly always include inviting and encouraging scholars from the developing world to submit their research articles to the best journals (Ashley et al., 2021).

Despite these eﬀorts, research from scholars in economically developing countries regrettably often fails to appear in international journals. There are many hypothesized reasons for this void, including lack of research training, diﬀerent linguistic or methodological traditions, constraints on resources, and minimal research time (Bertelli et al., 2020;

Fitzpatrick et al.,2011).

This article is an analytical case study (Campbell, 1975; Merriam, 1998; Stake, 1995;

Yin, 2017) of the experiences of faculty at a rural university in a remote area of the Philippines seeking to make it in the world of international research and publishing.

The literature on faculty research eﬀorts in the Philippines is sparse and focuses mainly on Manila-based universities. One researcher, for example, examined research productivity among Filipino faculty in the ﬁelds of education and psychology and concluded that beginning in the 1990s the Philippines began to lag in research productivity compared to Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia. This researcher concluded that a handful of Philippine scholars published primarily in a few low impact journals (Vinluan, 2012). Another researcher followed with a study based on input from 173 faculty and concluded that the seven most challenging factors at three universities in metro Manila that prevented faculty from publishing included “limited time, lack of training on publication, fear of rejection, lack of interest, faculty laziness, limited funds, and lack of institutional support” (Wa-Mbaleka, 2015, p. 121). Building on this study, but shifting the focus to best practices for building a research culture (also at three universities in metro Manila), other researchers articulated the importance of four variables including: a university president as well as deans and research directors dedicated to research, the hiring of faculty with MAs and PhDs, internal policies that encourage and reward research, and helping faculty realize the impact of doing research both on their careers and on society as a whole (Quitoras & Abuso, 2021). Yet none of these articles examine the same phenomena at rural universities.

This article seeks to address this void in the literature.

Our case begins in 2019 when, in an eﬀort to assist their faculty in jump-starting their research leading to scholarly journal articles, Ifugao State University (IFSU)-Lagawe campus ran a project through the US Peace Corps Response program that brought a U.S. public administration researcher to campus for six months as a qualitative research specialist.

(Peace Corps Response places professionals in short term volunteer assignments through- out the world when invited by communities.) One of the authors of this article is that U.S. scholar. The other author of this article is the IFSU faculty member who wrote the proposal for the Peace Corps project while serving as Dean of the IFSU Department of Education and worked side-by-side with the U.S. professor as their oﬃcial“counterpart.”

2 D. TAYABAN AND R. O’LEARY

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IFSU is a small six-campus university in northern Philippines reached after a 10 hour bus ride from Manila. The total number of students across six campuses today is around 9000. IFSU oﬀers liberal arts and sciences courses as well as courses in education, business, engineering, health sciences, computing sciences, agriculture science and criminal justice.

The IFSU-Lagawe campus, with approximately 1,300 students, was ﬁrst an art and trade high school. After several permutations, it joined the main campus in 1999 and many of the high school teachers were made college teachers. The campus still has some trade school faculty as well as courses focused on skills development such as industrial technology (construction technology, automotive technology, garments technology, and electrical technology). Hence, the tradition and culture on campus his- torically have not encouraged scholarly research. Further, many of the faculty do not have PhDs; some do not have master’s degrees. Of those faculty who went to graduate school, many reported to us that they feel they were not trained adequately in research processes and methods.

Most IFSU faculty only recently have been asked by the university to do publishable research with the focus being publishing in Scopus Index journals. Only 10 faculty (out of about 400) in the entire six-campus system published in approved Scopus Index journals in 2020; 4 of these were on the Lagawe campus. The Scopus Index describes itself as a “source-neutral abstract and citation database curated by independent subject-matter experts” (https://www.elsevier.com/solutions/scopus/how-scopus- works/tip-sheets-librarians#::text=Scopus%20is%20a%20source%2Dneutral,Scopus%

20%7C%20Curated.) When a journal applies to be on the Scopus Index it is reviewed by experts who focus on journal policy, the quality of content, the journal standing, regular publication, and online availability.

The initial job description of the U.S. public administration scholar was clear: Lead training sessions for faculty and students focusing on how to do qualitative research and consult with them one-on-one with the goal of publication in Scopus Indexed journals.

During the eight workshops and numerous additional lectures and private consultations offered in a six month period, what seemed like a straightforward job turned out to be extraordinarily complex because of cultural, educational, motivational, and resource challenges. When we debriefed at the end of the six month project, we realized that this “experiment” is a case study that reflects many of the day-to-day, “real world” challenges of scholars on rural campuses in non-OECD countries. In this article we present ten challenges every IFSU researcher faced that impeded their research and publishing success. We close with some ideas to level the playing field for scholars around the world.

We oﬀer this analysis to stimulate knowledge and understanding. We are in no way berating our IFSU peers or the university at which we worked (and one of us still works). To the contrary, we support the university goal of increasing scholarly publications by faculty in Scopus Indexed journals. Further, we are in awe of the grit and determination to do quality research and to publish in international journals exhibited by our IFSU colleagues.

We seek only to use the knowledge gleaned from our Peace Corps Response project to catalyze more scholarly publications by similarly situated faculty around the world.

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This study is signiﬁcant because few have analyzed the research environment of aca- demics at a rural university in an economically developing country as participant-observers.

Our partnership as Filipino and U.S. scholars allowed us to compare and contrast“the water in which we swim”research-wise. Sources of data, both quantitative and qualitative, include the coauthors’personal experiences within the IFSU system, interviews with IFSU colleagues who participated in our project, interviews with IFSU colleagues who did not participate in our project, and archival materials including university and campus formal rules concerning research.

Ten challenges to research and publishing

Our Peace Corps project originally was intended to teach qualitative methods to self- selected IFSU faculty. After initial meetings and consultations with faculty participants, it became apparent that there was a larger need for coaching on basic research matters including how to choose a research topic, the importance of theory, how to do a literature review, how to collect data, how to analyze data, how to write a journal article, how to select an appropriate journal to which to send one’s article, and how to navigate the international journal peer review process. Further, embedded institutional challenges including an overbearing university research bureaucracy hindered faculty progress at nearly every step. Exacerbating these problems were infrastructure issues including lack of internet. The ten major challenges that emerged illuminate the diﬃculties some scholars from rural universities in non-OECD countries may face in trying to compete for publication on a global scale.

Challenge #1: Bureaucratic constraints. One of the most signiﬁcant problems holding back faculty at the site of our project from publishing is unnecessary bureaucratic constraints imposed by their own university system. Most faculty in OECD countries have the freedom to develop any research topic they desire within their area of expertise, with “intellectual freedom” often cited to support such independence. In all of these settings, approval from the university is typically needed only when human subjects or ethical review is necessitated, or if the scholar applies for university funding.

Not so for IFSU faculty. Figure 1 shows the lengthy 17-step process that must be followed to initiate a research project at the university. It begins when the researcher must write a proposal for the research project that, first, is reviewed by the college research coordinator or campus chairperson for research and development (R&D). If approved, the proposal is signed by that coordinator or chairperson and submitted to the department dean who must sign and recommend the proposal. If approved by the dean, the research proposal is sent to the campus director who will also sign and recommend the proposal. The campus director’s signature is a recommendation to the director for R&D for the six-campus system that the research be considered for approval. But before it reaches the director for R&D, it must first pass through the R&D staff who check it for proper “format.” If the format is approved, the research proposal is submitted to the director for R&D whose job is to analyze the“significance of the study.”

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IFSU rules state that the research must be“in line with the university’s R&D priorities”

(IFSU Code 4.1.4.1.1). If it is decided that the research is in line with the university’s priorities, it is then accepted for presentation to a review board composed of invited

“experts” from other universities and agencies that may or may not include experts on the subject of the proposal during the scheduled annual “Agency In-house Review”The review board then writes a report to the R&D oﬃce that (1) recommends approval with or without funding, (2) recommends disapproval, (3) requires changes in the research proposal, or (4) a combination of these options. A typical example is approval with no funding and mandated research design changes.

Figure 1.Approval and conduct of“New Researches”. An excerpt from the IFSU Code. This process must be followed for all faculty research. Source: IFSU Code (Updated Aug. 2016), Part III, Chapter 4, p. 121.

(Ifugao State University (IFSU),2016)

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If a research proposal survives the review board’s and R&D oﬃce’s scrutiny and the faculty member is willing to accept approval without funding and make the directed changes to their research design, there is a new check to insure that the faculty member actually made all the mandated changes. If the check is positive, the research proposal is then sent back to the oﬃce of the Research Director for examination (IFSU Code 4.1.4.1.3).

At this point, some research proposals are merged with other research proposals whether the faculty researchers know each other or not. Faculty typically have no say in such mergers which sometimes change the original research proposal considerably. If a faculty member is uncomfortable with the forced merger or with the newly imposed co-researcher, they often give up. Alternatively, they may revise the proposal for the following year, starting over again at step one.

The few research proposals that survive at this point in the 17-step process are then forwarded to the R&D Oﬃce for the preparation of a contract between the researcher(s) and the university. The contract is signed by the university president and witnessed by the Vice President for Research and Development, Extension and Training; the Director for Human Resource and Development; and the Director for Finance. The signed contract is then sent to the university chief administrative oﬃcer for notarization by a lawyer and returned to the R&D personnel. Finally, a copy is given to the researcher as a “go signal” to conduct the research.

Needless to say, this extraordinarily complex and burdensome 17-step process often quashes some highly creative research ideas. It often serves as a roadblock to faculty research and publication in peer reviewed scholarly journals. Moreover, faculty who publish in Scopus Index journals on their own withoutﬁrst going through this university process to obtain pre-approval are ineligible for annual IFSU monetary awards and prizes that the university gives to faculty who publish (50,000 Pesos or $941.09 US dollars).

Challenge #2: Educational culture. Research is a highly creative endeavor. Yet as outlined above, IFSU faculty’s creative choice of research topic is highly regulated – even sup- pressed–during the mandated 17-step process that must be followed to obtain permission to proceed. It is not unusual for a reviewing research committee to tell a researcher that the topic of their research is not appropriate, nor is it unusual for a reviewing research committee to tell a researcher that their methodology does not conform to their norms.

During high school and college, Filipino public school students generally are taught one way to do research, a traditional logic model focusing on an“inputs→activities→output.” Logic models typically are visual descriptions, based on hypotheses, of the chain of causes and eﬀects leading to an outcome (Renger & Titcomb,2002). Of course, there is nothing wrong with this model of research. It is tried, true and very useful under a variety of circumstances.

The problem is that the model is not universally applicable or useful for all types of research. Grounded theory research (Glaser & Strauss, 2017), for example, involves the construction of hypotheses and theories after the collection and analysis of data and is a well-respected methodology typically (but not exclusively) used in qualitative research.

This approach to research often does not beneﬁt from the“inputs→activities→outputs”

model. Similarly, participatory research and inquiry that studies interventions and action for social transformation (Burns et al., 2021) typically does not beneﬁt from the “input- s→activities→outputs”model. These are only two of many diﬀerent, highly respected, ways

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to do research that do not follow the“inputs→activities→outputs”model. Unfortunately, research processes and methodologies that do not conform to the“inputs→activities→outputs”model typically are rejected in the IFSU 17-step review process.

Challenge #3: Background training. Even IFSU faculty with PhDs often have not been taught research process and methods beyond the“inputs→activities→outputs”model and basic statistics. Compounding this challenge is the fact that many hire statisticians to assist in their analysis of data, or even to do all of their data analysis. Further, faculty have limited experience in doing literature reviews and especiallyﬁnding and explaining the gap in the literature they seek toﬁll, tying that gap to a theoretical lens and their research design. In addition, many faculty regrettably have been taught that it is acceptable to cut and paste from other scholars’published works, as long as they cite those scholars in their biblio- graphy, contrary to basic citation rules designed to avoid plagiarism.

Moreover, most IFSU faculty report that they do not know how to construct a scholarly article including knowledge of the parts of such articles. This lack of knowledge greatly impedes both the research and publication process. As one IFSU-Lagawe faculty member with a PhD phrased it,“I know there are several things to research . . . [in my]ﬁeld . . . but I actually don’t know how to put it in writing. Our post graduate studies on research did not teach us how [to do this].”

Challenge #4: Technological constraints. During the 2019–2020 six-month project, partici- pating IFSU faculty, staﬀ, and students had university-provided internet at most 10% of the work week, averaging less than 1 hour per day, often with long stretches of many days (sometimes weeks) without internet. Internet access through personal cell phones paid for by individual faculty was deemed too costly by most participants and only a few had internet at home. While thrilled to learn about “new” resources such as Google Scholar and Research Gate, without internet, participants could not access these or other online sources to assist with literature reviews. Infotrac was available at the modest library but was also contingent on internet access and was out of date. Without these resources it was often impossible to construct a rigorous literature review, which often led to diﬃculties in writing research designs.

Challenge #5: Paywalls and lack of open access. During the rare occurrence that faculty had internet access, they would usually be stopped by pay walls restricting access to content. The university did not have funds to purchase access to these articles. The exception was the rare open access article. Unlike similarly situated universities in the U.S. with small budgets, there was no “interlibrary loan” for journal articles. This added to the diﬃculty in con- structing complete literature reviews.

Challenge #6: Contrary (clashing) incentives resulting in loss of interest in research. IFSU faculty have clashing incentives, and research can easily end up at the bottom of the list of priorities. Heavy teaching and service loads leave little time for research. Some have second jobs because of low pay. The typical IFSU faculty member teaches 6–7 subjects per semester, for a total of 12–14 courses per academic year. A faculty member who is not working on an approved research project normally will teach 18 hours a week. In addition, the faculty are expected to do considerable extension work as well as additional assignments that can be

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added by university administrators at any time. In our interviews with faculty who did not participate in the research training sessions, the number one reason for nonparticipation was lack of time.“I have too much work to do”said one new faculty member.“I have too much pressure [already]” said another faculty member. “I don’t have time for research”

a third faculty member told us. At the same time, the aspiration to be promoted as well as to obtain a raise to a higher pay grade both served as a positive incentives to do research.

Challenge #7: Lack of knowledge concerning opportunities for funding as well as special issues of journals, Fulbright scholar awards, and conferences. Academic conferences–both domes- tic and international–are a major way to receive feedback on one’s research and to move research ideas forward. Yet IFSU faculty have little if any funds for conference travel and in fact often had no knowledge of conference opportunities outside their own province.

National conferences were often unknown and international conferences were not even a dream.

Further, most international announcements of external funding opportunities as well as invitations to participate in special issues of journals, conferences, and research opportunities are universally made through e-mail. However, IFSU faculty often do not have university e-mail addresses (or regular access to internet as mentioned above). The vast majority had never heard of Fulbright or other organizations that might open doors for them to do research abroad. When told of such opportunities there was great reluctance to travel to another country given perceived diﬀerences in cultures (including food) as well as family obligations. As one participant put it,“[My biggest reluctance comes from] fear for ﬁnancial stability . . . [because I am] the breadwinner with small children at home and the presence of sickly or old members of the family to take care of.”

Challenge #8: Diﬃculty obtaining data. Many academic researchers around the world have wide-spread access to government data. Nearly all but the most sensitive government documents in New Zealand, for example, are accessible online. Similarly, Denmark has an“open data”policy that generously provides data and research funds to faculty. Much of these data, although not perfect, have been scrutinized and veriﬁed.

According to Bertelli et al. (2020, p. 736), however,“[w]here administrative data . . . [are]

available in developing country settings, it is often imprecise, incomplete, or inaccurate.

There may be an inability simply to trust information that formal channels provide.”Not only is this the case for IFSU researchers, but they typically do not have access even to distrusted data. Hence individual researchers must personally collect most data when possible.

Challenge #9: Skepticism about the“real world” beneﬁts of academic research. Because so many IFSU faculty are not trained in research, some are skeptical about the value of research, supporting the conclusions of Quitoras and Abuso (2021). There are historical reasons for this. As mentioned previously, IFSU-Lagawe wasﬁrst a high school and then a trade school for technicians and manual or skilled workers. It only joined the university system 22 years ago. The tradition on campus generally does not encourage scholarly research. Most faculty have tenure and lead happy lives. They will not lose their jobs if

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they do not do research, so why should they? Add to this the onerous 17-step process that must be followed to gain approval for a research proposal and there ends up being a culture of limited research on campus.

Challenge #10: Personal and cultural constraints on asking for research help. One signiﬁcant lesson learned by the authors of this article is that the faculty we worked with in rural Philippines were reluctant to speak up at, and sometimes even attend, research workshops.

Rather, they expressed a preference for one-on-one consultation with someone with a disciplinary background similar to theirs. There are several reasons for this. One participant expressed“shame”at her lack of knowledge of research process and methods. Others were silent out of politeness and respect for the teacher and other participants. Still others were reluctant to participate, later confessing to a fear of rejection should they decide to send their scholarly article to a journal for consideration. Thisﬁnding echoes one of Wa- Mbaleka (2015) conclusions while examining faculty productivity at three Manila-based universities.

Changing the system to level the playingfield for scholars around the world Looking at the IFSU experience as an illustration of the challenges of some faculty seeking to make it in the world of international research and publishing, we offer a list of needs that, if met, will be giant steps forward in leveling the playingfield for these scholars. Based on our study, we offer 10 things needed to begin to equalize the research environment that we think can and should be provided by governments, private foundations, and scholarly associations:

Need #1: Internet access. It is impossible for scholars around the world to succeed in the competitive journal publishing world if they cannot construct a complete literature review.

In order to build comprehensive literature reviews, internet access is required. Great strides have been made in providing internet access to rural areas of non-OECD countries to the point where“[a]ccess to aﬀordable Internet is increasingly a development priority, and even considered a basic right,” yet “a majority of the world’s population, most of who are in developing nations, remain unconnected” (Sambuli, 2016, p. 61). In October 2021, the ManilaTimespublished the results of an Ulat ng Bayan newscast poll concluding that“63%

of the country’s adult population has access to the internet, with the National Capital Region recording 84%, the rest of Luzon at 65%, the Visayas with 62%, and Mindanao with 47%”(Cruz,2021). Internet access at IFSU-Lagawe has improved since 2019, but still suﬀers from brownouts, slow-speed, and high cost. Aﬀordable internet for scholars around the world is a must.

Need #2: Open access to the scholarly literature. Once scholars have internet service, they need access to relevant scholarly materials. One option that budget constrained universities in the U.S. have tried is inter-library “loan” of journal articles from one university to another. In reality, the“borrowing”university pays a modest fee to the“lending”university to acquire the needed article. This idea has potential beneﬁts for scholars in the developing world, but funds are needed for the purchase of the“loaned”articles.

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Another option is open access. Open access “refers to freely available, digital, online information. Open access scholarly literature is available without charge and often carries less restrictive copyright and licensing barriers than traditionally published works, for both the users and the authors” (Cornell University Library, https://guides.library.cor nell.edu/openaccess. While more journal articles are “open access” today than ever before, it often remains prohibitively expensive, with open access purchase for a single article by authors typically ranging from $3,500 for public administration journals to over $11,000 for the journalNature (Nature,2020). Still, most scholars see open access as the future of academic publishing. While we are just beginning to scratch the surface of open access, its potential to level the playing ﬁeld for scholars around the world is signiﬁcant.

Need #3: Streamlined university processes. Because this is a single case study, we do not know how wide-spread the cumbersome and bureaucratic process to obtain approval to proceed with research proﬁled in this article is. However, a colleague and former Dean from the University of the Philippines (UP) in Manila–theﬂagship university in the country–told us that“we do not have the tedious process such as that at Ifugao State University.”In other words, the IFSU procedure is far more restrictive than the processes UP faculty must follow.

And without a doubt the IFSU process is more rigid and inﬂexible than is seen at most universities in OECD countries. At times the 17-step process appears to be almost punitive, preventing creative research rather than catalyzing it. If scholars on rural campuses in non- OECD countries are to be empowered to do quality research that will lead to publication, they need support and encouragement built into their own university systems, as recom- mended by Wa-Mbaleka (2015), not roadblocks and hurdles.

Need #4: More in-country funding opportunities. Most, but not all, scholarly research entails monetary expenses. At IFSU, for example, faculty often need funds to travel to remote sites to gather data. Yet the total budget for all faculty research on the IFSU-Lagawe campus remains an estimated $4,000 USD per year (around 210,000 Philippine pesos) with an additional $4,000 USD for an entire campus to be divided up among faculty who do research with students. Only a few faculty receive a portion of that funding. More in- country funding opportunities are needed to jump-start faculty research.

Need #5: Individualized research consultations. As mentioned previously, a primary lesson learned from our Peace Corps Response project is that the Filipino faculty on this remote campus preferred one-on-one research consultations over group workshops. This desire was expressed both by faculty who did and did not attend the weekly workshops with rationale ranging from hesitancy to bother the group with one’s personal research challenges, to not knowing enough about research to ask a question, to feeling intimidated by the journal publishing process. Once campuses obtain reliable internet, we hope this need might be addressed by volunteer research coaches from around the world. What a great project this could be for Network of Schools of Public Policy, Aﬀairs, and Administration (NASPAA), for example, with thousands of faculty aﬃliates at hundreds of universities.

Conversely, perhaps faculty experts from developing countries could oﬀer expert advice and cultural interpretations through one-on-one internet discussions to their peers around the world.

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Need #6: Group seminars. Despite the articulated preference for individualized consultations voiced by the faculty with whom we worked in the Philippines, we still see a need for group seminars. There are some topics that are universal and may very well beneﬁt from participation by a diverse group with diﬀering perspectives in the same discussion at the same time. One example is basic citation methods to avoid plagiarism. Another example is the journal publication process, including how to select a journal and how to construct a scholarly article. The Public Management Research Association, through the editors of its two journals, has done an excellent job of presenting“how to publish” seminars to PhD students at its international conferences and also virtually, for example. Perhaps it is time to

“take the show on the road”and share this and other insightful seminars with scholars in rural settings in less developed countries. The American Education Research Association also has done this online through their Virtual Research Learning Center which provides“a virtual space for students, early career and advanced scholars, practitioners, and others in the education research community to receive professional development and research capacity building trainings”(https://www.aera.net/Professional-Opportunities-Funding).

Need #7: Enhanced graduate education on research process and methods. We envision a world where every researcher–regardless of where they are located around the world– has a robust education both in school and outside of school that yields a deep understanding of diverse research processes as well as a variety of rigorous research methods. Perhaps this can be accomplished by“cross-fertilization”of faculty from one university to another where faculty serve as guest lecturers. Perhaps this can be accomplished by more online research courses easily accessible by scholars from around the world. Perhaps this can be accomplished by greater sharing of research course content across country boundaries. Or perhaps this can be accomplished by“e-exchanges”of students in response to scholars who call for greater internationalization of Philippines higher education (Bernardo,2003). In order to level the playingﬁeld for scholars around the world, we need to level access to education and knowledge about research.

Need #8: More grant and fellowship opportunities that reach beyond elite institutions. It is safe to say that scholars in OECD countries have greater access to opportunities to enhance their research through grants and fellowships than do scholars in the developing world. This access begins with knowledge of those opportunities and how to apply for them. We envision a clearing house of information for all scholars around the world concerning grant and fellowship opportunities. Some associations, such as the American Political Science Association, already do this to a limited extent, but without internet access it can be diﬃcult for scholars in economically developing countries to access this information.

This is also one situation where one-on-one coaching concerning which grants and fellowships might be appropriate and how to apply for them might be helpful.

Need #9: Funds to pay the expenses of faculty from less developed countries to attend international conferences. Professional research conferences can be extremely valuable in pushing one’s research forward to publication. The beneﬁts of opportunities to obtain suggestions for improvement while sharing new knowledge with one’s peers from around the world at international conferences cannot be overstated. We envision a world where professional