This research brief highlights data on faculty salaries in colleges and universities, outlines recent trends and their implications, and identifies major sources of data on the subject. Tables provide data on average faculty salaries for 1988-89 by academic rank and institution type (public, church, independent); by gender and academic rank; and by race/ethnicity (for 1985). Figures display data on real increases in faculty salaries by rank, 1978-79 to 1988-89; change in faculty salaries by rank, 1971-72 to 1988-89; changes in faculty salaries and the Consumer Price Index, 1971-72 to 1988-89; and salary increases for selected disciplines, 1982-83 to 1988-89. Findings include: (1) faculty salaries in 1989 were about nine percent lower than in 1971-72; (2) salary gaps between men and women and among faculty in different disciplines have widened in recent years; (3) faculty shortages will result from retirement and departures of existing faculty, combined with expected surges in enrollments in the late 1990s; and (4) the pool of prospective faculty has dwindled in recent years, especially among minorities, as fewer students pursue doctoral studies. (Contains nine end notes, a list of six resources, and a bibliography of eight items.) (JDD)