Characteristics of U.S. higher education are identified, along with the structural features that influence the nature of research, specific research topics, and the locations of research activities. This information was obtained from several sources, including the Educational Resources Information Center database for the years 1981 and 1982, the American Educational Research Association annual publication, and the bibliographic handbook prepared by the U.S. Office of Education. Five distinctive characteristics of U.S. higher education are discussed: the decentralized nature of the system, the fact that most colleges are chartered as individual corporate bodies, the multiple pattern of finances for higher education institutions, the diversity of academic programs, and the large numbers of students. The question of how these five attributes affect research is also addressed. It is noted that in the past 15 years, there has been much more attention to large-scale studies that generate data that are compatible over time. Various research programs sponsored by the federal, private, and university sectors are cited. Among the research topics that are identified are the following: management, planning, communication, student enrollments, faculty, teaching/learning processes, and educational technology. (SW)