Autonomy, Entrepreneurialism and Australian University Policy Frameworks: A Difficult Balancing Act

Abstract

At best, university research policies on autonomy can support an open legal, contractual and social environment for research collaboration and publication. For the individual, they can protect the publication of unpopular, contentious or speculative findings from undue interference. For the university, the policy framework sets the direction and guards the production of knowledge as a resource for its own reputation and income. As Trowler (2001) argues, the set of intentions codified in university policies generate their own reality and values that the university usually pursues with requisite authority. For the university system, the policy framework reflects the extent to which the university is able to set its own ground rules. University policy is not created in a vacuum but, rather, reflects governmental and other constraints, and is further bounded by international, national and regional priorities (Kleeman, 2003). This chapter explores explicit policy statements on research autonomy taken from a selection of Australian universities in order to examine the effect of recent governmental changes on research.

Citation

Kayrooz, C. (2007), "Autonomy, Entrepreneurialism and Australian University Policy Frameworks: A Difficult Balancing Act", Kayrooz, C., Åkerlind, G.S. and Tight, M. (Ed.) Autonomy in Social Science Research (International Perspectives on Higher Education Research, Vol. 4), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 121-146. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1479-3628(06)04006-8