Academic Inbreeding: A Risk or Benefit for Universities?

Abstract

Academic inbreeding is a recruitment practice for universities of hiring their own graduates as future academicians. Despite its benefits, it may have damaging effects on the academy. From this point of view, this qualitative research investigated whether academic inbreeding brings benefits to universities or poses risks. It was also purposed to determine how academicians define academic inbreeding and experience it in their daily practices. To this end, twenty academicians were interviewed, and the data were analyzed with content analysis technique. Results revealed that while few academicians underlined its benefits, most academicians manifested its risks and negative experiences. Thus, it is recommended that mobility among academic staff should be encouraged.