Abstract
Why examine “academic inbreeding,” a seemingly small and peripheral aspect of the academic profession, involving the appointment of faculty members who graduated from the institution employing them? Academic Inbreeding and Mobility in Higher Education: Global Perspectives had its origins in a concern at the National Research University — Higher School of Economics in Moscow that the common practice in Russia of hiring one’s own graduates for faculty jobs has profound implications for academic culture, productivity, and the essential nature of the university. This interest led to a research project collaboratively organized by the Higher School of Economics and the Boston College Center for International Higher Education and centered on an examination of academic inbreeding in eight different countries: Argentina, China, Japan, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, South Africa, and Ukraine. We quickly discovered that faculty inbreeding is common worldwide — and not just a concern in Russia. Indeed, hiring one’s own graduates is not considered either unusual or problematic in many countries. The pattern has been in place for many years — often for centuries — and is quite often considered a point of pride for a higher education system, as clear evidence that the system is able to retain its best intellectual talent.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Gouldner, Alvin W. 1957. “Cosmopolitans and Locals: Toward an Analysis of Latent Social Roles-I.” Administrative Science Quarterly 2: 281–303.
Soler, Manuel. 2001. “How Inbreeding Affects Productivity in Europe.” Nature 411: 132.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2015 Philip G. Altbach, Maria Yudkevich, and Laura E. Rumbley
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Altbach, P.G., Yudkevich, M., Rumbley, L.E. (2015). Academic Inbreeding: Local Challenge, Global Problem. In: Yudkevich, M., Altbach, P.G., Rumbley, L.E. (eds) Academic Inbreeding and Mobility in Higher Education. Palgrave Studies in Global Higher Education. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137461254_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137461254_1
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-49887-1
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-46125-4
eBook Packages: Palgrave Education CollectionEducation (R0)