The Impact of Journal Ranking Fetishism on Australian Policy-related Research: A Case Study

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Author(s)
Young, Suzanne
Peetz, David
Marais, Magalie
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2011
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
In Australia, the Excellence in Research (ERA) exercise, first conducted in 2008 and continuing relatively unchanged in 2012, determines the level of research funding made available to Australian universities (Cooper and Poletti 2011). However the use of rankings is argued to be problematic. Through a survey of academics in a field of policy-relevant research - employment and industrial relations - this paper analyses the impact on their discipline and working environments of the journal rankings ERA processes. Overall, we can conclude that the ERA journal ranking system is strongly and negatively affecting the field and ...
View more >In Australia, the Excellence in Research (ERA) exercise, first conducted in 2008 and continuing relatively unchanged in 2012, determines the level of research funding made available to Australian universities (Cooper and Poletti 2011). However the use of rankings is argued to be problematic. Through a survey of academics in a field of policy-relevant research - employment and industrial relations - this paper analyses the impact on their discipline and working environments of the journal rankings ERA processes. Overall, we can conclude that the ERA journal ranking system is strongly and negatively affecting the field and could lead to the diminution of the number of Australian journals and researchers, and the amount of Australian research, in this field. Such consequences would likely be harmful for social progress in Australia.
View less >
View more >In Australia, the Excellence in Research (ERA) exercise, first conducted in 2008 and continuing relatively unchanged in 2012, determines the level of research funding made available to Australian universities (Cooper and Poletti 2011). However the use of rankings is argued to be problematic. Through a survey of academics in a field of policy-relevant research - employment and industrial relations - this paper analyses the impact on their discipline and working environments of the journal rankings ERA processes. Overall, we can conclude that the ERA journal ranking system is strongly and negatively affecting the field and could lead to the diminution of the number of Australian journals and researchers, and the amount of Australian research, in this field. Such consequences would likely be harmful for social progress in Australia.
View less >
Journal Title
Australian Universities' Review
Volume
53
Issue
2
Publisher URI
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2011. The attached file is reproduced here in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. For information about this journal please refer to the publisher's website or contact the authors.
Subject
Education systems
Specialist studies in education
Industrial and employee relations
Education policy
Research, science and technology policy