TY - JOUR

T1 - Research assessment, emotional practices, and the social hierarchy

T2 - what can you afford to feel?

AU - Poulsen, Simone Mejding

AU - Rowlands, Julie

PY - 2023

Y1 - 2023

N2 - This paper investigates how the emotional responses towards research assessment reflect both social position and strategy in the struggle for scientific authority. This is examined through interviews with humanities researchers conducted as a part of a study on the implications for research practice of the Danish Bibliometric Research Indicator (BFI). Drawing on Bourdieu’s theory of practice and Scheer and Matthäus’ conceptualisation of the affective habitus and emotional practices, our research suggests that emotions can be conceptualized as strategic practices closely tied to the hierarchical position of the researchers. Established researchers deployed emotional practices as a form of resistance against compliance-based research assessment to retain their scientific authority and autonomy, while early-career researchers generally wanted to resist but their precarious positions did not afford them the possibility to do so. The study thus highlights the potential of studying emotions in relation to resistance and reproduction of dominance in higher education.

AB - This paper investigates how the emotional responses towards research assessment reflect both social position and strategy in the struggle for scientific authority. This is examined through interviews with humanities researchers conducted as a part of a study on the implications for research practice of the Danish Bibliometric Research Indicator (BFI). Drawing on Bourdieu’s theory of practice and Scheer and Matthäus’ conceptualisation of the affective habitus and emotional practices, our research suggests that emotions can be conceptualized as strategic practices closely tied to the hierarchical position of the researchers. Established researchers deployed emotional practices as a form of resistance against compliance-based research assessment to retain their scientific authority and autonomy, while early-career researchers generally wanted to resist but their precarious positions did not afford them the possibility to do so. The study thus highlights the potential of studying emotions in relation to resistance and reproduction of dominance in higher education.

U2 - 10.1080/01425692.2023.2229032

DO - 10.1080/01425692.2023.2229032

M3 - Journal article

VL - 44

SP - 1035

EP - 1050

JO - British Journal of Sociology of Education

JF - British Journal of Sociology of Education

SN - 0142-5692

IS - 6

ER -