Open Research Reforms and the Capitalist University: Areas of Opposition and Alignment

Abstract

There is a need for more nuanced and theoretically grounded analysis of the socio-political consequences of methodological reforms proposed by the open research movement. This paper contributes by utilising the theory of academic capitalism and considering how open research reforms may interact with the priorities and practices of the capitalist university. Three manifestations of academic capitalism are considered: the development of a highly competitive job market for researchers based on metricized performance, the increase in administration resulting from university systems of compliance, and the reorganization of academic labour along principles of “post-academic science”. The ways in which open research reforms both oppose and align with these manifestations is then considered, to explore the relationships between specific reforms and academic capitalist praxis. Overall, it is concluded that open research advocates must engage more closely with the potential of reforms to negatively affect academic labour conditions, which may bring them into conflict with either university management, or those who uphold the traditional principles of an ‘all round’ academic role.