A JOURNEY OF ACADEMIC INQUIRY Exploring capabilities and play Malida Mooken Stirling Management School University of Stirling Submitted for fulfillment of the degree of PhD November 2014 DECLARATION I declare that this thesis is my own work and that it has been submitted only for the degree of PhD. Please note that a version of Chapter 7, ‘The capabilities of academic researchers and academic poverty’ has recently been published as a paper (co-authored with Professor Roger Sugden) in Kyklos, 67 (4), November 2014. Malida Mooken 24 November 2014 ii ABSTRACT The underlying concern in this thesis is with the real opportunities that people have to pursue beings and doings that they have reason to value. This concern is explored through the development of four themes, namely ‘shaping aspirations’, ‘capabilities of academic researchers’, ‘qualities of play’, and ‘university internationalisation’. These themes emerged during my journey of academic inquiry, which included empirical research conducted in two distinct settings. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The development of this thesis owes much to the invaluable discussions that I had with Professor Roger Sugden. His comments on various drafts that I wrote helped deepen the analyses. Dr Doris Eikhof also provided critical suggestions for the thesis. I am thankful to both of them for their patience and unwavering support. Marcela Valania offered insights, which helped refine some arguments and the overall writing of an earlier draft of my thesis, for which I am thankful. I would like to thank Professor Linda Bauld and Professor Bernard Burnes for their support. Particular thanks are due to Professor Gert Biesta and Professor Keith Culver for critical comments on a draft of the chapter on John Dewey and his approach. I am grateful to all the participants who have shared their time and perspectives in the workshops, interviews, etc. that I conducted for the purposes of this thesis. I would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the funding obtained through the Strategic Research & Enterprise Development Fund at the University of Stirling for the first three years of my PhD, and also the KTP organisation which facilitated the real- time inquiry in the context of a socio-cultural project. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION II ABSTRACT IIII ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS IV INTRODUCTION 1 A CONCERN WITH REAL OPPORTUNITIES 1 THE JOURNEY OF INQUIRY 5 MAIN CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE THESIS 7 STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS 10 PART I: THEORETICAL DISCUSSION ON: INQUIRY AND THE CAPABILITY APPROACH 12 INQUIRY 13 CAPABILITY APPROACH 17 JOHN DEWEY AND AMARTYA SEN 18 STRUCTURE OF PART I 20 CHAPTER 1 21 RECONSTRUCTING INQUIRY: AN INTRODUCTION TO JOHN DEWEY AND HIS APPROACH 21 1.1. WHY REFER TO DEWEY’S WORK? 23 1.2 AN INTRODUCTION TO JOHN DEWEY AND HIS WORK 25 1.2.1 INFLUENCES ON DEWEY AND HIS ASSOCIATION WITH PRAGMATISM 26 1.2.2 TRANSACTIONAL APPROACH 29 1.2.3 DEWEY IN THE CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 29 1.3 ASPECTS OF DEWEYAN INQUIRY 30 1.3.1 TRANSFORMATION OF AN INDETERMINATE OR PROBLEMATIC SITUATION 30 1.3.2 ACTION ‐ THEORY AND PRACTICE 33 1.3.3 SENSE AND SENSIBILITY 35 1.3.4 CONTINUITY IN INQUIRY 39 1.4 CRITIQUE OF DEWEY’S WORK 40 1.5 RESEARCH AND INQUIRY, ACADEMIC AND NON­ACADEMIC 47 1.6 CONCLUDING REMARKS 49 CHAPTER 2 52 AMARTYA SEN AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CAPABILITY APPROACH 52 2.1 AN INTRODUCTION TO AMARTYA SEN AND HIS WORK 54 2.1.1 SOCIAL CHOICE THEORY 55 2.1.2 CRITIQUE OF UTILITARIANISM AND WELFARISM 56 2.1.3 ORIGINS OF THE CAPABILITY APPROACH 58 2.2 KEY ASPECTS OF THE CAPABILITY APPROACH 59 2.3 APPLICATIONS OF THE CAPABILITY APPROACH 63 2.3.1 THE CONTEXT OF FAMINES AND POVERTY 64 v 2.3.2 CONTRASTING GNP ANALYSES AND CAPABILITY APPROACH 66 2.3.3 HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORTS AND NATIONAL POLICY ANALYSES 67 2.3.4 OTHER APPLICATIONS OF THE CAPABILITY APPROACH 68 2.4 CRITIQUE OF THE CAPABILITY APPROACH 70 2.4.1 OPERATIONALISATION OF THE CAPABILITY APPROACH 70 2.4.2 INFRINGEMENT ON INDIVIDUAL FREEDOM 70 2.4.3 INDIVIDUALISTIC APPROACH 71 2.4.4 THE CONTRAST BETWEEN THE CAPABILITY APPROACH AND UTILITARIANISM 72 2.4.5 UNDERSPECIFICITY AND INCOMPLETENESS 73 2.4.6 LANGUAGE 75 2.5 CONCLUDING REMARKS 77 PART II: METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES IN THE JOURNEY OF ACADEMIC INQUIRY 80 GENERAL METHODOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR THE THESIS 80 ANALYTICAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS 86 STRUCTURE OF PART III 88 CHAPTER 3 89 THE METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH FOR YOUNGARTS 89 3.1 EMPIRICAL CONTEXT OF YOUNGARTS 89 3.1.1 ARTSCENTRE AND YOUNGARTS 90 3.1.2 AN INTRODUCTION TO KTPS 92 3.2 ACTION RESEARCH 96 3.2.1 PARTICIPATORY ACTION RESEARCH 98 3.2.2 TRAILING RESEARCH 101 3.3 CASE STUDY 105 3.4 RESEARCH METHODS 107 3.4.1 OBSERVATION 111 3.4.2 DOCUMENT REVIEW 117 3.4.3 INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEWS (AND INFORMAL DISCUSSIONS) 119 3.4.4 FOCUS INTERVIEW/GROUP 125 3.4.5 RICH PICTURE 129 3.5 CHALLENGES IN DEVELOPING MY METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH 134 3.5.1 KTP AND ACTION RESEARCH 134 3.5.2 DEWEY AND ACTION RESEARCH 136 3.6 CONCLUDING REMARKS 141 CHAPTER 4 145 THE METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH FOR THE INTERNATIONALISATION PROJECT 145 4.1 EMPIRICAL CONTEXT OF THE INTERNATIONALISATION PROJECT 146 4.2 VISUAL METHODOLOGY 150 4.2.1 A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO VISUAL RESEARCH 150 4.2.2 VISUAL RESEARCH AND PARTICIPATORY ACTION RESEARCH 152 4.3 LINKING PLAY TO THE METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH 155 4.4 RESEARCH METHODS 159 4.4.1 PICTURING 159 4.4.2 PHOTO ELICITATION 161 4.4.3 DELIBERATION 165 vi 4.4.4 QUESTIONNAIRES 167 4.5 CONCLUDING REMARKS 169 CHAPTER 5 171 ANALYTICAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES 171 5.1 ANALYTICAL PROCESS 171 5.1.1 ANALYSING DATA FOR YOUNGARTS 172 5.1.2 ANALYSING DATA FOR THE INTERNATIONALISATION PROJECT 174 5.2 TRIANGULATION 176 5.3 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS 182 5.3.1 ETHICAL REVIEW AND APPROVAL 183 5.3.2 INFORMED CONSENT AND VOLUNTARINESS OF PARTICIPANTS 185 5.3.3 CONFIDENTIALITY AND ANONYMITY 190 5.3.4 AVOIDING PRESSURES 192 5.4 CONCLUDING REMARKS 193 PART III: SHAPING ASPIRATIONS: THE CASE OF YOUNGARTS 194 BACKGROUND OF ARTSCENTRE AND YOUNGARTS 195 STRUCTURE OF PART III 204 CHAPTER 6 206 SHAPING ASPIRATIONS: INSIGHTS FROM YOUNGARTS 206 6.1 NATURE AND NURTURE OF ASPIRATIONS 207 6.1.1 EXPERIENCE AND ASPIRATIONS 216 6.1.2 ASPIRING AS FUNCTIONING AND FREEDOM TO ASPIRE 223 6.1.3 THE CAPACITY TO ASPIRE 225 6.2 BROADER CONCERNS IN YOUNGARTS 233 6.3 CONCLUDING REMARKS 237 PART IV: CAPABILITIES, PLAY AND INTERNATIONALISATION IN ACADEMIA 240 CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS IN ACADEMIA 240 ACADEMIC FREEDOM AND AUTONOMY 242 ACADEMIC FREEDOM 245 AUTONOMY 248 STRUCTURE OF PART IV 250 CHAPTER 7 252 THE CAPABILITIES OF ACADEMIC RESEARCHERS AND ACADEMIC POVERTY 252 7.1 THE NEED TO EXPLORE ACADEMIC POVERTY 255 7.2 CAPABILITIES OF ACADEMIC RESEARCHERS 263 7.3 COMBINED AND INTERNAL CAPABILITIES 269 7.4 ACADEMIC POVERTY 273 7.5 REASON TO VALUE AND FREEDOM 282 7.6 CONCLUDING REMARKS 288 vii CHAPTER 8 293 QUALITIES OF PLAY 293 8.1 THE MEANING OF PLAY 300 8.2 SITUATING PLAY IN SOCIETY 301 8.2.1 PLAY FOR CHILDREN AND PLAY FOR ADULTS 301 8.2.2 PLAY AND CULTURE 307 8.2.3 PLAY AT WORK, WORK AS PLAY 311 8.3 ESSENTIAL QUALITIES OF PLAY 317 8.3.1 SERIOUSNESS AND THE MENTAL CONDITION IN PLAY 319 8.3.2 RULES, BOUNDARIES AND FREEDOM 323 8.3.3 ABSORPTION, FOCUS AND STATE OF FLOW 330 8.3.4 VOLUNTARINESS 334 8.3.5 ORDER AND DISORDER 336 8.4 OTHER POSITIVE QUALITIES OF PLAY 337 8.5 SOME PROBLEMATIC ASPECTS OF PLAY 339 8.6 PLAY AND CAPABILITIES 341 8.7 CONCLUDING REMARKS 343 CHAPTER 9 352 EXPLORING PERSPECTIVES ON INTERNATIONALISATION IN A UNIVERSITY CONTEXT 352 9.1 WHAT DOES INTERNATIONALISATION MEAN? 355 9.2 MORE INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS DOES NOT NECESSARILY EQUATE TO A MORE INTERNATIONALIZED ENVIRONMENT 359 9.3 RATIONALES FOR INTERNATIONALISATION 366 9.4 CONCERNS ABOUT A MARKET­ORIENTED APPROACH TO INTERNATIONALISATION 375 9.5 INTERNATIONALISATION AND GLOBALISATION 379 9.6 CONCLUDING REMARKS 380 CONCLUSION 385 THE JOURNEY OF ACADEMIC INQUIRY AND ITS VARIOUS ELEMENTS 385 KEY CONCEPTUAL CONTRIBUTIONS 389 KEY METHODOLOGICAL CONTRIBUTION 391 CONCLUDING REMARKS 393 REFERENCES 395 APPENDICES 434 APPENDIX I: CALENDAR OF EVENTS (YOUNGARTS) 434 APPENDIX II: STRUCTURE AND DESCRIPTION OF INTERNATIONALISATION WORKSHOP 442 APPENDIX III: PROPOSED QUESTIONS FOR PHOTO ELICITATION 446 APPENDIX IV: INTERNATIONALISATION QUESTIONNAIRES 448 APPENDIX V: CONSENT FORMS 453 LIST OF TABLES TABLE 3.4: BREAKDOWN OF RESEARCH METHODS IN YOUNGARTS 110 TABLE III: YOUNGARTS INTERNSHIP BREAKDOWN 202 viii LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 4.3: PLAY IN THE CONTEXT OF THE INTERNATIONALISTAION PROJECT 156 FIGURE III: KEY ACTIVITIES OF YOUNGARTS 198 ix INTRODUCTION A concern with real opportunities The underlying concern in this thesis is with the real opportunities that people have to pursue beings and doings that they have reasons to value, that is, their substantive freedom (Sen 1999a, 2002). Therefore the ideas discussed throughout this thesis seek to stimulate critical reflections about enhancing real opportunities that people have reasons to value, with particular attention to the situational contexts. Drawing on Sen (1985/1999: 4), consider the following illustration of real opportunity. A person might be eligible to attend a university and thus have the opportunity to undertake higher education. However, this does not constitute a real opportunity in itself. To determine the scope that the person actually has to pursue this opportunity would require considerations such as: can she financially afford to go to university (paying tuition and living expenses etc.)? Further still, if the person can attend a certain university, does she have the real opportunity to use or benefit from the resources there, given her potential physical or mental abilities? This line of reasoning is at the basis of my analyses in the thesis, for example regarding what a young person might actually be able to do (or not) in the context of the socio-cultural project that I embarked on at the beginning of my PhD.