Abstract
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 3-17 |
| Journal | Studies in Higher Education |
| Volume | 45 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Early online date | 1 Aug 2018 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2020 |
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Competing institutional logics in universities in the United Kingdom : Schism in the Church of Reason. / Shields, Robin; Watermeyer, Richard.
In: Studies in Higher Education, Vol. 45, No. 1, 2020, p. 3-17.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Competing institutional logics in universities in the United Kingdom
T2 - Schism in the Church of Reason
AU - Shields, Robin
AU - Watermeyer, Richard
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - Theoretical literature on institutions emphasizes the importance of logics - shared rationalizations - in determining many aspects of organizations. In this literature, universities are often discussed as an example of an institution with a particularly strong and cohesive logic, one rooted in notions of academic excellence and the pursuit of universal knowledge. However, more recent literature has argued that multiple institutional logics often compete and conflict with one another in a single organization. In this paper, we use the notion of competing logics to examine how academics in the United Kingdom understand the university as an institution. We perform a factor analysis on questionnaires completed by academics to identify overarching rationalizations of universities. Our analysis suggests three competing logics - autonomy, utilitarianism and managerialism - characterize universities as institutions. We show these multiple logics introduce conflict and paradox into the model of the university, and discuss the practical and theoretical implications.
AB - Theoretical literature on institutions emphasizes the importance of logics - shared rationalizations - in determining many aspects of organizations. In this literature, universities are often discussed as an example of an institution with a particularly strong and cohesive logic, one rooted in notions of academic excellence and the pursuit of universal knowledge. However, more recent literature has argued that multiple institutional logics often compete and conflict with one another in a single organization. In this paper, we use the notion of competing logics to examine how academics in the United Kingdom understand the university as an institution. We perform a factor analysis on questionnaires completed by academics to identify overarching rationalizations of universities. Our analysis suggests three competing logics - autonomy, utilitarianism and managerialism - characterize universities as institutions. We show these multiple logics introduce conflict and paradox into the model of the university, and discuss the practical and theoretical implications.
U2 - 10.1080/03075079.2018.1504910
DO - 10.1080/03075079.2018.1504910
M3 - Article
VL - 45
SP - 3
EP - 17
JO - Studies in Higher Education
JF - Studies in Higher Education
SN - 0307-5079
IS - 1
ER -