Factors associated with the decision to develop and implement DRPH programs in schools of public health: a qualitative descriptive study.

• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2047/D20316434

This qualitative descriptive study examined the factors that faculty leaders believe influence the decision to offer the DrPH degree in their schools of public health and how those factors influence the design of the DrPH. The central research question in this study was: How do faculty leaders describe their experience with the decision to offer, develop, and implement DrPH degrees in accredited schools of public health? Subquestions included: What (a) structural, (b) personnel, (c) political, (d) cultural, and (e) other factors influence a school's choice to offer (or decide not to offer) a DrPH degree? How do those same factors influence the choices faculty make about the design of new DrPH programs? Research questions were based on the Bolman & Deal (2008) Four-Frame approach to organizational analysis. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews of 14 faculty leaders in accredited schools of public health who had been involved in the decision to offer and subsequently lead efforts to design the DrPH program at their respective schools. Data were analyzed through an inductive, constant comparative process involving in vivo coding and axial coding. Findings indicate that multiple factors influence the decision about whether or not to offer and the subsequent design of DrPH programs including accreditation requirements; student and workforce demand; funding limitations; university structural limitations and incentives; competition for resources; negative faculty attitudes about the DrPH degree; the history, tradition, and culture of the academy; and the influence of strong leaders. University and school mission was not found to be a common consideration. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.