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Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies 207
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies
Learned Publishing, 27: 207–221
doi:10.1087/20140307
Barriers and
opportunities
for research in
publishing studies
Alison BAVERSTOCK and
Jackie STEINITZ
Kingston University
ABSTRACT. This paper reports ndings from an
international survey into the research involvement
and support of university teaching staff in a relatively
new profession-orientated discipline, publishing studies
(PS). It uses these ndings to consider barriers and
opportunities for academic research both specically
in PS and more broadly in other profession-orientated
disciplines. Greater understanding was felt to be of
value as universities internationally are increasingly
being pressurized to create close links with the wider
economy, produce employable students, and encourage
relevant and implementable research. The survey
suggests that while there is strong agreement among
respondents that it is benecial for those teaching PS
to be research-active, there was considerable variation
in current levels of research activity. Respondents rated
their research activity highest in departments with an
active research culture and effective research support
processes. Lack of time was the main reason cited
for reduced or non-involvement in academic research
and while this is a common issue for academics, PS
respondents isolated a number of exacerbating factors.
Suggestions are offered for addressing identied barriers
and pursuing new opportunities for research. The
paper argues that as research outputs of academics are
increasingly monitored it is important to consider how
the full range of disciplines housed within institutions
can be accommodated within research support. Overall,
the research has a strong relevance for interdisciplinary
areas, and other profession- and practice-orientated
subjects within universities.
Introduction
There is a growing awareness among univer-
sity staff from all disciplines of the signicance
of research as an indicator of the quality of
their establishment, its staff, and the educa-
tion on offer to those who enrol. Involvement
in research is increasingly identied as what
separates higher education from further edu-
cation and other organizations offering educa-
tion or training.
Within the university sector, however, there
is currently discussion about what constitutes
research, and how it should be both dened
and documented. Up to now universities have
tended to record traditional academic/theoret-
ical research, from a range of long-established
disciplines, largely disseminated through aca-
demic conferences and journals; the pedigree
of the publication and its associated peer-
review processes provide a measure of the
value of the associated research.
Times are changing. The range of disciplines
now available through universities means that
colleagues are research-active in previously
unanticipated elds and in new ways; their
ability to affect thinking within their disci-
pline is achieved through an expanded range
of media and formats. At the same time, a
general economic recession combined with
the substantially increased costs associated
with university education have meant that
those deciding on/funding higher education
are entertaining new criteria for choosing
both institutions and courses; the practical
connectedness of teaching staff may be more
signicant to potential students and those
resourcing them than their academic research.
It follows that the involvements of staff within
industry, which indicate the extent to which
they are up-to-date in their eld, whether
captured as practice-orientated research or
commentary in professional publications, can
both ensure the organization’s research repu-
tation and support recruitment.
Internationally, governments are also
adapting the metrics by which they appraise © Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz 2014 Jackie Steinitz
Alison Baverstock
208 Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
the success of higher education. In addition
to excellence in research, new indicators are
being introduced such as the employability of
emerging students (as evinced by their success
in nding graduate-level jobs), the extent to
which research can be put into practice (often
more easily achieved in disciplines that relate
to a specic profession), and opportunities
for (paid) knowledge transfer partnerships
between universities and the wider economic
environment.
Within the discipline of publishing studies
(PS), these issues are being explored within a
context of huge change within the publishing
industry. For example, just within universi-
ties, the importance of always offering printed
materials is declining as new generations of
students arrive already accustomed to access-
ing information online rather than assuming
a printed format, and pressure on library bud-
gets mean economies are consistently looked
for – often achieved by buying resources in a
digital format. A move to digital materials is
similarly supported by growing environmental
pressures, a desire for greater speed of dissemi-
nation and the sharing of access to academic
work through new ways such as social media.
Within this context, and having out-
lined the idea within a group of profession-
orientated colleagues attending a meeting of
the UK Association of Publishing Education
(APE),1 a research project was suggested
within PS to consider how those involved in
profession-orientated subjects are supported
and encouraged to develop their research, to
report their outcomes and to measure their
effectiveness. Within the UK, this was a par-
ticularly timely exercise given preparation was
going on for the 2014 Research Excellence
Framework (REF), an exercise to gather, assess
and note excellent research within UK univer-
sities over the last ve years.
The objectives of this research were two-
fold. Firstly to investigate opportunities for
involvement in academic and professional
research in the eld and to consider associ-
ated barriers. Secondly to research how PS, as
a relatively new academic discipline, is being
accommodated and welcomed within exist-
ing institutions and their research support
processes. This paper will deal with the rst
objective, providing information on the loca-
tion of related courses as context. It is antici-
pated that a subsequent paper will consider
the second objective in more detail.
Methodology
Following informal discussions at the meeting
of the APE in early 2013, with PS colleagues
at the London Book Fair in April 2013 and
at the SHARP2 Conference in Philadelphia in
July 2013, an international research group of
academics in PS was established under lead-
ership from Kingston University. The group
comprised eight academics (whose names
are given at the end of the paper) from six
countries together with a representative from
the UK Publishers’ Association, an organiza-
tion that has been instrumental in monitor-
ing the spread of publishing education within
universities.
The group agreed that the target population
for the research would be contracted univer-
sity staff who teach PS and allied disciplines;
specically it would include those who have a
contract (either full or part time) for the regu-
lar delivery of the course within any aspect of
publishing, from academic to children’s titles,
irrespective of whether they are from an aca-
demic or professional/practice background but
would exclude those who just give single guest
contributions or a short series of lectures.
An online questionnaire was developed
using SurveyMonkey. It was extensively
reviewed by all in the group but not formally
piloted as this would have depleted the size
of the nal response from a relatively small
research cohort. Besides questions about
the constitution, size, and location of their
courses, it included questions about the
respondents’ own involvement in research,
barriers to involvement and their perceptions
of the value, and inclusion of their discipline
within their institution. For UK respondents
there were further questions about their
involvement in the 2014 REF. The question
format was a mix of multiple choices, rating
scales with a 7-point scale (1 is low, 7 high,
4 the mid-point), and open-ended questions,
as these are particularly useful in providing
insights.
The sample was constructed by asking each
member of the group to compile his/her own
list of all known contacts from the target pop-
ulation in their country/region. Each member
the target
population for
the research
would be
contracted
university staff
who teach
PS and allied
disciplines
Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies 209
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
emailed an announcement about the survey to
everyone on their list, then a week later, on
10 September 2013, emailed the link to the
questionnaire. Two weeks were allowed for
response. Respondents were invited to email
the link to any colleagues from the target pop-
ulation who had not received the link, and to
avoid duplication respondents were asked to
answer only once if they received more than
one questionnaire.
This approach was undertaken for three
reasons. Firstly, it was thought that a per-
sonal approach from an academic colleague in
the same eld would be more likely to elicit
a response than one from an unknown con-
tact. Secondly, it was thought better to boost
the number of replies by allowing onward for-
warding of the link. Thirdly, as the outcome
sought was a picture of the international
performance and treatment of the discipline,
it was important to avoid any sense that the
project was a market research exercise by a
single university. Responsibility for contacting
the overall research cohort was thus shared,
and although Kingston kept a watching brief
on those being approached, and sought to
remove duplications where possible, an over-
all mailing list for PS was not compiled and
academics were reassured that no subsequent
marketing approach or other identication
of their involvement would result from par-
ticipation. Kingston paid for the services of
the data analyst and co-author of the paper,
Jackie Steinitz. The project was managed by
Dr Alison Baverstock (Course Leader for MA
Publishing at Kingston, 0.5 fractional post)
within her own time with support for the data
analysis coming from Kingston University’s
Research Capability Fund.
In total 127 people were emailed directly
by the steering group and there was some
onward transmission by the initial recipients.
77 replies were received in total, including 30
from North America, 28 from Europe, and 9
each Africa and Australia.3
Before discussing the survey results several
caveats about the potential for bias should be
noted. This could have stemmed from:
• Sampling bias. The composition of the
steering group – recruited through an aca-
demic forum for those involved in teaching
PS, a major book fair and an academic con-
ference – may have impacted on the range
of those involved. Similarly, although the
research group was asked to forward the
questionnaire to all their known contacts
in the target population and the initial
respondents invited to forward it onwards
to any colleagues who had not received it,
there may have been a degree of selectiv-
ity imposed; thus the cohort approached
may not be fully representative of the target
population.
• Response bias (i.e. the tendency of respon-
dents either consciously or unconsciously
to distort responses). In this instance there
may have been an element of ‘courtesy
bias’, as the respondents were sent the
questionnaire by a familiar individual, and
even though assured of anonymity this may
have inuenced their responses.
• Non-response bias. There may be a differ-
ence between those who were sent the link
to the questionnaire and responded and
those who did not.
While these caveats and unexamined areas
must be borne in mind when interpreting
the results it was felt that the survey offered
interesting insights into the discipline of PS,
particularly given the opportunity to make
more substantial comments through the open-
ended questions. Ten key ndings are summa-
rized below followed by a discussion of barriers
to and opportunities for research.
Key ndings
Analysis of the research sample revealed strong
industry experience within university PS
departments (Table 1)
Respondents were mostly highly experienced;
61% had 10 years or more of professional
experience in the industry. The average time
working in the industry was more than 15
years.
Current involvement of the respondents
in professional practice varied widely. 39%
of the sample described themselves as highly
involved (top two boxes on a 7-point scale)
while a quarter were currently uninvolved.
The average rating was 4.4. Involvement was
highest by region in North America (average
score 5.2) and lowest in Europe except the
UK and Australia (both 3.4).
The respondents’ level of research activity
77 replies were
received in total
210 Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
also varied widely, with 39% describing them-
selves as highly active (top two boxes) and
27% as research inactive; the average rating
was 4.3.
65% of the sample worked full time for
their university while a quarter of the sample
worked 50% time or less. The average contract
size among those working part time was 0.4.
The most common reason for working part
time was that no full-time post was available.
While all interviewed were active in research,
professional practice or both, there is an inverse
relationship between professional practice and
level of research activity (Table 2)
Everyone who responded to the survey was
involved in research, professional practice,
or both, but there was an inverse relation-
ship between professional practice and level
of research activity. 31% of the sample had a
high involvement in professional practice but
only low to medium research involvement,
while 34% had a high involvement in research
but only low to medium involvement in pro-
fessional practice. This implies that academ-
ics within PS have to choose how to allocate
their research time. They are likely to choose
practical work or research, but seldom both.
Publishing studies courses come in all shapes
and sizes, and are accommodated in many
different faculties/schools
The subject of how PS is accommodated
within universities will be covered in more
detail in a second paper but in brief, and to
provide context to this paper, the survey dem-
onstrated that the size of PS departments
ranges from just a few students to departments
with more than 500 full-/half-eld undergrad-
uates. About 60% of respondents had under-
graduates and 90% postgraduates, both cat-
egories either as full- or half-eld. A third of
respondents had Ph.D. students undertaking
further study within PS. Of these, the median
number of Ph.D. students in the department
was 3, with a mean of 4.4.
For the most part these departments are
relatively new. Just three respondents taught
Table 1. Professional experience, research activity, and contract size of the respondents
Years professional experience/ practice in
publishing1
21+ years (38%), 11–20 years (25%),
6–10 years (14%), Under 5 years (23%)
Current involvement in professional
practice2
Highly involved (39%), medium (37%), low involvement
(24%)
Average rating 4.4 (out of 7)
Current level of research activity3Highly active (39%), medium (34%), inactive (27%)
Average rating 4.3
Contract size at university4
Full time (65%)
0.6–0.8 contract (8%)
Half-time or less (27%)
Reasons for fractional contract
(% of those on fractional contracts.
Multiple answers possible)5
No full time-post available (63%),
Allows maintenance of professional commitments (38%),
Allows maintenance of personal commitments (17%)
Number of respondents (n): n1 = 71, n2 = 70, n3 = 71, n4 = 66, n5 = 24.
Table 2. Level of own research versus level of involvement with professional practice
Own involvement
in research
Own level of professional practice (%)
High Medium Low Total (%)
High 7 19 15 42
Medium 13 9 9 31
Low 18 9 0 27
Total 39 37 24 100
n = 65.
65% of the
sample worked
full time for
their university
Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies 211
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
on courses which were established prior to
1980. 60% of the respondents taught on
courses which have begun since 2000.
PS sits in many departments, (includ-
ing publishing, communications and media,
english, writing and information science),
and many faculties/schools (including arts,
engineering, humanities, and technology).
The usage of visiting lecturers for teaching
within the eld is various. 40% of respondents
reported that half the teaching or more was
done by visiting lecturers, while 29% reported
that teaching was almost totally (90%+)
in-house.
Universities put value on professional practice
and experience when recruiting PS staff, and it
is considered important in attracting students
(Figure 1)
Respondents agreed strongly, and across the
board, about the importance of their profes-
sional experience in securing their role at
university. When asked to rate the impor-
tance of their experience in getting their job
on a 7-point scale the average score was 6.1,
the highest average score of all the rating
questions.
Professional experience is also considered
an important factor in attracting students to
an institution (average score 5.4). To a lesser
extent it is also considered important in inu-
encing the recommendations of their parents/
school advisors (average score 4.7).
Professional practice/experience is not generally
used or valued by colleagues from other
departments (Figure 2)
While respondents felt that their professional
experience was reasonably valued within their
immediate department (average score of 5.1),
they felt that little value was placed on it by
their school/faculty (average score 3.6) or by
the university as a whole (3.3).
Similarly while in general respondents
felt that the advice they gave to students on
careers and employability was somewhat val-
ued (average score 4.9), they felt that their
understanding of publishing was not being
Figure 1. Signicance of professional experience (n1 = 64, n2 = 65, n3 = 65).
Figure 2. Value placed on professional experience (n1 = 65, n2 = 64, n3 = 64).
professional
experience was
reasonably
valued within
their immediate
department, but
respondents felt
that little value
was placed on it
by their school/
faculty
212 Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
used by colleagues seeking to get published
(average score 3.3 with just 18% in top two
boxes) (Figure 3).
By region, advice on careers was most highly
valued in North America (average score 5.4)
while advice to colleagues on publishing was
most valued in Africa (average score 4.8).
It is clear from the verbatim replies that
some respondents feel they could be used to
better effect to help. Many replied that they
would denitely like to help more. However,
time pressures clearly represent an issue for a
number of respondents, and there is some evi-
dence of resentment at the attitudes towards
the PS departments:
‘We are used in this way as much as we
are capable of being used; anymore and we
would not have time for our central respon-
sibilities to our own students and our own
research.’
‘I give publishing workshops on other cam-
puses, but my institution does not welcome
this service.’
‘It would be helpful if these services
were taken into account when allocating
work loads.’
‘I’d be interested (in offering help to col-
leagues) if I didn’t believe the only time
colleagues showed interest in the publishing
faculty was when it serves their interests.’
‘Happy to be involved. We are usually
ignored.’
The resources and encouragement devoted
to research in PS within the universities
is currently mixed – there is evidence of
organizations ‘talking the talk, but not walking
the walk’ (Figure 4)
Research activity is generally considered
important as part of performance review/
appraisal for PS academics, with an average
score of 5.3. 59% noted that it is an impor-
tant element of their review, while just 16%
felt it unimportant. Some respondents explic-
itly mentioned that their university was not
research focused:
‘Our Publishing Studies course is very prac-
tical and professionally orientated with lit-
tle connection to academic research.’
‘We are not a research university. Everyone
in the publishing faculty pursues research
Figure 3. Extent to which knowledge of publishing is used for advice on careers and publishing (n1 = 71,
n2 = 71).
Figure 4. Encouragement to research, and signicance of research in performance appraisal (n1 = 69,
n2 = 66).
research activity
is generally
considered
important
as part of
performance
review/
appraisal for PS
academics
Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies 213
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
or professional work as appropriate to their
own particular eld of interest.’
Similarly there are varying levels of encour-
agement within institutions to be research
active. The average rating was 4.9, with 44%
scoring in top two boxes, and 18% who felt
their institution was discouraging of involve-
ment in research. Encouragement tended to
be perceived as highest by those with the least
number of years of professional practice: those
with under 5 years scored an average rating
of 5.9, falling to 3.7 for those with 25+ years.
This could imply that those who are not from
a professional background are being encour-
aged to research, whereas those from a pro-
fessional background are seen as otherwise
engaged. A verbatim comment is interesting
in this light:
‘In 2011 the Australian Qualications
Framework was introduced in Australia.
This is a national policy for regulated quali-
cations in Australian education and train-
ing. This coupled with universities prefer-
ring to only employ people with PhDs as
part of their teaching cohort could ulti-
mately lead to practice-based areas (such
as Publishing Studies) being taught by aca-
demics with little or no industry knowledge
and it being taught at a theoretical rather
than a practice-based level.’
Table 3. Awareness of support processes for research within the university, and extent of respondents’
own research (Q: How research active are you?).
Average score by category (7-point scale, 7 = strongly aware), (number of respondents)
there are
varying levels of
encouragement
within
institutions to
be research
active
214 Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
Although research was considered impor-
tant by 59% in their appraisals, only just
over half of the respondents had a Director
of Research with a responsibility for PS. Just
40% of respondents participated themselves
in a research committee or group within their
institution or had a colleague within PS who
did so. Of those with research support groups
just under half were considered to be very
active (top two boxes) and 20% were inactive
(bottom two boxes).
The respondents’ awareness of research sup-
port processes within the university was mixed
(Table 3). 36% felt that they were very aware
of the processes while 25% felt that they were
unaware. The average rating was 4.3. Not sur-
prisingly, awareness was highest amongst full-
time staff, those who are involved in research
themselves, and those working in departments
where there is a research support group and/
or PhD students and in departments where
research is important in appraisals and is
encouraged. There were notable regional dif-
ferences in the awareness of research support
processes with Europe except UK scoring the
highest.
There is strong agreement at the respondent
level with the benets of research (Figure 5)
There is strong agreement that it is benecial
for those teaching within universities to be
research active (average score 5.6) and that it
will be important in the future (5.8).
But also a strong recognition of the time
difculties involved and other barriers to
conducting research
The main reasons for not taking part in
research were ‘Too busy/no time/don’t want to
use own time’ (30% of sample) and those who
felt that they had been ‘Recruited as a practi-
tioner not a researcher’ (28%).
‘I could do a lot more research if I was
not running two programmes, teaching on
another, and registered for a PhD.’
Other barriers noted included lack of knowl-
edge about research opportunities and pro-
cesses, lack of funding and lack of appropriate
associations:
‘A key thing is identifying what the larger
research groupings/disciplinary allegiances
that research-active colleagues have. And
also how much publishers value research.’
‘The need for an effective professional body.
More industry funding for scholarships!’
‘It would be great if there was a readily
accessible list of conferences and journals
that are appropriate for Publishing Studies
– maybe an email list/network?’
‘I would suggest that a network of publish-
ing departments be established especially in
Africa or global where conferences/semi-
nars/workshop for sharing their challenges
and other issues.’
‘More research opportunities are needed in
Australia for publishing research.’
The survey indicated that there may be missed
opportunities for commercially funded research
(Figure 6)
Respondents across the board noted that they
were not involved in commercially funded
research by external organizations – the aver-
age rating was just 1.7, the lowest average of
all the rating questions.
Figure 5. Perceived benets of being research active now and in the future (n1 = 67, n2 = 69).
strong
agreement that
it is benecial
for those
teaching within
universities to
be research
active
Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies 215
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
Opportunities for commercial research
were thought to exist, however, with 22%
believing there were extensive opportunities
(top two boxes) while the average score was
4.1. A respondent from the US noted that
there could be opportunities through organi-
zations such as Google or Microsoft, but for
the moment his/her university still primarily
aims for government funding and grants for
research.
The most active researchers are those working
full time in departments with a strong research
culture
When asked to rate their own level of research
activity (see Table 3) the average score was
4.3. Scores were higher in institutions where
there is a strong research culture; the scores
for institutions with an active research group
(6.0) or moderately active group (5.6) were
particularly high, though other indicators were
high management encouragement of research
(5.5) and a high importance of research in
performance appraisal (5.4). Academics who
were highly active in professional practice and
academics on a part time contract had a rela-
tively low level of research activity, with scores
of 3.3 and 3.2 respectively. By region scores
were highest in Europe, excluding the UK
(6.0) and Australia (5.7).
Discussion: what are the barriers to and
opportunities for research within PS?
We will begin with consideration of the
barriers and then move onto the opportunities
identied, considering both within the con-
text of this research and the wider experience
of the contributors to the paper.
Barriers to involvement in research within PS
Shortage of time
While shortage of time is a general cri de coeur
among academics across all disciplines, the PS
respondents felt their lack of time was exac-
erbated by a number of factors, as outlined
below.
The administrative responsibilities of a
profession-orientated discipline
Courses with a practice or professional focus
often require a level of administrative servic-
ing that is not required within more tradi-
tional disciplines.
‘My non-teaching time is consumed by
administrative responsibilities.’
Students taking PS in most cases undertake
a placement, and many courses incorporate
assignments into this experience which require
reective thinking and prior study of the host
organization. Although institutions gener-
ally put the burden of nding the placement
onto the student, there are still many associ-
ated management tasks such as promoting an
effective match, screening CVs for organiza-
tions who require a shortlist to be put forward,
ensuring formalities are established (hours of
work, health and safety procedures, conrm-
ing procedures for employer feedback and
access to a reference in future) and many lec-
turers also try to visit the students while they
are in situ. Placements that work well may
require little attention, but inevitably some go
less well than others. Those that require more
diplomatic management can consume a lot of
time, with the fear that the host organization
may be unwilling to take a student from the
same institution in future.
Figure 6. Current engagement in commercially funded research and future potential (n1 = 60, n2 = 63).
respondents
across the
board noted
that they were
not involved in
commercially
funded research
by external
organizations
216 Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
Similarly, guest speakers from the profes-
sion are solicited within courses to extend stu-
dent understanding of the profession. There
can be a temptation for these to be viewed
internally within universities as ‘double time’
accounting; paying a lecturer to manage the
class and then paying someone else to deliver
the content. The management of guests can
be very labour intensive – and sometimes feel
like more work than the individual just deliv-
ering the lecture themselves. The speed of
change within the industry, and hence chang-
ing requirements, means a xed programme of
visiting lecturers, rolling from year to year, is
not always appropriate.
Similarly, module assignments need regu-
lar updating. Setting up ‘live’ projects in con-
junction with publishing companies benets
the student experience, and helps them make
contacts within the industry they hope to join,
but takes considerable liaison and manage-
ment time.
Courses with an industry focus regularly
establish a board of associated professionals
in support. Theoretically they are there for
advice and consultation; in reality their role is
two-way as many professionals appreciate the
‘helicopter’ view of the academic who builds
up an overview of the industry from all sides.
Board meetings are organized at regular inter-
vals, and for these there is associated planning
and delivery of materials, as well as the need
to maintain relationships in between formal
opportunities for contact.
The need to keep up to date with industry
practice in a fast-changing sector
There is a strong need for those teaching PS
to keep up-to-date with what is happening
within the publishing industry.
Whereas a university lecturer working
within an established discipline may still be
able to deliver a basic syllabus based on what
they were themselves taught as an undergradu-
ate, furnished with updated references to more
recent papers and new research, all aspects of
publishing, from manuscript creation and pro-
duction, to dissemination and marketing are
undergoing a tremendous period of change.
If courses in PS are to deliver students whose
understanding and skills are relevant to the
contemporary employment market, it is vital
for those teaching them to maintain their own
industry awareness, perhaps by professional
involvement, freelance work, or maintaining
close contact with industry professionals. How
such professional involvement is monitored
and reported within the host university needs
consideration.
Managing international students
Although not unique to PS, there is a strong
international market for students within this
eld, particularly among institutions offering
courses in English. Ensuring that all are able
to participate fully and monitoring how inter-
national students are adapting to new meth-
ods of content delivery, methods of assessment
and cohort communication is, however, labour
intensive. Many universities are introducing
measures to improve student experience and
hence engagement, but systems of one-to-one
tutoring appointments are a further drain on
academic time.
Time spent representing PS within
universities
Publishing studies academics were in general
willing to offer guidance to colleagues seeking
information on the industry, or advice on how
best to present material.
Participating in university service (e.g. tak-
ing part in university committees and work-
ing parties, involvement in interviewing and
internal assessment) is a general expectation
for all university staff. For some PS staff, work-
ing towards the inclusion of a profession-ori-
entated discipline within university systems,
lobbying may take the form of an extended
involvement in university service; in order to
widen the prole, or demonstrate the value,
of both the discipline and its associated staff.
Such activities reduce time that can otherwise
be spent on research.
Financial support for time on research
Finally under consideration of time comes the
issue of how universities fund and allocate aca-
demic contracts; this is of direct relevance to
time available for research. A signicant num-
ber of staff within PS are on fractional con-
tracts; this is the consequence of the lack of
availability of full-time contracts rather than
lifestyle choice. 34% of the sample were work-
ing part-time, with 27% on half-time or less,
and so in receipt of little paid time for their
the
management
of guests can
be very labour
intensive
Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies 217
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
research activity. Fractional members of staff
were often supporting their part-time univer-
sity hours with paid employment elsewhere,
thus leaving little time for research even in
their own time.
‘I am already at the extent of what I can
manage.’
Information on sabbaticals was not specically
requested in the survey (in retrospect, a clear
oversight) but one respondent noted:
‘I am not permitted access to paid sabbati-
cals to perform research … I would love to
write academic papers but often get caught
up in the teaching and admin side of the
job and my freelance work.’
Lack of inclusion of PS within research support
processes; lack of awareness of these processes
amongst PS academics
It is also important to consider how well PS is
integrated within the research culture of the
host university. What gets credit in traditional
academic disciplines (writing papers, secur-
ing academic grants) may need different cri-
teria within profession-orientated disciplines
(promoting entrepreneurialism, creativity and
commercial awareness; securing placements;
gaining nancial support from non-academic
sources including industry) and there was
evidence that monitoring processes were not
established to spot the benets of good prac-
tice within profession- and practice-orientated
areas.
The research also identied that a signi-
cant number of respondents had low aware-
ness of the research support processes.
‘I choose to be active but as someone
from professional practice it is difcult to
nd out how research works in academic
institutions.’
‘The barriers really for us are around not
knowing how to go about doing research
and getting funding. Also no hours are
allocated to doing it in any real way so you
have to do it in your own time.’
‘I would welcome the opportunity to
research publishing in this new publishing
environment of the 21st century.’
Individual awareness of the Director of
Research and involvement in research pro-
cesses was heavily linked to an active research
culture within the department already.
Lack of integration of PS within academia
Lack of ownership for a fundamentally
interdisciplinary area
Publishing studies draws on many disciplines
(business/commerce, marketing, history,
philosophy,literature, sociology, anthropology,
etc.) but given that publishing is a require-
ment of any academic discipline it is rel-
evant across the entire university. Siting of
associated departments of PS is varied, from
information management to business studies,
from literature to journalism. A lack of both
interest and responsibility for an area that is
hard to dene consistently emerged from the
research.
The issue of PS as a discipline is relevant,
as it is for academics involved in any new eld
of study. Publishing studies has the character-
istics of an academic discipline (an academic
community, peer-reviewed publications, con-
ferences, a student body) but there is a ten-
dency for academic communities to be bound-
aried, with an automatic resistance towards
new disciplines and an instinctive mistrust of
multidisciplinary areas. Profession-orientated
disciplines can thus be seen with double sus-
picion rather than the natural beneciary of
academic curiosity:
‘I sense that publishing studies is not seen
as a real academic discipline. Its inter-
disciplinary nature means it spreads across
faculties and is hard to boundary. The sub-
ject is useful for case studies when the uni-
versity needs to show how it engages with
industry or produces useful research but is
otherwise not really included.’
‘Colleagues tend to view the publishing fac-
ulty as a free resource towards getting pub-
lished and receiving free publishing services
and advice (editorial, design, production,
publicity, marketing, etc. ) without a real
interest in what we do.’
‘Publishing studies in Africa is still in its
infancy. Not many people are taking it
seriously. Poor funding also leads to poor
research interest by academics.’
a signicant
number of staff
within PS are
on fractional
contracts
218 Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
‘As the area needs theoretical rigour more
than vocationalism, associations with book
history and media studies academic net-
works are crucial.’
Bias against PS based on negative
experiences within publishing
Given that any academic involved in research
must necessarily deal with publishing profes-
sionals, several responders raised prejudices
within the academic community against pub-
lishers as a species and how this impacts on
views of PS. It is common for authors in gen-
eral, not just academic ones, to underestimate
the contribution publishers make to content
being ready for dissemination, with the ongo-
ing irony that effective publishing is often evi-
dent only when absent. It is fairly predictable
that those who have been turned down by
the industry – their ideas for publications not
accepted – may be tempted to downplay the
professionalism of the individuals involved,
and to pass on resentment of the gatekeeper
to those from a similar sector background.
‘Publishing studies programme is misun-
derstood by many in the university and in
the country. Most think that doing a degree
in languages is enough for one to practice
publishing in the eld. There is need for
lecturers in the eld to work extra hard to
inuence the thinking of those who make
decisions in universities about publishing.’
This tendency reaches its apogee within uni-
versities where senior staff arrange for external
speakers (often their own publishers, perhaps
as a way of cementing the relationship) to
come and address academics about how pub-
lishing works.
‘It’s rather insulting when senior man-
agement bring in their own publishers to
advise on how to get published when they
have an MA Publishing Course and associ-
ated experts within the university.’
The usefulness of PS metrics to support
case studies within universities
Ironically, PS’s usefulness when universities
need to be able to demonstrate both their
ability to link with industry and promote the
employability of students may block further
identication of opportunities to involve staff
in research. The development of associated
case studies can promote assumptions that
profession- and practice-orientated areas are
useful box-ticking examples for the various
metrics of university monitoring rather than
active areas of research.
Negative attitudes towards academic research
from practitioners working in universities
As universities are required to search for evi-
dence of their engagement with industry, PS
can make a useful study. This is often appre-
ciated by those teaching the discipline who
do not wish to engage in academic research,
perhaps managing professional commitments
within the industry with a fractional contract
within a university.
An AJE4 conference in January 2013
attracted papers on the benets of research to
staff with professional experience now working
in universities and considered that research-
informed teaching is more energetic, more
focused, and more up to date – hence ben-
eting both lecturers and students. However,
this wider thinking on the benets of research
for profession-orientated subjects within aca-
demia for those recruited from a professional
background is not necessarily universally
accepted; managerial staff who do not them-
selves wish to engage in research may not
encourage wider involvement.
Opportunities for increasing involvement in
academic research within PS
Analysis of the research ndings suggests a
number of opportunities, both from address-
ing current barriers to research, particularly
in administration, and by exploiting strengths
and opportunities to undertake research, prof-
iting from associated commercial and govern-
mental opportunities.
Addressing the barriers to research
There is considerable scope for improving par-
ticipation in research through making admin-
istrative changes. These could include:
• Allocation of management support to liberate
academics for industry-orientated research/
paid consultancy. Opportunities for aca-
demic involvement in research could be
developed through relatively routine reallo-
several
responders
raised
prejudices
within the
academic
community
against
publishers as a
species and how
this impacts on
views of PS
Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies 219
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
cation of management tasks associated with
course administration. For example, there
are considerable opportunities for aca-
demics who maintain an industry involve-
ment to be more involved in commercial
research and with some administrative
realignment this should be achievable; lib-
erating them from some of the time-heavy
management tasks connected with running
a profession-orientated MA such as book-
ing guest speakers, organizing placements,
and circulating information on jobs and
opportunities to students. Perhaps there is a
useful ‘lab technician’ model that could be
developed for course support.
• Better access to information on research pro-
cesses and support and their inclusion within
staff monitoring. There is clear evidence
that research involvement is greater within
departments where there is consistent
research support and where research is val-
ued in appraisal.
• Improved inclusion of PS within university
planning, processes, and communications. The
identication of PS as a discipline and the
interest of senior management in its stu-
dents, processes, and research outcomes
would arguably increase the perceived
importance of academic research within
PS, and promote individual academics’ will-
ingness to be involved. In particular, based
on their industry involvement PS academ-
ics could offer guidance to their academic
communities on some of the major issues of
shared concern, e.g. open access and data/
text mining.
• Promotion of collaboration. There is scope
to increase interdisciplinary initiatives and
collaboration, including research groups
and involvement in grant applications and
bids. Here a profession-orientated area can
offer strong benets in establishing routes
to successful outcomes and impact. The
outcomes of profession-orientated research
within PS are relatively easy to justify, both
for grant applications, and for professional
and academic impact. This is the kind of
research that supports student employabil-
ity and that governments internationally
seem keen to see develop.
• Increase in staff fractions and the alloca-
tion of sabbaticals. This would provide staff
with more time for research. As this would
require an increase in funding, this leads
to consideration of associated commercial
opportunities.
Developing commercial opportunities
Explore opportunities for the commercial
development of funded research
Turning to commercial opportunities, consid-
eration of these should perhaps start with the
signicant gap reported in key nding 9 above
between ‘How much of your research is com-
mercially funded by external organizations’
(average score 1.7) and ‘In your opinion, are
there opportunities for commercial research
by external organizations?’ (average score 4.1).
Institutions that have developed this
involvement further have found associated
benets. For example, at Kingston University
we have established a programme of industry-
orientated dissertation supervisors, by engag-
ing (and training) publishers to monitor
student projects and dissertations. This has
emerged as a rich way of developing relevant
and current student projects that improve
student employability – and often leads to
jobs. But in addition to beneting students,
the process offers commercial organizations
the opportunity to develop industry-relevant
research and benet from the support of a
junior researcher in its development. This
surely has a commercial value, and might in
the long run lead to nancial remuneration,
either a direct monetary contribution to the
university or students or the establishment of
paid bursaries with a promise of employment
in the longer term; both models strengthen-
ing the links between academia and industry.
Similarly, many courses recruit ‘live’ proj-
ects from publishers for student assignments,
involving professionals in delivering feedback
and this too could potentially grow into remu-
nerated relationships. Taking these opportu-
nities further, many universities have devel-
oped ‘enterprise support’ services to look for
opportunities to sell the expertise of academ-
ics within industry, whether for consultancy or
support on individual projects.
Also highlighted was the implicit value
placed by industry on student skills and
knowledge; this suggested by the number of
job opportunities made available through aca-
demics in this area:
many courses
recruit ‘live’
projects from
publishers
for student
assignments,
involving
professionals
in delivering
feedback
220 Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
‘During the last academic year I had close
to 100 (student) job opportunities come
across my desk, at least 65–70% of which
were paid.’
In addition to commercial opportunities that
could result in a nancial payback, there may
also be opportunities for building the reputa-
tion of the institution, with longer-term poten-
tial for building the department. PS courses
are already spawning publishing services com-
panies, and perhaps this development could be
shepherded from within the university as an
extension of their brand and outreach, in the
same way that professional choirs have grown
out of university music departments or indus-
try specialist PR rms out of fashion courses.
Perhaps start-up funding and business mentor-
ing could be offered in return for a nancial
stake in the business, rather than requiring
enterprising students to manage alone from
the moment their course nishes.
Exploit the high perceived value of the
academic overview
Universities offering PS regularly recruit a
mixture of academic and professional external
examiners and it is signicant that those from
a professional background often highlight
their involvement with a university as a career
positive, itemizing it on their CV to demon-
strate the extended commitment to thinking
and reecting on their industry.
The academic overview of industry also
has a potential commercial value. Whereas
the traditional perception has often been that
the publishing advisory boards assembled by
departments of PS are there in order to ensure
connectedness to industry, in fact high lev-
els of attendance at associated meetings, and
ongoing connectedness between meetings, has
implied that professionals feel they too benet
from the connection – both from the academ-
ic’s industry overview and from involvement
with the reective practices of universities.
Make content from PS courses more widely
available within industry and society
There are possibilities for individual modules
from PS courses to be offered within indus-
try, either for longer-term credit if the student
decides to do more in the future or standalone
study, and for more experienced professionals
to consider taking a professional PhD. This is
a route that is already well established within
the discipline of education, where mid-career
educationalists can study alongside their pro-
fessional role and develop a work-based proj-
ect which enhances both their skills and their
standing in the workplace.
Develop civic engagement, with opportunities
for funded contributions
Universities are also developing plans of civic
engagement, one element of which is sharing
academic content within their wider commu-
nity. Again opportunities exist for this to be
a commercial arrangement, perhaps involv-
ing local industry and recruitment agencies,
either within or without the university. There
are opportunities for publishers and academics
to work together on the development of short
courses and other saleable academic content
for different markets, extending the range of
products and services publishing companies
are able to offer their market, all such devel-
opments potentially resulting in additional
income for the university. Publishing rms are
already offering courses in how to get pub-
lished or write, but there are some other sub-
ject areas that may also be particularly ripe for
wider development, in particular book history.
Make the content from PS courses more
widely available within academia
Finally there are signicant inter-faculty or
inter-institutional opportunities for the use
of PS staff, with their expert knowledge of a
professional area of interest to the entire aca-
demic community, to explain how the industry
works and promote effective engagement:
‘I believe there are many opportunities for
other departments to use the publishing
programme.’
These could be made available across institu-
tions, raising internal invoices – saving exter-
nal expenditure and at the same time high-
lighting in-house expertise.
Conclusion
The research suggests that the involvement
of new disciplines in research, including those
that are profession-orientated, is encouraged
(at least in theory) by universities. In the UK,
for example, the denition of research pro-
PS courses
are already
spawning
publishing
services
companies
Barriers and opportunities for research in publishing studies 221
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
vided by Hefce5 is broad-ranging, and in addi-
tion to conventional academic research:
‘It includes work of direct relevance to the
needs of commerce, industry, and to the
public and voluntary sectors.’
As research is becoming more important
within universities there is clear evidence of
barriers to involvement by academic staff
within PS. The barriers have been explored
and include shortage of time (for a variety
of reasons), lack of inclusion for PS within
research support processes and lack of aware-
ness of these processes among PS academics,
and lack of integration of PS within academia.
The research has shown that within a
profession-orientated discipline such as PS,
research ourishes best where there is a
research culture, effective support processes,
and staff have access to contracts that sup-
port their involvement. Potential income-pro-
ducing opportunities have been outlined that
could be used to pay for such support, perhaps
at lower levels of responsibility and pay scales
than the academics who in the process they
liberate.
Finally some suggestions for how this
research might be further developed, and
three avenues of enquiry seem particularly
pertinent. Firstly, the work may be useful as
part of a general examination of the role of
profession-orientated disciplines within uni-
versities; the effectiveness of the opportunities
they are afforded for disciplinary development;
and the extent to which they can invigorate
professional practice through an enhanced
awareness of a variety of methodologies for
analysing processes, enriching the interpreta-
tion of data gathered during practical work.
This is worth further development within PS,
and research might be useful within the com-
parative context of other professional, inter-
disciplinary and practice-orientated areas,
such as librarianship, information science, cre-
ative writing, and media studies.
Secondly, given the strong signicance of
an active research group to academic involve-
ment in research, and collaboration as a key
publisher skill, academics within publishing
studies could be considered as strong candi-
dates for involvement in interdisciplinary and
collaborative research projects within both
their home university and other institutions.
Thirdly, given that profession- and prac-
tice-orientated areas permit the development
of research that can be implemented quickly
within a practical/industrial context, perhaps
PS could be considered as a model for how
research might be developed within other dis-
ciplines in the future.
Acknowledgements
This paper is indebted to research support group established
for the project by Dr Alison Baverstock. The group reviewed
the questionnaire, drew up a list of relevant contacts to
whom it was sent and provided feedback on the ensuing
paper. Thanks to Dr Beth Driscoll (University of Melbourne);
Assistant Professor Per Henningsgaard (Portland State
University); Emma House (Publishers Association, UK); Dr
Beth Le Roux (University of Pretoria); Dr Marianne Martens
(Kent State University, Ohio); Professor Brigitte Ouvry-Vial
(Université du Maine-Le Mans); Dr Ann Steiner (University
of Lund).
References
1. www.publishingeducation.org
2. Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and
Publishing: www.sharpweb.org
3. NB: The survey did not directly ask for the name of the
respondents’ institutions as it was thought this might
inhibit the discussion about barriers and opportunities.
From the combination of other information (e.g. coun-
try and faculty name), we estimate that at least 30 insti-
tutions are represented in the survey. The next paper
will investigate further how many universities worldwide
teach PS; the gure is likely to be at least 130. This
survey suggested that the average number of full-time
equivalent teachers of PS in each respondent’s institu-
tion is 4.4.
4. Association for Journalism Education: www.ajeuk.org
5. Hefce is the Higher Education Funding Council for
England
Alison Baverstock
Department of Journalism and Publishing
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Kingston University, Penrhyn Road
Kingston upon Thames KT1 2EE, UK
Email: a.baverstock@kingston.ac.uk
Jackie Steinitz
Email: jackie@steinitz.org
Associate Professor Alison Baverstock is course leader for
MA Publishing at Kingston University. Jackie Steinitz is an
economist and business analyst.
academics
within
publishing
studies could
be considered
as strong
candidates for
involvement in
interdisciplinary
and
collaborative
research
222 Alison Baverstock and Jackie Steinitz
LEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 27 NO. 3 JULY 2014
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