Reputation management in Higher Education Institutions: A Comparative Analysis of Public and Private, Norwegian and American Higher Education Institutions.

Abstract

In this thesis, I have worked out from the following research question: What characterizes reputation management in higher education institutions? I chose to approach the research question by looking at the differences and similarities that exist between reputation management in the public and private, Norwegian and American HEI sectors in 2006 and 2016. I have analyzed this research question by looking at nine Norwegian and eleven American higher education institutions. Ten of the institutions were public and the other ten were private. The institutions were studied through a web-census conducted on selected parts of their web-pages. I have based my analysis in path-dependency and isomorphic theory, which set different expectations for what differences I would find between public and private, Norwegian and American higher education institutions’ reputation management.