Resumen

GOMEZ VASQUEZ, Luis  y  RUIZ BOLIVAR, Carlos. RESEARCH IN THE TECHNOLOGY INSTITUTES OF VENEZUELA’S CENTER-WESTERN REGION. Investigación y Postgrado [online]. 2004, vol.19, n.2, pp.89-111. ISSN 1316-0087.

The purpose of this study was to characterize the research that the technology institutes (IUT) of the center-western region in the country have being doing in terms of their institutional strengths and weaknesses. We used surveys and focus groups with 215 lecturers and 36 managers. The key aspects that were studied, associated with the development and function of research, were: the organization system and research management, research orientation, capability and updating of human resources, divulgence, infrastructure, financing, acknowledgments, incentives and legal aspects. The results allow us the following conclusion: first that the technology institutes (IUT) have strengths and weaknesses, between the former are: a) a legal frame that legitimates the research function; b) basic resources for the development of the research field as infrastructure and support, an academic community, a budget assigned by the state with that purpose; the latter are: a) decontextualization and poor pertinence of the research, b) deficiencies in human resources training to undertake a pertinent research and technological development program in agreement with the productive sector needs of the region; c) deficiencies in the action strategies to achieve the results that were expected; d) research limitations in organization, management and orientation; and e) little emphasis in divulgating the results.

Palabras clave : research in the IUT; technological research; characterization of the research.