Designing and Validating a Model for Internationalizing Iranian Universities in Social Sciences and Humanities

In this study, the exploratory mixed-method approach was employed along with the qualitative grounded theory and a quantitative-descriptive correlational technique to design and validate an internationalization model for Iranian universities in humanities and social sciences. In the qualitative section, the participants included the experts and faculty members with relevant publications and experience of teaching at international universities and holding internationalization training courses. In this section, there were also the managers of international offices and the deans of international faculties of public universities in Tehran. The purposive sampling method was utilized to select twelve participants for in-depth interviews, which were continued until the data reached the theoretical saturation. The open, axial, and selective coding techniques were employed to analyze the qualitative data and finally identify six key components as the primary elements in the internationalization of universities: (1) causal factors, (2) major phenomenon, (3) contextual conditions, (4) environmental conditions, (5) internationalization strategies, and (6) the outcomes of internationalization for universities. Eventually, 18 categories of measurable variables were identified and classified under the above components. The research questionnaire was based on the qualitative findings. The stratified purposive sampling method was used for selecting 250 faculty members and PhD students in humanities and social sciences from Allameh Tabataba’i University, University of Tehran, Alzahra University, and Tarbiat Modares University. . The results of testing the quantitative model, developed from the hypotheses of the qualitative model, confirmed the generality of the paradigmatic model.