The objective of this research was to determine the factors that influence application of non-parametric analysis technique. The data emanated from research done by postgraduate students over a ten year period (1995-2004) and archived by the project in postgraduate education research (PPER). A survey of three South African universities was conducted. The classification of researches from chosen prominent universities were made by research title, research topic, target population, data collection method, and other diversity titles which were used to map the position of non-parametric analysis. The research amongst the three (3) universities included four hundred and twenty-one (421) sampled researches of which only twenty nine (29) were in Language and Race issues. The first finding indicated that the data of the sampled researches were all analysed using content analysis. Secondly, the findings suggested that there was a relationship between research title and data analysis technique. Lastly, the dominant theme amongst the sampled researches was Language although in many instances when language issues are being researched, race issues are inherently being researched either purposefully or coincidentally. There is a relationship between the history of the institutions and the kinds of research they produce. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2012.