Competing
An Analytical Framework and Application in Higher Education
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4097828 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Anna Kosmützky (0000-0002-9628-4559, Leibniz University Hanover), Franziska Meier (0000-0002-6070-8911, University of Bremen) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 51 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 1-21 |
| Publication date | 2025-02-05 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Studies in Higher Education (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0307-5079 • E-ISSN: 1470-174X |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/03075079.2025.2455425 |
| OpenAlex | W4407168151 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 10 |
| References cited | 65 |
The article introduces a conceptual framework for analyzing competition in higher education, with a focus on competing as action. Drawing on Georg Simmel's sociological insights and behavioral decision theory, the framework captures key elements of competition. It distinguishes between observing and four forms of courting: performing, strategic informing, influencing valuation criteria, and attracting attention. To demonstrate its potential, the paper applies the framework to the German higher education system, particularly focusing on universities’ competition for third-party funding. This conceptual approach opens up avenues for comparative investigations of various forms of competition, enabling an analysis of both similarities and differences in the competitive actions of different actors within higher education, as well as across systems. The framework provides a valuable tool for exploring the complexity and multiplicity of competition in higher education and beyond
Economic growth · Economics · Higher education · Mathematics education · Pedagogy · Sociology · Higher Education Governance and Development · Innovation and Knowledge Management · Management and Organizational Studies · Psychology
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Academic Capitalism
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The Collapse of the Fact/Value Dichotomy and Other Essays
The Sense of Dissonance
Valuing the Unique
Toward a new economics of science
Turning the University into an Organizational Actor
On the unintended consequences of publishing performance data in the public sector
Multiple competitions in higher education
University research funding and publication performance—An international comparison
Dynamics of Bureaucracy
Archäologie des Wettbewerbs
The prestige economy of higher education journals
Multiple roles of the state – federal states and their roles in how universities compete in Germany
The Way We Ask for Money… The Emergence and Institutionalization of Grant Writing Practices in Academia
Valuation Constellations
Competition, competitiveness, and competitive advantage in higher education institutions
Valuation as Evaluating and Valorizing
Why do we believe in competition? A historical-sociological view of competition as an institutionalized modern imaginary
Competition in Science
How Rankings Produce Competition
The competition fetish in higher education
The Impact of Changing Funding and Authority Relationships on Scientific Innovations
Bewertungskonstellationen. Theoretische Überlegungen zur Soziologie der Bewertung
Sichtbarkeit und Bewertung
Die Universität als Akteur
Higher Education in Germany—Recent Developments in an International Perspective
The Variance of German University Governance
Impact in the REF
Public engagement professionals in a prestige economy
How do universities compete? Introduction to the special issue
New forms of competition in higher education1
The specificity of the scientific field and the social conditions of the progress of reason
Rankings and Reactivity
Institutionalized Organizations
The economy of qualities
Bourdieu and organizational analysis
| Unique citing works | 10 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 10 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2026 (2) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 10 |