A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.It is widely accepted that Higher Education (HE) has gone through significant
changes within the last sixty years. The effects of such phenomena as
managerialism, marketization and performativity are well documented in the literature
(Deem et al 2007, Molesworth et al 2011, Hussey and Smith 2010, Bell et al 2009).
Often, such terms are introduced and accepted as truth without fully exploring what
such phenomena really mean to the members of that community. However, policy
and purpose (impact) may differ from practice, as illustrated by Weider (1974).
This research uses ethnomethodology (EM) as its focus, to explore this issue further.
EM is a method of inquiry which concentrates on the members’ methods to
understand how they make meaning of their work environment through their daily
practices. This research applies a documentary approach to lecturing, to see it as a
document of accomplishment. It also draws on the method of conversation analysis
(CA) and examines discussions with academic members of two post 1992
universities, which are seen to be the most affected by the neoliberal phenomena
mentioned. This is to understand how they accomplish their performance of being an
academic.
The use of EM allows a greater appreciation of the shared understanding of the use
of the social space of the university and how the organisational daily objectives are
achieved by its members. Evidence from this research shows that performativity
(Lyotard 1984) causes misunderstandings of purpose, and marketized approaches
have increased assymetries in student-academic interactions
