The ongoing education of engineering practitioners: how do they perceive the usefulness of academic research?

• Published in: European journal of engineering education Vol. 43; no. 6; pp. 860 - 878
• Main Authors: Fraser, Kym, Tseng, Tzu-Liang Bill, Deng, Xin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon Taylor & Francis 02.11.2018; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: academic research; Educational Research; Educational Researchers; Empirical analysis; Engineering; Engineering Education; Engineering practitioners; Engineers; Foreign Countries; Information Dissemination; Knowledge management; Learner Engagement; Medical research; Political Issues; Relevance (Education); Research and Development; Research needs; research usefulness; Research utilisation; Research Utilization; research-practice gap; Social Environment; Surveys; Technical Occupations; Theory Practice Relationship; Transfer of Training; Australia
• ISSN: 0304-3797; 1469-5898
• DOI: 10.1080/03043797.2018.1450847

This study explores the usefulness of academic research to engineering practitioners. Issues such as knowledge transfer, the research-practice gap and the changing social/political environment are discussed. An empirical survey of practitioners is analysed to better understand the engineering professions use of academic material, such as research journals, with the medical profession acting as the benchmark. The study also examines the future role for academia from the perspective of practitioners, with areas such as engagement, relevance, dissemination and education highlighted. While the study found there was a reasonable level of utilisation of academic material, there are still some significant gaps. The study brings to the fore the issue of relevance in applied research fields and highlights the need to evaluate the usefulness of our research to practitioners and the betterment of society.