ABSTRACT

The aim of this article is to analyse the “Third Mission” (TM) of universities within Nordic countries and universitieś approach to implementing the mission into their strategy. The main activities that Nordic universities relate to the Third Mission are examined and policy implications drawn. Furthermore, gaps in literature are outlined that imply possible future research. The systematic literature review outlines 35 articles in the period from 2000 to 2018. Qualitative case studies have been the main research method so far, and about half of the research at Nordic universities has been conducted in Sweden. Most research has focused on commercial aspects of the Third Mission, but neglected social components and indirect, less visible activities such as popular-science publications or participation in policymaking. Little research regarding TM has been conducted in humanities or social sciences. For future research, more cross-national studies are needed, as well as research with a mixed-method research design.

摘要

本文的目的是分析北欧国家大学的“第三次使命”（TM），以及大学在其战略中实施使命的方法。研究了北欧大学与第三次使命相关的主要活动并得出了政策影响。此外，还概述了文献中的空白，这暗示了未来可能的研究。系统文献综述概述了 2000 年至 2018 年期间的 35 篇文章。迄今为止，定性案例研究一直是主要研究方法，北欧大学约有一半的研究在瑞典进行。大多数研究都集中在第三次使命的商业方面，但忽略了社会成分和间接的、不太明显的活动，例如科普出版物或参与决策。在人文或社会科学领域很少有关于 TM 的研究。对于未来的研究，需要更多的跨国研究，以及采用混合方法研究设计的研究。