The Frontstage of Leadership? Vice Chancellor Profiles and the Performance of Self

Authors

  • Tara Brabazon Dean of Graduate Research and Professor of Cultural Studies at Flinders University, Australia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.23918/ijsses.v8i4p36

Keywords:

University Leadership, Frontstage, Vice Chancellors, Double Refusal, Jean Baudrillard, Erving Goffman

Abstract

What makes a Vice Chancellor a Vice Chancellor? This article assesses – through unobtrusive research methods– the 37 public profiles of Australia Vice Chancellors in the nation’s public universities. I deploy non-reactive methods to locate the characteristics deemed of value in each profile, such as qualifications, research field, teaching expertise, personal life, leisure pursuits, and educational and non-educational experiences. I track similarities and differences between the profiles and ponder the development of a ‘genre’ of shared characteristics. In this first international study, the goal is to assess whether recent controversies about university leadership are the result of a ‘few bad apples’ or a systematic valuing of particular attributes and the neglect of other, crucial necessities of university leadership, particularly after a pandemic.

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Published

01.12.2021

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How to Cite

Brabazon, T. (2021). The Frontstage of Leadership? Vice Chancellor Profiles and the Performance of Self. International Journal of Social Sciences & Educational Studies, 8(4), 36-65. https://doi.org/10.23918/ijsses.v8i4p36

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