ABSTRACT

The relevance of networking in academia and the gendered dynamics involved are well established in the literature. The persistence of the old-boy network pushes academic women to rationalize whether or not to ‘play the game’ and under what terms. Inspired by Feminist Institutionalism, this article explores the schemas of interpretation which academic women rely on to find meaning and to guide day-to-day relational dynamics. Drawing on 40 in-depth interviews with women from different age-groups and disciplines, three distinct approaches to networking are revealed in Spanish academia: rejection, collaboration and strategic sisterhood. Rejection refers to the detachment from all network dynamics, collaboration to the ‘catch-all’ (though not exclusively) cross-gender network connections, and strategic sisterhood to an in-built women-only support system. The inbreeding university logic, crucial to understanding Spanish idiosyncrasies, emerges as a transversal dimension to further our understanding of how the institutional context influences women´s strategic choices. The operationalization of academic merits and perceptions about the old-boys dynamics and female solidarity mark different ways of experiencing networking, while gender inequalities (partly) unify women’s discourses. Controversies are raised about collaborative strategies, and particularly women-only networks, in helping women evolve as agents of change in academia.

摘要

学术界网络的相关性和所涉及的性别动态在文献中得到了很好的证实。老男孩网络的持续存在促使学术界女性合理化是否“玩游戏”以及在什么条件下。受女权制度主义的启发，本文探讨了学术女性赖以寻找意义和指导日常关系动态的解释模式。通过对来自不同年龄组和学科的女性的 40 次深度访谈，西班牙学术界揭示了三种不同的社交方法：拒绝、合作和战略姐妹情谊。拒绝是指脱离所有网络动态，协作到“包罗万象”（尽管不是唯一的）跨性别网络连接，与内置的仅限女性的支持系统的战略姐妹关系。近亲繁殖的大学逻辑对于理解西班牙的特质至关重要，它作为一个横向维度出现，以进一步了解制度背景如何影响女性的战略选择。学术价值的操作化以及对老男孩动态和女性团结的看法标志着体验网络的不同方式，而性别不平等（部分）统一了女性的话语。在帮助女性发展为学术界变革的推动者方面，人们对协作策略，尤其是女性专用网络提出了争议。作为一个横向维度出现，以进一步了解制度环境如何影响女性的战略选择。学术价值的操作化以及对老男孩动态和女性团结的看法标志着体验网络的不同方式，而性别不平等（部分）统一了女性的话语。在帮助女性发展为学术界变革的推动者方面，人们对协作策略，尤其是女性专用网络提出了争议。作为一个横向维度出现，以进一步了解制度环境如何影响女性的战略选择。学术价值的操作化以及对老男孩动态和女性团结的看法标志着体验网络的不同方式，而性别不平等（部分）统一了女性的话语。在帮助女性发展为学术界变革的推动者方面，人们对协作策略，尤其是女性专用网络提出了争议。