The global v. the local: Knowledge construction and building Western university with Chinese/local characteristics

Abstract

Viewing through the center-periphery paradigm and “glonacal” agency heuristic, the current study conceptualized three levels of localization in knowledge construction and explored their connection to different types of universities in Chinese societies. In-depth interviews with 22 Chinese academics revealed their general approval of Western epistemological dominance and conception of localization in knowledge construction as processes occurring at the surface level. Also emerged from the data were their vision of Chinese university as Western university with Chinese/local characteristics and little signs of a Chinese model of university in their minds. The study ends by comparing its findings with previous studies and identifies parallels to support implications drawn for the future development of higher education in Chinese and East Asian contexts.