Abstract
Academic capitalism has been among the most influential lines of research into markets in higher education. This paper takes up the distinct but related topic of academic production. This study makes use of a theory of fields and the concept of strategic action fields Fligstein and McAdam (Social Theory 29:1–26, 2011; A theory of fields, Oxford University Press, New York, 2012) and empirical evidence from a qualitative study of laboratory management at three research universities in the US to explore the how micro-dynamics of academic production may contribute to the establishment and maintenance of academic capitalism.
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Notes
All names are pseudonyms. PS = physical sciences. LS = life sciences.
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Acknowledgments
An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 2013 meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE). The author wishes to thank Claire Gonyo for her research assistance, as well as Ilkka Kauppinin, Barrett J. Taylor, and two anonymous reviewers whose comments on earlier drafts were very useful in developing this paper.
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Cantwell, B. Laboratory management, academic production, and the building blocks of academic capitalism. High Educ 70, 487–502 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-014-9851-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-014-9851-9