The academic labour of knowledge mobilization: What scholarly publishers need to know

Abstract

AbstractWhile scholarly publishers have become increasingly interested in supporting the sharing of research beyond academia in recent times, there are few first‐hand accounts from academics that illustrate the realities and complexities of this process. As such, scholarly publishers may be somewhat in the dark about what is actually involved in such knowledge mobilization, and how to best support it. In this autoethnographic account, I describe my experience as an early career researcher involved in the creation of 14 scholarly outputs on the 2016Western Australian Study in Children's Book Readingproject. I illustrate how these scholarly outputs led to media engagements and Plain Language publications, and then were transformed into unique initiatives driven by schools and state government. The academic labour involved in these knowledge mobilization components are depicted as substantial. I also critically interrogate my own research training background and dispositions to identify some reasons for my adoption of knowledge mobilization as a priority, despite perceiving a general lack of support and recognition for this work. Finally, given the pragmatic considerations I raise in this article, I outline ways that scholarly publishers can support academic researchers to engage in knowledge mobilization more regularly and effectively.