Fact and Value in University Decision‐Making

Simon, in his Administrative Behavior presents a systematic theory of administration which emphasizes correct decision‐making. Decision‐making has a factual and an ethical content; it always requires the comparison of alternative means in terms of the likely consequences. Thus a policy‐making body must have ready access to advice and information, particularly on the consequences of alternatives. Some universities in Britain, U.S.A. and Australia have set out deliberately to formulate their values or ultimate objectives. In Australia the publication of the Murray Report and of the reports of the Universities Commission have made much more likely the formulation of a set of values acceptable to university administrators as a guide for decision‐making. Further, a beginning has been made in the collation of factual data which might bear on these values, for example in the area of staff‐student ratios. With the general acceptance of computers and offices of institutional research there is a greater likelihood of clarifying objectives and of testing the extent to which they are being met, as a guide to effective decision‐making.