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The Responsible University Exploring the Nordic Context and Beyond: Exploring the Nordic Context and Beyond
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This book explores how the notion of the responsible university manifests itself at various levels within Nordic higher education. As the impetus of the knowledge society has catapulted the higher education sector to the forefront of policy agendas, universities and other types of higher education institutions face increasing scrutiny, assessment and accountability. This book examines this phenomenon using the Nordic countries as cases in point, given the strong public commitment towards widening participation and public research investments. The editors and contributors analyse the history and current transformations of the idea of the responsible university, investigate new innovations in the educational landscape and look into how universities have begun to organise themselves to become more responsible. Drawing together scholars from the humanities and the social sciences, this interdisciplinary collection will be of interest and value to students and scholars of the role and nature of the modern university, in addition to practitioners and policy makers tasked with finding solutions to address the competing and often contradictory demands posed by a responsibility agenda.
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... Este artigo apresenta um novo instrumento para avaliar como as universidades incluem o engajamento com a sociedade em seus planejamentos institucionais. O instrumento foi desenvolvido com base nos modelos: New Flagship University (Douglass, 2016), Universidade Civica (Goddard, et al., 2016), Universidade Responsável (Sørensen et al., 2019) e Universidade Empreendedora (Clark, 1998;Etzkowitz, 1983). Além de apresentar o desenvolvimento do instrumento de avaliação, este artigo apresenta um exercicio piloto de aplicação do instrumento, com a análise dos Planos de Desenvolvimento Institucional (PDI) de 13 universidades federais brasileiras. ...
... Este artículo presenta una nueva herramienta para evaluar cómo las universidades incluyen el compromiso con la sociedad en su planificación institucional. La herramienta fue desarrollada con base en los modelos New Flagship University (Douglass, 2016), Civic University (Goddard et.al., 2016), Responsible University (Sørensen et al., 2019) y Entrepreneurial University (Clark, 1998;Etzkowitz, 1983). Además de presentar el desarrollo de la herramienta de evaluación, este artículo presenta un ejercicio piloto de aplicación de la herramienta, analizando los Planes de Desarrollo Institucional (PDI) de 13 universidades federales brasileñas. ...
... Cet article présente un nouvel outil permettant d'évaluer la manière dont les universités intègrent l'engagement envers la société dans leur planification institutionnelle. L'outil a été développé sur la base des modèles New Flagship University (Douglass, 2016), Civic University (Goddard et al., 2016), Responsible University (Sørensen et al., 2019) et Entrepreneurial University (Clark, 1998 ;Etzkowitz, 1983). En plus de présenter le développement de l'outil d'évaluation, cet article présente un exercice pilote d'application de l'outil, en analysant les plans de développement institutionnel (IDP) de 13 universités fédérales brésiliennes. ...
Apesar da crescente importância atribuída ao engajamento das universidades com a sociedade, ainda há necessidade de entender como este tema esta presente nos mecanismos de planejamento e avaliação das universidades. Este artigo apresenta um novo instrumento para avaliar como as universidades incluem o engajamento com a sociedade em seus planejamentos institucionais. O instrumento foi desenvolvido com base nos modelos: New Flagship University (Douglass, 2016), Universidade Civica (Goddard, Hazelkorn & Vallance, 2016), Universidade Responsável (Sørensen, Geschwind, Kekale & Pinheiro, 2019) e Universidade Empreendedora (Clark, 1998; Etzkowitz, 1983). Além de apresentar o desenvolvimento do instrumento de avaliação, este artigo apresenta um exercicio piloto de aplicação do instrumento, com a análise dos Planos de Desenvolvimento Institucional (PDI) de 13 universidades federais brasileiras. Com a aplicação foi possível realizar uma análise da presença dos diferentes temas nos documentos analisados, e também uma análise por instituição. A análise por tema mostrou que “Acesso e Permanência” e “Inovação e Empreendedorismo” estavam muito presentes no planejamento das universidades analisadas, enquanto que temas como “Divulgação Científica” e “Cursos de Extensão” apareceram com menos frequência e detalhamento. A análise por instituição, permitiu organisar as 13 universidades analisadas em quatro grupos de acordo com a presença das atividades de engajamento com a sociedade nos PDIs, desde muito alta presença até baixa presença. Espera-se que o artigo tenha contribuído para a discussão de como as universidades podem se planejar para atividades de engajamento com a sociedade, e que o instrumento possa contribuir para o aprendizado institucional das universidades.
... The greatest number of studies under this theme involved Finland's higher education (n = 22) and the smallest number were on Danish higher education (n = 4). The common objects of the studies at the system level were the adoption of neo-liberal policies and strategic plans to utilize rankings (thereby pursuing the status of a worldclass university), structural changes to promote excellence and global competitiveness, and efforts by national governments to shift the paradigm from cooperation to competition and to promote market-like efficiency and structures (Aula & Siltaoja, 2021;Lundin & Geschwind, 2023;Thun, 2020;Tervasmäki et al., 2020;Nikkola & Tervasmäki, 2022;Li, 2020;Hansen et al., 2019;Sørensen et al., 2019;Geschwind et al., 2019a;Pinheiro et al., 2014;Pinheiro et al., 2019;Dovemark et al., 2018, p. 408;Liu et al., 2018;Ursin, 2017;Tienari et al., 2016;Kauppinen & Kaidesoja, 2014;Jauhiainen et al., 2015;Välimaa et al., 2014;Wiborg, 2013;Hallonsten & Silander, 2012;Musiał, 2010;Schmidt, 2009;Jauhiainen et al., 2009;Keskinen & Silius, 2006;Häyrinen-Alestalo & Peltola, 2006). At the institutional level, the structural/governance studies dealt with topics such as shifts in institutional governance policy towards the principle of quasi-market accountability, formalizing external stakeholders within the governance of HE, changes in leadership and management structures, and professional mechanisms allowing new forms of evaluation (Schnurbus & Edvardsson, 2022;Jokila, 2020;Tapanila et al., 2020;Jalava, 2013;Nokkala & Bladh, 2014). ...
... Pinheiro and Berg (2017) and Musiał (2010) provide evidence of a transition from traditional forms of governance towards structures emphasizing market-like efficiency over time, reflecting changes in the discourse around rankings. Accordingly, in a pursuit to climb global rankings, Finland revamped its university governance, shifting from state-run entities to autonomous institutions, leveraging academic capitalism and strategic performance measures (Keskinen & Silius, 2006;Schmidt, 2009;Jalava, 2013;Kauppinen & Kaidesoja, 2014;Tienari et al., 2016;Sørensen et al., 2019;Tervasmäki et al., 2020;Aula & Siltaoja, 2021). Norway implemented similar changes, affording universities greater autonomy (Musiał, 2010;Lind et al., 2019;Geschwind et al. 2019b;Hansen et al., 2019;Pinheiro et al., 2019). ...
... The focus on funding involved topics such as diversifying funding, including competitionbased funding, and commercializing results from research and development as a means of promoting the excellence of the university. Furthermore, performance-based university structures and strategic changes in university funding were common topics under this theme (Griffin, 2022;Aula & Siltaoja, 2021;Jokila, 2020;Hansen et al., 2019;Geschwind et al., 2019a;Pinheiro et al., 2019;Jokila et al., 2019;Sørensen et al., 2019;Ursin, 2017;Kristensen & Karlsen, 2018;Elken et al., 2016b;Kauppinen & Kaidesoja, 2014;Nokkala & Bladh, 2014;Jalava, 2013;Hallonsten & Silander, 2012;Musiał, 2010;Schmidt, 2009;Keskinen & Silius, 2006). The greatest number of studies on funding and finances related to Finland's higher education system (n = 10), and to a combined Nordic perspective (n = 9). 2 10 2 3 9 26 Educational affairs 3 7 2 6 8 26 Research policies 1 5 2 3 10 21 Internationalization 1 6 2 2 2 13 In total 11 50 17 22 44 144 Note: Different themes could arise within the same article; hence, the total number of observations amounts to more than 86. ...
... Globally, HEIs are increasingly pressured to enhance the social impact of their teaching, research, innovation and engagement activities (Chankseliani & McCowan, 2021;Sørensen et al., 2019). Kaldeway (2018) has pointed out that global 'grand challenges' have started to dominate scientific discussions and policymakers' funding schemes in the twenty-first century. ...
... In so doing, it can enable the formation of research clusters, partnerships with industries and entrepreneurial activities, fostering a knowledge-based economy (Cai & Liu, 2015). At a broader level, state governance nurtures the integration of social responsibility into the fabric of HE systems and institutions (Sørensen et al., 2019). By promoting community engagement, social entrepreneurship and civic participation, state-guided frameworks enable students and faculty to address pressing social issues (like CC) and contribute to nation-building (Johnsen et al., 2015;Watson et al., 2011). ...
This edited international volume investigates the role of universities and other types of higher education institutions (HEIs) in tackling climate change (CC) in the context of political steering and policy frameworks. In this introductory chapter, we first map the big picture of the global problem of CC, what causes it and the key players in the area. The discussion is somewhat simplified but hopefully gives insights of why the problem is so pervasive and what could be HEIs’ and policy’s potential roles in global CC mitigation. We then turn into the policy—HEI nexus and discuss the shifting overall policies and their steering effect on the HE sector. Short descriptions of the empirical case studies conclude the introduction.
... Even though Clark (1998) carried out this analysis two and half decades ago, the dynamism between society and universities, and in particular the range of demands and expectations set for the latter have intensified. The overall direction remains: more tasks and expectations are directed at HEIs, as documented by Enders and Boers (2009), with external pressures for demonstrating societal impact becoming increasingly salient (Sørensen et al., 2019). ...
This chapter illustrates two contrasting national policy approaches to deal with the role of science and higher education in climate change (CC) mitigation in Europe by the end of the year 2023. Using two distinct national case studies CoARA (Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment) and the REF (Research Excellence Framework) as illustrations we have located different drivers, origins, and backgrounds of higher education (HE) policy and steering, and different modes of the ‘social pact’ between HE and society in relation to CC. Whereas in the Dutch case higher education institutions are expected, and largely subscribe, to a more central role in CC mitigation, in the UK this occurs in a more indirect and less substantive manner by resorting to intermediary bodies and a marginal level of institutional commitment. The chapter highlights some implications for both policy and future research.
... Many HEIs strategies have been enacted around the premise (and promise) that publicly funded and governed HEIs would help solve specific global problems. This is in line with growing societal expectations toward stronger societal responsiveness and engagement (Sørensen et al., 2019). This process encompasses changes in financial steering approaches, as there is dedicated funding for those HEIs who (promise to) excel in the matter. ...
This chapter describes current trends in academic leadership in the Nordic context, also prevalent in other Western societies. There has been a gradual but steady move towards more top-down leadership approaches resulting in the erosion of collegiality and decentralised decision making. This is a paradox given the increasing complex and volatile environment under which higher education institutions operate, where more rather than less decentralisation is thought to be beneficial in fostering responsiveness and agility. By drawing upon developments in Nordic higher education the chapter sheds light on the consequences associated with the widespread and uncritical adoption of individual leadership approaches, and provides conceptual insights and empirical evidence towards embracing more systemic and organic approaches centred on resilient or adaptive leadership postures and structures.
... Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education broader range of stakeholders (Miotto et al., 2018) and there is public potential for more efficiency, effectiveness and relevance for society (Meyer and Sporn, 2018). This in turn increases expectations for universities to react to worldwide challenges that have raised the value of CSR in today's setting (Geschwind et al., 2019). However, previous research found a lack of university CSR because there was not a transparent vision of the university management (Calva and Vasquez, 2014). ...
Purpose
This study aims to examine the relationships between social and environmental reporting (SER) and the size and university ranking of 39 Australian universities. The study examines Australian universities and the impact of size on corporate social responsibility (CSR) using an accountability model. Not many studies have considered this relationship in the university environment.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses content analysis by applying the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) disclosure index to university annual reports and adopting the accountability model of Coy et al. (2001) to examine the impact of the size of Australian universities on SER, measured by the number of student enrolments. Data was collected in 2014. This classification of Australian universities based on size was adopted from Universities Australia (2022). The authors collected data about the academic ranking of Australian universities using the Shanghai ranking (Shanghai, 2022).
Findings
The authors predict and find that there is no relationship between SER and size. As the authors expected, the level of SER is marginally influenced by the world academic ranking of universities. The findings provide significant insight into the SER practices of Australian universities. The authors expand the SER literature and practice nationally and internationally.
Originality/value
Few studies have explored CSR in Australian universities. The current study expands the debate on SER using an accountability model in Australian universities. This paper describes CSR in 39 Australian universities and the importance of size and university ranking. The results offer new insights into the relationship between CSR in Australian universities and their size and ranking.
... At the same time, as public organisations, universities and other types of higher education institutions (HEIs) have been observing internal and external pressures to adapt their structure and core missions to act more proactively in facing contemporary societal challenges. This goal is part and parcel of a much larger higher education (HE) responsibility agenda centred on the manyfold societal impactscultural, economic, social, etc.-resulting from academic activities within teaching, research, and engagement (Sørensen et al., 2019;Powell & Dayson, 2013). In this sense, the SDGs has become a key framework to HEIs in order to attempting to enact social-responsible agendas across the board (cf. ...
Universities are value-laden organisations composed of multiple cultural norms, values and identities, associated with a wide range of sub-cultures and missions. One of the key challenges for university leadership and management is to find a balance between internal values and demands from those of external stakeholders. Thus, one imperative, in the context of ‘societal impact’ or relevance, pertains to the role of universities in help tackling the grand challenges, such as to address the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In view of this, the aim of the study is to assess the incorporation of the SDGs into the strategic planning of two large comprehensive universities from different contexts—the UK’s University of Manchester and Brazil’s University of Campinas. In doing so, we intend to answer the following question: to what extent does the sustainability agenda and the SDG's affect university values and strategic plans? Methodologically, based on document analysis, the study adopts a strand of institutional theory known as ‘institutional work’ and ‘social-symbolic work’ to analyze the data regarding the incorporation of the SDGs agenda.
Discussions about sustainability and entrepreneurship are often an “either/or” discourse. Many higher-education institutions offer sustainability education programs with the aim of enabling students to think and act sustainably without concrete tools for change. Similarly, many offerings in entrepreneurship fail to address sustainability issues. This article assumes a qualitative, constructivist, systems thinking approach to theorize and analyze the relationships between entrepreneurship and sustainability competencies and makes three contributions to theory and practice. First, it provides a thematic analysis of two important European competence frameworks—for sustainability (GreenComp) and entrepreneurial competencies (EntreComp)—and delineates their relationships. Second, through a case study of an experiential educational format, it offers three educational tools that integrate sustainability and entrepreneurial competencies. Third, it contributes to the growing field of research that combines sustainability and entrepreneurship education. The results of this paper are relevant for policymakers who want to combine sustainability and entrepreneurship in education, as well as for educators looking for methods to combine both competence frameworks.
Considering the fact that the world is undergoing huge transformation due to various factors, the education system has also taken a paradigm shift to accommodate the higher demands of society. Higher education system particularly is experimenting with new initiatives on the current education system to produce future graduates who are ready to face the challenges in the current era. Collaboration with members locally and internationally are explored to change the current nature of our curriculum system in creating a new meaning for education. The change in the education system creates a different approach on teaching pedagogies, the role of academic institution staff including administration, stakeholders, and lecturers, and also in the structure of an academic organization. The role of trans academic interface managers play a significant role in providing a deeper insight of the current realities based from the perspectives from other disciplines. Through their collaboration with academic members, they can work together to incorporate the current education system with the current expectations of the society as well as facing the challenges from the society and designing possible solutions to overcome them.
This article sheds light on the dynamics of the recently created Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) as a result of a merger between three separate institutions. A particular focus is given to NMMU’s role in the further development of the Eastern Cape Province, one of South Africa’s poorest regions. The article discusses the impact of the amalgamation pro- cess on the university’s institutional profile, strategic platform, structural features, and scope and nature of activities. The article draws upon key insights from the institutional theory of organisations and the concepts of academic core, extended periphery and structural coupling. Taking institutionalisation as a conceptual frame of reference, it points to a number of tensions and critical success factors with respect to the university’s abil- ity to respond to external demands for a stronger engagement with sur- rounding society. Path-dependencies, local champions, and support by lead- ership structures were found to be major enablers. The lack of a strong and balanced academic core and the absence of structural linkages or tight cou- pling were identified as major challenges.
All over the world new ideas and models emerge on how to organize the higher education sector and its institutions. The contributions in this volume identify the most influential transnational models and investigate their origins and mechanisms of dissemination as well as the resulting consequences for national systems. Will global trends in higher education lead to homogeneity or will they result in an increased differentiation? This question is addressed by higher education researchers with very different disciplinary and national backgrounds. Contributors are, among others, Jürgen Enders, John W. Meyer, Christine Musselin and Kerstin Sahlin-Andersson.
University mergers are sites of self-reflection where the identities of the institutions in question are juxtaposed and challenged. We examine the organisational identity of a Finnish single-faculty technical university in the context of a merger process with a comprehensive multi-disciplinary university and a university of applied sciences. Through interview data, we shed light on the self-conception of the technical university compared with the other higher education institutions. According to our analysis, the identity of the technical university is constructed and represented in relation to the aspects of society and entrepreneurialism, academic discipline and, particularly, the technical disciplines, engineering identity and organisational form and function. These aspects are compared with the aspects associated with the two other institutions involved in the merger. The self-representation of the technical university depends on whether it is compared with the research-oriented comprehensive university or with the practically oriented university of applied sciences. Although there are shared aspects of organisational identity, the identity of the technical university seems unique, and neither of the other institutions have a similar identity or offer the possibility of shared identity formation.
Today, both universities and cities are often defined as multidimensional knowledge enterprises and as suppliers of different forms of capital that constitute the modern knowledge-based economy. However, what seems under-studied in the complex and tension-filled interaction between universities and cities is how city authorities and other local stakeholders seek to exert their power to shape universities for certain purposes. By focusing on three Finnish cities and their respective universities through various research materials, we scrutinize the challenges and tensions of university-city collaboration. We pay particular attention to the ways in which local stakeholders such as city authorities and representatives of local business articulate the role and meaning of a university in a given context-who, what and how the university should "serve". Local stakeholders express high hopes regarding the role of universities in providing economically valuable knowledge, education and expertise in particular. For this reason, they hope to see the emergence of a more "eager to collaborate" type of university. In addition to that, they also generate hierarchies between different forms of knowledge and education that are generated at universities.
TiiviSTelmä: Tutkimuksessa yliopiston ja alueellisten sekä paikallisten toimijoiden välistä kanssakäymis-tä on usein lähestytty yliopiston näkökulmasta. Tässä artikkelissa tutkimme laajan haastattelu-aineiston avulla yliopiston ja kaupungin jännit-teis tä vuorovaikutussuhdetta kääntämällä huo-mion erilaisten kaupunkitoimijoiden tapoi hin määrittää yliopiston merkitys ja rooli si jain ti kau-punkien kehittämisessä. Nostamme esil le ja ana lysoimme tämän vuorovaikutuksen eri lai sia ulottuvuuksia. Avaamme näkökulmia yliopisto-jen ja kaupunkien vuorovaikutukseen tilantees-sa, jossa yliopistomaailmassa vahvistunut mana-gerialismi on osittain heikentänyt yliopistojen organisatorisen löyhäsidonnaisuuden ja aka-teemisen logiikan tarjoamaa turvaa. On toisin sanoen perusteltua tarkastella yliopiston ja kau-pungin välistä vuorovaikutusta uudesta näkö-kulmasta, jossa sijaintikaupungissa tai kaupun-kiseudulla vaikuttavat poliittiset ja taloudelliset toimijat saavat aikaisempaa vahvemman äänen. Avainsanat: Kaupungit, yliopisto, yliopistouudis-tus, paikallinen vuorovaikutus
In this chapter, I offer an interpretation of the current situation of the university by means of a sketch of a historical sociology of the university (Delanty 1998, 2001). Such a ‘history of the present’ will allow us to see the university as a reflection of the major social transformations of modernity with regard to the institutional organization of the sciences, cultural production, the polity, and the mode of production. From this perspective, there is not one dominant model of modernity but rather there are several, for modernity is a site of tensions and contradictions (Amason 1991). This leads to a view of the university as a site where many of these contradictions are expressed, for instance, the conflicts between cosmopolitanism and national culture, universalism and particularism, secularism and religion, modernity and tradition, power and culture, intellectuals and experts, democracy and knowledge.
