© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2018 73
J. Jung et al. (eds.), Researching Higher Education in Asia, Higher Education in
Asia: Quality, Excellence and Governance, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4989-7_5
Chapter 5
Regionalism, Regionalization of Higher
Education, and Higher Education Research:
Mapping the Development in Regionalization
of Higher Education Research
Roger Y. Chao Jr.
Abstract This chapter is an exploratory study to fill in the knowledge gap related
to regionalization of higher education research in Asia and its relationship with the
broader Asian regionalism literature and facilitate a better understanding of its evo-
lution and future direction. Key concepts related to regionalization of higher educa-
tion, the development of Asian regionalization, and regionalization of higher
education research in Asia are presented and followed by the discussion and conclu-
sion sections of this chapter.
Introduction
With the increased focus on regionalism across disciplines since the 1990s, Asia has
seen a significant literature on political, economic, and security regionalisms.
Increased interdependency within Asia facilitated by neoliberal globalization, the
establishment of the East Asian production network, various bi-/tri- and multilateral
trade agreements, and the changing security environment brought about by the end
of the cold war era facilitated Asian regionalisms and a growth in Asian regionalism
literature. Furthermore, the challenges brought about by the 1997/1998 Asian finan-
cial crisis not only increased the focus on Asian regionalism research but also served
as a catalyst for increased East Asian economic, financial, and political regionaliza-
tion. In spite of conflicting visions of Asian regionalization and the legitimacy-
capacity issue in Asian regionalism (Acharya 2014a, b), developments in East Asian
regionalism resulted in the establishment of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) centered ASEAN Plus Three (APT) and East Asian Summit
(EAS) frameworks in 1997 and 2005, respectively. These frameworks significantly
expanded the ASEAN regionalization project to initially include China, Japan, and
R.Y. Chao Jr. (*)
UNESCO International Centre for Higher Education Innovation, Shenzhen, China
e-mail: [email protected]