ACADEMICS’ WORK AND THE CONCEPT
OF “PROFESSION”: AN AUSTRALIAN
CASE STUDY

Terrie Ferman
M.Phil (Griffith University), B.A. (The University of Queensland), Teaching Cert.
(Mt Gravatt Teachers College), Dip Teaching ESL (Royal Society of Arts)

This thesis is submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

Centre for Learning Innovation
Faculty of Education
Queensland University of Technology
2011



Keywords

Academic, academia, occupation, profession, university, higher education, Australia

Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study

i


Abstract

Universities in Australia and elsewhere have changed considerably in recent
years. Inevitably, this has meant that the work of academics has also changed.

Academics’ work is of importance because they are key players in universities and
universities matter to the nation economically and intellectually in advancing
knowledge and its practical application.
Through the changes and challenges that have characterised academia in recent
years, there is an assumption that academics’ work is representative of a profession.
This research study investigates how academics construct their own perspectives
regarding the academic “profession”. The study is theoretically informed by
Freidson’s theory that conceptualises professions as occupations if they are in control
of their work rather than it being under the control of either the market or of their
employing institutions.
Two research questions guide this study. The first question investigates how
academics might construct their work in ideal terms and the second one investigates
the extent to which such constructions might constitute a “profession”. A qualitative
case study was conducted within two Australian universities. In all, twenty
academics from ten disciplines took part in the study that consisted of a focus group
and fifteen individual interviews. The study was conducted in three phases during
which a conceptual framework of academics’ work was developed across three
versions. This framework acted both a prompt to discussion and as a potential
expression of academics’ work. The first version of the framework was developed
from the literature during the first phase of the study. This early framework was used
during the second phase of the study when five academics took part in a focus group.
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Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study


After the focus group, the second version of the framework was developed and used
with fifteen academics in individual interviews during phase three of the study. The
third version of the framework was the outcome of a synthesis of the themes that
were identified in the data.

The discussion data from the focus group and the individual interviews were
analysed through a content analysis approach that identified four major themes. The
first theme was that academics reported that their work would ideally be located
within universities committed to using their expert knowledge to serve the world.
The second theme was that academics reported that they wanted sufficient thinking
time and reasonable workloads to undertake the intellectual work that they regard as
their core responsibility, particularly in relation to undertaking research. They argued
against heavy routine administrative workloads and sought a continuation of current
flexible working arrangements. The third theme was that teaching qualifications
should not be mandated but that there should be a continuation of the present practice
of universities offering academics the opportunity to undertake formal teaching
qualifications if they wish to. Finally, academics reported that they wanted values
that have traditionally mattered to academia to continue to be respected and
practised: autonomy, collegiality and collaborative relationships, altruism and
service, and intellectual integrity. These themes are sympathetic to Freidson’s theory
of professions in all but one matter: the non-mandatory nature of formal
qualifications which he regards as absolutely essential for the performance of the
complex intellectual work that characterises occupations that are professions.
The study places the issue of academic professionalism on the policy agenda
for universities wishing to identify academics’ work as a profession. The study
contributes a theory-based and data-informed conceptual framework for academics’
Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study

iii


work that can be considered in negotiating the nature and extent of their work. The
framework provides a means of analysing what “academic professionalism” might
mean; it adds specificity to such discussions by exploring a particular definition of
profession, namely Freidson’s theory of professions as occupations that are in control

of their own work. The study contributes to the development of theories around
higher education concepts of academic professionalism and, in so doing, links that
theoretical contribution to the wider professions field.

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Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study


Table of Contents

Keywords .................................................................................................................................................. i
Abstract .................................................................................................................................................... ii
Table of Contents..................................................................................................................................... v
List of Figures ....................................................................................................................................... viii
List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................ viii
List of Abbreviations .............................................................................................................................. ix
Statement of Original Authorship............................................................................................................ x
Acknowledgments .................................................................................................................................. xi
Preface ................................................................................................................................................... xii
CHAPTER 1: ACADEMICS’ WORK: A PROFESSION? .............................................................. 1
1.1

The Importance of Universities and of Academics’ Work........................................................... 3

1.2

Influential Contextual Factors Within Universities ..................................................................... 4

1.3


The Research Issue and Rationale for the Study ........................................................................ 12

1.4

Aims of the Study and Research Questions ............................................................................... 18

1.5

Research Design ......................................................................................................................... 19

1.6

Significance and Contribution of the Study ............................................................................... 20

1.7

Summary of Chapter 1 ............................................................................................................... 21

1.8

Thesis Outline ............................................................................................................................ 22

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW: PROFESSIONS AND ACADEMICS’ WORK ......... 27
2.1

Academics’ Work ....................................................................................................................... 28
2.1.1 Continuing Professional Development (CPD): Relevance to the concept of
profession ........................................................................................................................ 29
2.1.2 Teaching qualifications: Relevance to the concept of profession ................................... 33

2.1.3 The shifting scene of academics’ work: Relevance to the concept of profession........... 38
2.1.4 Summary of section 2.1 .................................................................................................. 39

2.2

Concepts of “Profession” Within and Beyond Academia .......................................................... 40
2.2.1 Knowledge as part of professionalism ............................................................................ 45
2.2.2 Values as part of professionalism ................................................................................... 48
2.2.3 Other aspects of professions ........................................................................................... 63
2.2.4 Summary of section 2.2 .................................................................................................. 70

2.3

Freidson’s Theory of Professions as Self-Controlling Occupations .......................................... 71

2.4

Summary of Chapter 2 ............................................................................................................... 78

CHAPTER 3: DEVELOPMENT OF A PROVISIONAL CONCEPTUAL
FRAMEWORK FOR ACADEMICS’ WORK (VERSION 1) ........................................................ 81
3.1

Rationale for Scoping Version 1 of the Framework .................................................................. 86

3.2

Summary of Chapter 3 ............................................................................................................... 87

CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .............................................................................. 89

4.1

The Research Design: A Qualitative Approach ......................................................................... 89

4.2

Case Study Methodology ........................................................................................................... 91

4.3

The Research Context: Sites and Participants ............................................................................ 93

Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study

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4.4

Data Collection Methods ............................................................................................................ 97
4.4.1 Focus groups: Advantages and disadvantages ................................................................ 97
4.4.2 Individual interviews: Advantages and disadvantages ................................................... 99

4.5

Data Collection Processes ........................................................................................................ 102
4.5.1 Data collection processes common to the focus group and the individual
interviews ...................................................................................................................... 102
4.5.2 Data collection processes specific to the focus group .................................................. 106
4.5.3 Data collection processes specific to the individual interviews.................................... 111


4.6

Data Analysis ........................................................................................................................... 114
4.6.1 Data analysis: Determining the unit of analysis ........................................................... 115
4.6.2 Data analysis: Processes common to focus group and interview data .......................... 119
4.6.3 Data analysis: Additional steps for interview data ....................................................... 124
4.6.4 Data analysis: Amalgamating the two data sets ............................................................ 127
4.6.5 Building in reflective practice and reflexivity .............................................................. 128

4.7

Trustworthiness ........................................................................................................................ 132

4.8

Limitations of the Study ........................................................................................................... 134

4.9

Summary of Chapter 4 ............................................................................................................. 135

CHAPTER 5: FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF A PROVISIONAL FRAMEWORK
FOR ACADEMICS’ WORK (VERSION 2) ................................................................................... 137
5.1

Differences Between Versions 1 and 2 of the Framework....................................................... 143

5.2


Summary of Chapter 5 ............................................................................................................. 148

CHAPTER 6: ACADEMICS RELATE THEIR WORK TO THE WIDER WORLD .............. 151
6.1

Explanation of Presentation of all Findings ............................................................................. 151

6.2

Universities: Their Purpose and Engagement With the World ................................................ 152

6.3

Examining the Current Organisational Model ......................................................................... 157
6.3.1 The current organisational model: Supporting comments ............................................ 158
6.3.2 The current organisational model: Some reservations .................................................. 164

6.4

Summary of Findings for the First Theme ............................................................................... 168

CHAPTER 7: ACADEMICS SEEK CHANGES IN THEIR WORK .......................................... 171
7.1

Re-balancing Responsibilities .................................................................................................. 171

7.2

More Time and Less Pressure .................................................................................................. 176


7.3

Enabling More Research .......................................................................................................... 182
7.3.1 The role of research qualifications ................................................................................ 183

7.4

Summary of Findings for the Second Theme........................................................................... 185

CHAPTER 8: ACADEMICS DISCUSS UNIVERSITY TEACHING ......................................... 187
8.1

Arguments for Teaching Qualifications ................................................................................... 188

8.2

Arguments Against Teaching Qualifications ........................................................................... 193
8.2.1 Perceived efficacy of qualifications .............................................................................. 193
8.2.2 Conceptions of teaching ................................................................................................ 196
8.2.3 Poor rewards for teaching ............................................................................................. 199
8.2.4 Summary of findings for “Arguments against teaching qualifications” ....................... 201

8.3

Summary of Findings for the Third Theme ............................................................................. 202

CHAPTER 9: ACADEMICS CARE ABOUT VALUES ............................................................... 203
9.1

Autonomy ................................................................................................................................. 204


9.2

Integrity and Ethics .................................................................................................................. 218

9.3

Collegiality and Collaboration ................................................................................................. 221

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Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study


9.4

Altruism and Service ................................................................................................................ 226

9.5

An Over-riding Value for Academics’ Work ........................................................................... 232

9.6

Summary of Findings for the Fourth Theme ............................................................................ 233

9.7

Summary of Findings for Research Question 1 ....................................................................... 233


CHAPTER 10: ACADEMICS’ WORK: PARTICIPANTS’ PREFERRED
CONSTRUCTIONS AND PROFESSIONAL THEORY .............................................................. 235
10.1

First Theme: Academics Relate their Work to the Wider World ............................................. 236

10.2

Second Theme: Academics Seek Changes in Their Work ....................................................... 237

10.3

Third Theme: Academics Discuss University Teaching .......................................................... 238

10.4

Fourth Theme: Academics Care About Values........................................................................ 240

10.5

Summary of Findings for Research Question 2 ....................................................................... 242

CHAPTER 11: THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK RE-CONSIDERED (VERSION 3) ..... 245
11.1

Summary of Chapter 11 ........................................................................................................... 251

CHAPTER 12: CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................... 253
12.1


Context of the Study ................................................................................................................. 253

12.2

Achieving the Aims and Answering the Research Questions .................................................. 254

12.3

Implications of the Study: Introductory Comments ................................................................. 256
12.3.1 Implications for academics ........................................................................................... 257
12.3.2 Implications for theorists and researchers..................................................................... 258
12.3.3 Implications for policy makers ..................................................................................... 261

12.4

Limitations of the Study ........................................................................................................... 269

12.5

Directions for Future Research ................................................................................................ 271

12.6

A Final Word ............................................................................................................................ 272

REFERENCES .................................................................................................................................. 275
APPENDICES .................................................................................................................................... 295
Appendix A Literature Review: An Early Tracking Table ...................................................... 295
Appendix B Research Participants ........................................................................................... 306
Appendix C Focus Group Invitation Email and Information Kit............................................. 309

Appendix D Individual Interview Invitation Email and Information Kit ................................ 319
Appendix E Changes in Questions Between Focus Group and Individual Interviews ............ 325
Appendix F The Data Analysis Processes and the Informing Literature ................................. 326
Appendix G Overview of the Data Analysis Strategy ............................................................. 328
Appendix H Analysis of the Interview Data: A Reflective Process......................................... 329
Appendix I Example of Interviewee’s Individual Data File .................................................... 330
Appendix J Example of a Theme File ...................................................................................... 334
Appendix K Example of a Data Table (Interviewees 1-4) ....................................................... 335
Appendix L Opinions of the Corporate University Model ...................................................... 339
Appendix M Teaching Qualifications: For & Against ............................................................. 340
Appendix N (a) Interview Participants’ Opinions Concerning Values .................................... 342
Appendix N (b) Interview Participants’ Prioritising of Values in the Prompting
Framework .................................................................................................................... 343
Appendix O An Ideal Conceptualisation of Academics’ Work: All Participants’ Input
Compared to Freidson ................................................................................................... 344
Appendix P Revisions Between Versions 2 and 3 of Conceptual Framework ........................ 345

Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study

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List of Figures

Figure 4.1 Conceptual Framework (Version 2): Interview Handout .................................................. 113
Figure 4.2 Data gathering tool for interviews ..................................................................................... 114
Figure 11.1 Conceptual Framework (Version 3) & Informing Themes ............................................. 247

List of Tables


Table 3.1 Conceptual Framework (Version 1) ...................................................................................... 83
Table 4.1 Conceptual Framework (Version 1): Focus Group Handout ............................................. 108
Table 4.2 Changes to Discussion Questions ....................................................................................... 109
Table 4.3 Changes to Research Questions .......................................................................................... 110
Table 4.4 Layout of Transcriptions of Focus Group and Interview Data ........................................... 116
Table 5.1 Relationships between Freidson’s Theory of Occupational Control and Version 2 of
the Conceptual Framework........................................................................................... 141
Table 5.2 Conceptual Framework (Version 2) .................................................................................... 142
Table 5.3 Versions 1 and 2 of the Conceptual Framework ................................................................. 144
Table 5.4 Values in Versions 1 and 2 of the Conceptual Framework ................................................. 145
Table 11.1 Phases of the Study, Actions and Outcomes ...................................................................... 245
Table 1, Appendix B Research Participant Details ............................................................................ 307
Table 1, Appendix B (cont) ................................................................................................................. 308

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Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study


List of Abbreviations

ACER

Australian Council for Educational Research

ALTC

Australian Learning and Teaching Council

ATN


Australian Technology Network

AUQA

Australian Universities Quality Agency

BHERT

Business and Higher Education Round Table

CPD

Continuing Professional Development

DEEWR

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations

ERA

Excellence in Research for Australia

ESL

English as a Second Language

HERDSA

Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia


ILT

Institute for Learning and Teaching

NTEU

National Tertiary Education Union

QA

Quality assurance

TAFE

Technical and Further Education

TEQSA

Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency

Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study

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Statement of Original Authorship

The work contained in this thesis has not been previously submitted to meet
requirements for an award at this or any other higher education institution. To the

best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously
published or written by another person except where due reference is made.

x

Signature:

_________________________

Date:

_________________________

Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study


Acknowledgments

Several people supported me in the completion of this thesis. My first thanks
are to the academics at two universities who, busy as they were, found the
professional generosity to make time to speak to me and so provide the data for this
study. I am grateful to my supervisors Professor Susan Danby and Associate
Professor Jim Watters for their commitment, diligence, experience and good will.
In the early stages, Patrick Palmer very kindly helped me explore ideas in
extraordinarily stimulating and helpful ways, Meredith Godat was an exemplary
study buddy and Sue Trevaskes provided advice, professional generosity and
encouragement at a crucial point. Alan Wylie was happy to share his wealth of
knowledge as were Pat Bourke and Lyndal O’Gorman. Anthony Castles commented
on draft work and my colleague Rowena Brannigan was enormously helpful. I
cannot thank Judith O’Byrne enough for insightfully critiquing my ideas.

Judith Millington showed unceasing and generous interest in my study, offered
wise advice and transcribed the data. I thank Denis Castles for everything. I am ever
grateful to my dear friend, Margie Kelly, sadly no longer with us, for giving me
invaluable advice about all sorts of things, the most trivial of which was how to write
a thesis. Finally and most importantly, I lovingly acknowledge the people who gave
me an education and were with me when I got it: my gorgeous mother Jack, my
lovely sisters Anna and Elaine, my generous Auntie Millie and my beaut brother
Baz.

Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study

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Preface

The road that led towards the choice of topic for this thesis has been a long
one. On reflection, it might have been expected that I would be drawn to some aspect
of academics’ work, having been an academic myself.
I began my career in education as a high school teacher of English, French and
History. From there, I moved into teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) to
high school students and, later, to adults. My experience in ESL as a teacher,
curriculum designer and materials developer led me into studying and later lecturing
and tutoring in applied linguistics as well as developing postgraduate curriculum in
that field. A further development in my career was to work as a professional
developer of university lecturers in Asian languages on a nationally funded project
that integrated new technology with their teaching and curriculum design. Thinking
back to that time, those lecturers were being asked to do innovative work and to
think about their teaching (and the related research around that project) in quite
different ways. This was the mid-90s.

From 1998-2003, I worked in another university as an educational
designer/curriculum developer with lecturers from numerous disciplines (including
social work, occupational therapy, education, zoology), combining their discipline
knowledge with my pedagogical knowledge in order to develop curriculum that took
optimal educational advantage of new technology. Again, as with the lecturers in
Asian languages, these academics were required to work in new ways.
Through my work and study at three universities, I have observed the work of
academics at very close quarters and participated actively in that work as a colleague.

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Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study


This experience showed me how much, over recent years, the work of academics has
changed.
With my experiences within universities and my observation of the significant
changes that have occurred, the field of academics’ work became of great interest to
me. During a preliminary literature review, I noticed the emergence of an explicit
discussion of the idea of “profession” in reference to academics’ work. This focus,
plus my background as an academic, resulted in this study investigating academics’
work from the perspective of profession.

.

Academics’ Work and the Concept of “Profession”: An Australian Case Study

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Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?

Universities are institutions that perform work that is important to the country.
Academics are important to the achievement of that work in the contribution that
they make through their thinking work and through the production and dissemination
of knowledge. This thesis examines academics’ work that, for some time, has been
performed in an environment of dynamic change. This examination will interrogate
academics’ work from the perspective of professions, using a qualitative case study
within two Australian universities.
This chapter discusses the importance of universities and of academics’ work,
examines the context in which academics’ work is performed, presents the research
issue and rationale for the study, identifies the aims and research questions, previews
the research design, and explains the significance and contribution of the study. The
chapter concludes by briefly overviewing the structure of the thesis.
Australian universities are experiencing significant systemic change, and have
been since the 1980s (Bradley, Noonan, Nugent, & Scales, 2008). A major
restructuring of the Australian higher education sector occurred with the Dawkins
reforms implemented in 1989 (Barcan, 1994; Duke, 2004). The reforms led to the
establishment of a unified national system that replaced the binary education system
that had operated since approximately 1965 (Barcan, 1994; Duke, 2004). As a result
of the Dawkins reforms, the number of universities increased in number and size
(Duke, 2004) from nineteen pre-Dawkins to thirty-nine in 2010 (Gallagher, 2010).
There are five clusterings of Australian universities: (a) the Group of Eight; (b)
Innovative Research Universities; there are seven of these; (c) the Australian

Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?

1



Technology Network of Universities (ATN), with one in each mainland state, thus
five in total; (d) New Generation Universities (that resulted from the amalgamations
of the late 1980s) and (e) the Regional Universities, located regionally
(Goedegebuure, Coates, van der Lee, & Meek, 2009). The first grouping, the Group
of Eight is also known as the Great Eight and the group consists of the more
established, more prestigious and research-focussed universities; five of these
universities are also known as “sandstones” (Australian Education Network, 2011).
The Innovative Research Universities were established in the 1960s and 1970s
(Australian Education Network, 2011) The ATN universities focus on linking their
education with the wider needs of industry” (Australian Education Network, 2011).
Whatever their particular focus and specific missions, all universities in
Australia have faced on-going change in recent decades. Change continues and, since
this study began, two major reviews of the Australian higher education sector have
been completed. The Bradley Review of Higher Education (2008) investigated the
future of the sector, potential reforms and the capacity of the sector to meet
community and economic needs. Also, in the same year, Cutler (2008) investigated
Australia’s system of innovation, including university research. Whatever the
eventual future outcomes of such reviews, they are important in shaping the work of
universities. This thesis is timely in contributing to developing debates about the
future of universities and the work of their key players, namely academics.
A word on terminology
This chapter examines the environment in which the research study is set,
namely the Australian higher education sector. This thesis talks about the concept of
“profession” as it might or might not apply to what academics do. In order to avoid
pre-empting a response to this issue, the term “profession” is used throughout the
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Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?



thesis in particular ways, according to definitions in the literature. Thus, at times, the
terms “occupation” or “work” will be applied to academics’ activities. These terms
are intended not to demean what academics do; rather, the intent is to speak neutrally
until the research data indicate whether the term “profession” should be used or not.
To support this approach, this study draws on the theoretical work of the American
sociologist Eliot Freidson (2001) who partly defines a profession as just a special
form of occupation and professions as one way of organising work.
1.1

The Importance of Universities and of Academics’ Work
As Giroux (2005) commented, when discussing the work of Derrida,

universities are key institutions in a democratic society. They are culturally important
to the nation as well as economically important in domestic and global arenas
(Bradley et al., 2008). The purpose of universities is that of “developing and
disseminating advanced-level knowledge and skills through teaching and
scholarship” and “generating new knowledge and developing new applications of
knowledge” (Bradley et al., 2008, p. 5). Universities exist to acquire knowledge for
its own sake and to disseminate it for the benefit of the community (Miller, 2000).
As well, within the knowledge economy, universities prepare professionals for the
workforce (Cutler, 2008). For these responsibilities to be realised, the work of
academics is vital. They are important players because they are at the coalface of
enabling universities’ core work and are crucial to the country’s economy and culture
(Bradley et al., 2008). The work of academics “forms the backbone of the
contribution of their institutions” (Goedegebuure et al., 2009, p. 59). The former
President of the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) makes a similar
argument in stating that academics “are critical to the overall ability of an institution
to achieve excellence in teaching and research…there can be no sustainable
Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?


3


university future without the intelligence, passion and commitment of university
staff” (Allport, 2007, p. 27) as academics’ work is part of the contribution that
universities make (Altbach, 2009; Goedegebuure et al., 2009).
1.2

Influential Contextual Factors Within Universities
Worldwide, higher education experienced “profound changes” in the 1990s

(Becher & Trowler, 2001, p. xiii). Australia has not been immune to these changes
and has experienced significant macro level transformation within its higher
education system. Indeed, within the Australian higher education system, “change
has been profound and sometimes quite dramatic” (Coates, Goedegebuure, van der
Lee, & Meek, 2008, p. 8). These changes have trickled down to directly impact
academics’ work in significant ways. Indeed, the academic profession is affected
deeply to the extent that the profession can be considered to be in crisis (Duke, 2004;
Marginson, 2000).
A brief overview of the current state of play within Australian universities
begins with a sketching of the over-riding influences that have shaped universities in
recent decades. The following six contextual influences are outlined: (a)
globalisation and economic rationalism; (b) the adoption of business models and the
emergence of entrepreneurialism; (c) the massification of the study body; (d) the
emergence of managerialism; (e) an increase in bureaucracy and administration; and
(f) new forms of accountability.
The first contextual influences, globalisation and economic rationalism, are
now discussed. Globalisation, a major influence on Australian universities (Bryant,
Scoufis, & Cheers, 1999; Marginson, 2000; Tierney, 2001) may be understood as

“the development of global flows of information and resources along networks

4

Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?


transcending nation-states’ influence and disturbing nationally-organised systems
and practices” (Becher & Trowler, 2001, p. 2). With globalisation, the Australian
government adopted practices of economic rationalism. Economic rationalism is
sometimes referred to as “neo-liberalism”; however, the term “economic
rationalism” is used more frequently in Australia (Davies, Gottsche & Bansel, 2006).
Economic rationalism is defined as the view that the market is the basis for all
decisions – social, political and economic - and assumes the greater efficiency of
markets to deliver good outcomes (Pusey, 2003). Other components of economic
rationalism are increased accountability and a focus on performance goals (Davies et
al., 2006). Economic rationalism involves “a paraphernalia of surveillance, auditing
and control”; this “paraphernalia” accompanied government changes to new ways of
funding universities (Davies et al., 2006, p. 312). Successive governments have
become less committed to funding higher education (Bellamy, Morley, & Watty,
2003; Currie, 2005a; Marginson, 2000), resulting in reduced funding and the
introduction of private funding to universities (Marginson, 2000). Between 1996 and
2005, government funding to universities fell from 57% to 39% of total revenue
(NTEU, 2007). One of the outcomes of decreased government funding has been a
serious decrease in universities’ resources (Fraser & Cheers, 2000; Sachs, 2003).
Thus, there have been enormous fiscal strains and a need for universities to self fund
and to become nationally and internationally competitive. Greater competition is a
feature of economic rationalism/neo-liberalism, which is aligned to globalisation
partly through the wide geographical reach of multinational corporations across
countries (Davies et al., 2006). These changes are germane to the economically

rationalist-focussed environments in which academics perform their work.

Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?

5


Reservations about the commercial focus of economic rationalism come from
circles other than purely academic ones. For instance, the Business and Higher
Education Round Table (BHERT), consisting of business leaders and some senior
university leaders, argued against government funding for projects and initiatives that
are purely commercial (BHERT, 2008). The philosophy of economic rationalism is
accompanied by a market model which is now discussed.
A second contextual influence on academia has been the adoption of business
and market models and the emergence of entrepreneurial practices within
universities, many of which might be claimed to now resemble businesses.
Universities have moved to operating according to a market orientation (Bryant et
al., 1999; Kimber, 2003), and there are close similarities between how universities
are thought of and how successful businesses operate (Duke, 2004). Indeed, “the new
idea of a particular university increasingly approximates the bottom line of a
successful business” (Duke, 2004, p. 309). Being less well funded by government
has forced universities to become businesses and to be run in accordance with market
economic liberalism (Duke, 2004). The adoption of market models, it has been
claimed, has resulted in both reduced job satisfaction for academics and in reduced
educational quality (Winter & Sarros, 2002).
Along with the adoption of market models, it is argued that universities have
been forced to be entrepreneurial in sourcing funding in strained economic
circumstances (Winter & Sarros, 2002). A prime example of higher education
entrepreneurialism has been the successful pursuit of the highly lucrative
international student market. International student fees generate enormous revenue

for education in Australia generally. As an export industry, international education
ranks high in the Australian economy. In the year 2007-2008 alone, the gain from
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Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?


international education to the Australian economy overall was $13.7 billion (Access
Economics, 2009) with the largest proportion of overseas students studying in the
higher education sector. A quarter of higher education students in Australia come
from other countries (Bradley et al., 2008).
The growth of the international student market is closely related to the issue of
massification that exists on two levels: that of international students, and that of
domestic students. This is the third contextual influence to be discussed. The move
towards the massification of the international student body arguably began with the
Colombo Plan of the 1950s that, as part of a wider diplomatic and aid initiative,
sponsored thousands of students from South and South-East Asia to study in
Australia (Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade, 2005).
Along with the massification of the international student body, a second form
of massification relates to domestic students. Massification is not a new phenomenon
in Australian universities. Domestic massification arguably began with the Whitlam
government of the 1970s enhancing the opportunities of domestic students to enter
universities by removing fees and introducing the Tertiary Education Assistance
Scheme to attract students. Massification has been explained as the movement from
an elite system of enrolment to a mass one (Scott, 1995). It has certainly been a
feature of the Australian higher education scene, as evidenced by the dramatic
growth in one decade alone; between 1989 and 1999, enrolments in Australian
universities increased by 231,000 (Dobson, 2001). Since the 1950s, the Australian
population grew less than three-fold while the number of Australian domestic
students increased more than 23-fold, the largest increase being between 1950 and

1977 (Marginson, 1997, p.27).

Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?

7


For domestic cohorts, the massification has applied to both undergraduate and
postgraduate students (Bellamy et al., 2003; Fraser & Cheers, 2000; McWilliam &
Palmer, 1998). Massification is likely continue into the future, given the target set by
the Bradley Review (2008) that the current level of 29% of 25-34 year olds holding
Bachelor level qualifications should be raised to 40% by 2020. It might be
anticipated that there would be important consequences of such growth for
academics’ work. In the past, the results of massification have been larger classes
(Cropley, 2003; Currie, 2005a; Davis, 2006) which have not been accompanied by
increased resources (Ryan, 2009). This has resulted in worsened staff-student ratios
(Massaro, 2004; Ryan, 2009), reduced quality of education (Ryan, 2009) and bigger
workloads for academics (Marginson, 2000; Schmid, 1998).
In addition to increasing in volume, academics’ work has changed in another
way in that their roles have expanded. Academics now fulfil more roles than before,
being teachers, researchers, administrators, entrepreneurs, curriculum designers and
so on. Along with an expanding work life, academics’ performance of their work
now occurs in a very different work environment from that of the past. This leads us
on to another contextual influence.
A fourth contextual influence within academia has been the emergence of
managerialism. Universities now operate under managerialist models of management
(Churchman, 2006). This represents a major change to how universities operate
internally. Managerialism is defined as “the application of private sector principles
and practices to public service organizations” (By, Diefenbach, & Klarner, 2008, p.
22) and as “the insistence that all decisions meet financial and administrative rather

than academic criteria” (Saunders, 2005, p. 40).

8

Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?


The outcomes of current managerial practices that direct higher education have
attracted considerable criticism from within academic ranks. It has been claimed that
managerialism’s three central objectives of achieving “economy, efficiency and
effectiveness” have had negative effects on academic communities (Becher &
Trowler, 2001, p. 13). Deleterious outcomes include negative effects on collegiality
(Moodie, 2002). Managerialist approaches are also said to be disempowering to staff
and damaging to morale (Rees, 1995; Walker, 2001). Duke (2004) claims that
managerialism may prove to be a greater danger to Australian universities than
government attacks on them. It may result in greater influence by management and
reduced autonomy for academics, as some have claimed (Winter, Taylor, & Sarros,
2000).
Notwithstanding these concerns about managerialism, not all voices are
critical. For instance, one United Kingdom study shows that “new managerialism” is
being embraced by some manager-academics (Deem & Brehony, 2005), and that
some academics have thrived on the corporate working conditions (Churchman,
2006). From another UK perspective, it has been argued that the negative effects of
managerialism on academic professionalism may have been overstated (Kolsaker,
2008). Nevertheless, the view remains that embracing managerialism in universities
is “cronyism, rent-seeking and organizational psychopathic behaviour … (and that)
the main purpose of managerialism is to increase the authority, privileges and
influence of power and career-oriented managers” (By et al., 2008, p. 23). Whatever
the impact of managerialism has been within universities, its introduction has
represented new ways of institutional operation that are different from the practices

of previous organisational regimes.

Chapter 1: Academics’ Work: A Profession?

9