Abstract
This paper addresses the hypothetical consequences of applying the rationality of the market model to the core activities of science, viz. reading, writing texts, and posing and answer- ing scientific questions. What would happen to science and to our ideas and norms regarding sci- ence if we ascribed to the individual scientist the rationality of 'economic man'? The starting point is a discussion of scientific norms and driving forces in the sociology of science. A central conclu- sion is that science has until now been perceived as being judgment driven, and that scientific judgment historically has been formed in a setting where intersubjectivity has been central. This analysis bridges the gap between classical Mertonian sociology of science and science and tech- nology studies. What then happens to discretionary decision making if we introduce economic rationality into science? Economics tends to treat science from a Mertonian viewpoint, presuppos- ing a value-based rationality, and when economic rationality (the supply/demand mechanism) is introduced, these values are not affected. However, the conclusion of this article is that this would indeed deeply affect scientific rationality. Discretionary decision making would be downplayed, as focus would shift from the text as a means of communicating the result, to the text as a commod- ity in a market of publication. This would disembed the credibility cycle, and it would alter the character of scientific work and undermine intersubjectivity. Consumption would be disembed- ded from the context of use and from the norms regarding the use of texts and their value. The knowledge base necessary for intersubjectivity would decrease.
Highlights
Research policy in the western world has become more and more central as a policy area
It is important to state that the ultimate source of the new ideas and modes of organization is the neoclassic model for economic behavior, based on the 3 pillars of self interest, competition, and profit
The purpose of this article is to explore the question of what the conceptual economization of the public sector can be expected to bring to the university, and to its particular type of quality assessment, i.e. discretionary decision making based on values of what constitutes good science
Summary
Research policy in the western world has become more and more central as a policy area. This is an obvious consequence of the perception that universities are institutions with the potential to create growth. Universities, which are in many western countries public institutions, are charged with the mission of creating new knowledge not as an end product but as a foundation for economic growth. It is important to state that the ultimate source of the new ideas and modes of organization is the neoclassic model for economic behavior, based on the 3 pillars of self interest, competition, and profit. When reorganizing and reforming universities to encourage faculty to act as entrepreneurs, we need to ask ourselves how self interest, competition, and profit will affect the core activities of science: reading, writing, and investigating
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