Skip to main content

Research Evaluation as Organisational Development

The Work of the Academic Advisory Council in Lower Saxony (FRG)

  • Chapter
Book cover The Changing Governance of the Sciences

Part of the book series: Sociology of the Sciences Yearbook ((SOSC,volume 26))

Abstract

In a recent letter to the Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen (WKN, in English ‘Academic Advisory Council’ - AAC) of Lower Saxony a professor of engineering expressed in harsh words his personal frustration about his recent experiences of research evaluations. In his opinion, evaluation of research at German universities is “useless, counterproductive, and uneconomical”. The goals which are pursued with evaluation exercises are “popular”, but cannot be reached in this way. On the contrary, evaluation amounts to an “excess of bureaucracy”, and it “discourages” able and willing researchers.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Becher, Tony and Paul R. Trowler (2001), Academic Tribes and Territories. Intellectual Enquiry and The Culture of Disciplines, Buckingham: Open University Press, Second edition.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ben-David, Joseph (1971), The Scientist’s Role in Society. A Comparative Study, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brinckmann, Hans (1998), Die neue Freiheit der Universität. Operative Autonomie für Lehre und Forschung an Hochschulen, Berlin: Sigma.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brunsson, Nils (1989), The Organization of Hypocrisy – Talk, Decisions, and Actions in Organizations, Chichester et al: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bundesverfassungsgericht (2004), 1 BvR 911/00 vom 26.10.2004, Absatz-Nr. 1-191, http://www.bverfg.de/entscheidungen/rs20041026_1bvr091100.html (accessed 19 October 2005).

  • Campbell, David (2005), Evaluation of University Research in Europe – Conceptual Framework and Comparative Typology, University of Klagenfurt, IFF: unpublished manuscript.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chandler, Alfred (1977) The Visible Hand. The Managerial Revolution in American Business, Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • De Boer, Harry, Jürgen Enders and Uwe Schimank (2006), ‘On the Way Towards New Public Management? The Governance of University Systems in England, the Netherlands, Austria, and Germany’, in Dorothea Jansen (ed.), New Forms of Governance in Research Organizations. From Disciplinary Theories Towards Interfaces and Integration, Dordrecht: Springer, pp. 137-152.

    Google Scholar 

  • DiMaggio, Paul J. and Walter W. Powell (1983), ‘The Iron Cage Revisited’, American Sociological Review, 48, 147-160.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gläser, Jochen (2006), Wissenschaftliche Produktionsgemeinschaften. Die soziale Ordnung der Forschung, Frankfurt am Main: Campus.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kehm, Barbara and Ute Lanzendorf (2006), ‘Changes in the Governance of Public Research in Germany’, in Barbara Kehm and Ute Kanzendorf (eds.), Reforming University Governance. Changing Conditions for Research in Four European Countries, Bonn: Lemmens, pp. 135-186.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kieser, Alfred (1997), ‘Myth and Rhetoric in Management Fashion’, Organization, 4, 49-74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krücken, Georg and Frank Meier (2006), ‘Turning the University into an Organizational Actor’, in Gili Drori, John Meyer and Hokyu Hwang (eds.), Globalization and Organization: World Society and Organizational Change, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 241-257.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuhlmann, Stefan and Thomas Heinze (2004a), ‘Evaluation von Forschungsleistungen in Deutschland: Erzeuger und Bedarf. Teil I: Konzeptionelle Grundlagen’, Wissenschaftsrecht, 37, 53-69.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuhlmann, Stefan and Thomas Heinze (2004b), ‘Evaluation von Forschungsleistungen in Deutschland: Erzeuger und Bedarf. Teil II: Produktion und Verwendung evaluativer Information sowie Möglichkeiten ihrer künftigen Organisation’, Wissenschaftsrecht, 37, 125-149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuhn, Thomas S. (1962), The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merton, Robert K. (1968), ‘The Matthew Effect in Science’, Science, 159, 56-63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meyer, John W. and Brian Rowan (1977), ‘Institutionalized Organizations: Formal Structures as Myth and Ceremony’, American Journal of Sociology, 83, 340-363.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nowotny, Helga (1990), ‘Individual Autonomy and Autonomy of Science: The Place of the Individual in the Research System’, in Susan E. Cozzens, Peter Healey, Arie Rip and John Ziman (eds.), The Research System in Transition, Dordrecht: Kluwer, pp. 331-343.

    Google Scholar 

  • Orr, Dominic (2003), ‘Verfahren der Forschungsbewertung im Kontext neuer Steuerungsverfahren im Hochschulwesen: Analyse von vier Verfahren aus Niedersachsen, Großbritannien, den Niederlanden und Irland’, HIS Kurzinformation, A1, 16-74.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schiene, Christof (2004), ‘Forschungsevaluation als Element der Qualitätssicherung an Hochschulen’, Zeitschrift für Evaluation, 1, 81-94.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schimank, Uwe (1994), ‘How German Professors Handled Increasing Scarcity of Resources for Their Research: A Three-Level Actor Constellation’, in Uwe Schimank and Andreas Stucke (eds.), Coping with Trouble: How Science Reacts to Political Disturbances of Research Conditions, New York: St. Martin’s Press. pp. 35-59.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schimank, Uwe (1995), Hochschulforschung im Schatten der Lehre, Frankfurt am Main: Campus.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schimank, Uwe (2005a), “New Public Management’ and the Academic Profession – Reflections on the German Situation’, Minerva, 43, 361-376.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schimank, Uwe (2005b), Die Entscheidungsgesellschaft. Komplexität und Rationalität der Moderne, Wiesbaden: VS.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simon, Herbert (1982 [1976]), ‘From Substantive to Procedural Rationality’, in Herbert Simon (ed.), Models of Bounded Rationality, vol. 2, Cambridge MA: MIT Press, pp. 424-443.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sunstein, Cass R. and Edna Ullmann-Margalit (1999), ‘Second-Order Decisions’, Ethics, 110, 5-31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weaver, R. Kent (1986), ‘The Politics of Blame Avoidance’, Journal of Public Policy, 6, 371-398.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (1999), Research Evaluation at Universities and Research Institutions in Lower Saxony. Procedure Outline, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2000a), Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen. ‘Chemie’, Bericht der Gutachter, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2000b), Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen. ‘Geschichte’, Bericht der Gutachter, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2001), Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen. ‘Wirtschaftswissenschaften’, Bericht und Empfehlungen, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2002), Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen. ‘Rechtswissenschaften’, Bericht und Empfehlungen, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2004a), Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen. ‘Medizin’, Ergebnisse und Empfehlungen, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2004b), Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen. ‘Politikwissenschaft und Soziologie’, Ergebnisse und Empfehlungen, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2004c), Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen. ‘Germanistik mit Niederdeutsch, Niederlandistik und Skandinavistik; Kulturanthropologie / Europäische Ethnologie; Medienwissenschaften’, Ergebnisse und Empfehlungen, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2005), Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen. ‘Philosophie’, Ergebnisse und Empfehlungen, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

  • WKN [Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen] (2006) Forschungsevaluation an niedersächsischen Hochschulen und Forschungseinrichtungen. Bewertung des Evaluationsverfahrens, Hannover: WKN.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2007 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Schiene, C., Schimank, U. (2007). Research Evaluation as Organisational Development. In: Whitley, R., Gläser, J. (eds) The Changing Governance of the Sciences. Sociology of the Sciences Yearbook, vol 26. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6746-4_8

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics