The Research Quarterly and Its Antecedents

Abstract

In this introductory article to the 50th Anniversary Issue, Roberta J. Park traces the efforts of professional physical education organizations, especially at the national level, to accommodate scholarly/research interests. She describes the forerunner of the Research Quarterly and the way in which efforts led to establishment of a research journal. Park tells the history of the Quarterly since its inception in 1930 and notes a number of concerns related to its operations and policies that have been periodically expressed over the past 50 years. Several of these issues have assumed increasing importance as a result of the knowledge explosion in the various subdisciplines in physical education, along with the problems associated with expanding our national organization and its ability to serve all of its interest groups.