Academic domains as political battlegrounds
Authors: Al Lily Abdulrahman E. ,   For full list of authors, see end, Foland Jed , Stoloff David , Gogus Aytac , Erguvan Inan Deniz , Awshar Mapotse Tomé , Tondeur Jo , Hammond Michael , Venter Isabella M. , Jerry Paul , Vlachopoulos Dimitrios , Oni Aderonke , Liu Yuliang , Badosek Radim , de la Madrid María Cristina López , Mazzoni Elvis , Lee Hwansoo , Kinley Khamsum , Kalz Marco , Sambuu Uyanga , Bushnaq Tatiana , Pinkwart Niels , Adedokun-Shittu Nafisat Afolake , Zander Pär-Ola Mikael , Oliver Kevin , Pombo Lúcia Maria Teixeira , Sali Jale Balaban , Gregory Sue , Tobgay Sonam , Joy Mike , Elen Jan , Jwaifell Mustafa Odeh Helal , Said Mohd Nihra Haruzuan Mohamad , Al-Saggaf Yeslam , Naaji Antoanela , White Julie , Jordan Kathy , Gerstein Jackie , Yapici İbrahim Umit , Sanga Camilius , Nleya Paul T. , Sbihi Boubker , Lucas Margarida Rocha , Mbarika Victor , Reiners Torsten , Schön Sandra , Sujo-Montes Laura , Santally Mohammad , Häkkinen Päivi , Saif Abdulkarim Al , Gegenfurtner Andreas , Schatz Steven , Vigil Virginia Padilla , Tannahill Catherine , Partida Siria Padilla , Zhang Zuochen , Charalambous Kyriacos , Moreira António , Coto Mayela , Laxman Kumar , Farley Helen Sara , Gumbo Mishack T. , Simsek Ali , Ramganesh E. , Birzina Rita , Player-Koro Catarina , Dumbraveanu Roza , Ziphorah Mmankoko , Mohamudally Nawaz , Thomas Sarah , Romero Margarida , Nirmala Mungamuru , Cifuentes Lauren , Osaily Raja Zuhair Khaled , Omoogun Ajayi Clemency , Seferoglu S. Sadi , Elçi Alev , Edyburn Dave , Moudgalya Kannan , Ebner Martin , Bottino Rosa , Khoo Elaine , Pedro Luis , Buarki Hanadi , Román-Odio Clara , Qureshi Ijaz A. , Khan Mahbub Ahsan , Thornthwaite Carrie , Kerimkulova Sulushash , Downes Toni , Malmi Lauri , Bardakci Salih , Itmazi Jamil , Rogers Jim , Rughooputh Soonil D.D.V. , Akour Mohammed Ali , Henderson J. Bryan , de Freitas Sara , Schrader PG 
Published: May 2016

This article theorizes the functional relationship between the human components (i.e., scholars) and non-human components (i.e., structural configurations) of academic domains. It is organized around the following question: in what ways have scholars formed and been formed by the structural configurations of their academic domain? The article uses as a case study the academic domain of education and technology to examine this question. Its authorship approach is innovative, with a worldwide collection of academics (99 authors) collaborating to address the proposed question based on their reflections on daily social and academic practices. This collaboration followed a three-round process of contributions via email. Analysis of these scholars’ reflective accounts was carried out, and a theoretical proposition was established from this analysis. The proposition is of a mutual (yet not necessarily balanced) power (and therefore political) relationship between the human and non-human constituents of an academic realm, with the two shaping one another. One implication of this proposition is that these non-human elements exist as political ‘actors’, just like their human counterparts, having ‘agency’ – which they exercise over humans. This turns academic domains into political (functional or dysfunctional) ‘battlefields’ wherein both humans and non-humans engage in political activities and actions that form the identity of the academic domain.

For more information about the authorship approach, please see Al Lily AEA (2015) A crowd-authoring project on the scholarship of educational technology. Information Development. doi: 10.1177/0266666915622044.