HET Forum 3: Which hat to wear? Role conflicts in combining educational research and other academic duties

A picture taken at the event, where a group of people are sitting in a circle and following a presentation.
HET forum 3 (27.4.2023)

HET research group organised HET Forum 3 on 27 April 2023 in a hybrid format. The forum was a part of a series of conversational events for researchers of higher education. This time the forum focused on topics surrounding role conflicts that may arise when combining educational research and other academic duties.

The forum was chaired by University Lecturer Jyri Lindén who facilitated the conversations with two invited speakers from the Faculty of Education and Culture – Head of Department Tiina Kujala and Vice Dean for Research Jaakko Kauko. In the first part of the event, speakers shared their thoughts on having different roles in higher education institutions and their experiences with balancing between different responsibilities in teaching, research, and administrative and leadership tasks.

Other participants were encouraged to take part in the conversation by asking questions, sharing their experiences, and creating discussion around these topics. The lively discussion touched on the tensions between different academic roles and identities, transition between different duties and career phases, and the educational researchers’ insight into these tensions.

Tensions and transitions between different academic roles

Being a higher education researcher can be a tough position as one is simultaneously working at a university and examining higher education through a critical lens. Another tension lies between academic freedom and responsibilities. There can be a misalignment between being a university community member with interest in shared values, collegiality, and democracy, and being a researcher, with idealistic perspective on university.

Additionally, academic work can often be about balancing between simultaneous and overlapping duties in teaching, research, leadership, and administration. Each duty has their own characteristics, perspectives, and goals, which can even contradict each other. This can create role conflicts, scheduling issues, overload, and difficult emotions.

Some combinations of responsibilities can be easier to balance than others, and the different roles might even support each other. The discussion raised a point that it is easier to balance between teaching and research than balancing between teaching and administration. Administrative tasks sometimes require a lot of time and the work can be unpredictable, which might not fit well with the schedules of teaching. Teaching, on the other hand, is strongly based on research and these duties support each other well.

In administration, many things are done because they must be done (i.e. quality evaluation, risk assessment, following regulations), but research can give distance and room to think on the reasons behind actions and the ways of prioritising between them. Transition between different duties may also be a matter of personal preference; for instance, teaching and supervising students may be relaxing, enjoyable, and inspiring work giving good counterbalance to the administrative tasks.

In the discussion it was also brought up that by having a background as a researcher one internalises a critical attitude, which was seen as necessary in administrative tasks as well. It also helps with understanding the unique nature of administration in university where top-down initiatives may not work with academic staff, i.e. critical thinkers. Due to this, university administration was described as a situation in which “no one does what is told”. Some academic workers may, for example, systematically deny administrative roles to be able to keep their academic independence and freedom.

When exploring the hat metaphor, it was discussed whether and how one changes hats to represent different roles at different times. The ability to change easily between hats could be a sign that one is giving up on their own values, which would be a place for reflection. On the other hand, it could be a sign that the roles align well with each other, and with one’s personal and professional values.

The discussants also saw continuity in the roles, meaning that different hats can be worn at the same time. The metaphor was also taken further towards pondering whether the different hats are being integrated or worn at the same time. For example, the researcher’s hat can enable a person to observe their surroundings through a specific (inquisitive) lens in everyday situations across different academic roles.

The speakers reflected also on their duties related to the so called, middle management. This position between top management and the employees was seen as a way of bringing up the concerns and voices of the employees; an example given was negotiating the needed resources for the employees. This aspect is especially topical, as teachers have been struggling with increased administrative responsibilities due to reduction of the support services. A management and leadership position can also contribute to building better working conditions, or as it was described, aspiring to create such academic environment where one would be happy to stay for years to come.

How to deal with the tension between different roles, then?

The discussion emphasised the perspective of values and identity. It was seen that to be able to take on different roles, one must be aware of both personal and organisational values. To deal with the possible conflict between the values, it is necessary to be honest to oneself, and to be aware of what one represents and believes in.

It is important that those values align, so that one can loyally represent the organisation and overall be content in the role that they are in. A clash between personal and organisational values may possibly create conflicts, and this is not a sustainable situation. We need to carefully consider what hats we find meaningful to wear.

It is also helpful to verbalise the different sides and requirements in different roles. Academic leadership requires a balance of management and expertise; it is a shift in perspective to be able to coach and support others to do what they do best, instead of putting forward one’s own expertise.

Also useful when dealing with the mentioned tensions is recognising that time is a limited resource that requires careful consideration and planning. By taking on administrative and leadership roles, one probably has to reduce the time spent on teaching, supervision and research.

Maintaining balance between different roles can also be supported by developing good routines and time-keeping habits. For instance, one habit that was mentioned was reserving undisturbed calendar days only for research. Learning from colleagues and from previous experience can help in developing own balanced working routines.

As a way of conclusion, the participants wondered whether it is possible for educational researchers to take off their academic hats entirely. It could be beneficial to have multiple hats on at the same time, to reach practical solutions while also taking research perspectives into account. Having different academic duties can help us, as researchers, to better understand the bigger picture of day-to-day activities of the university and our role in society.

Text: Outi Ahola & Vesna Holubek

Photo: Vesna Holubek