The repository’s name, the “academic capture” warning system, is inspired by nobel laureate economist george stigler’s theory of regulation (stigler 1971).Cognitive psychology learning and memory in principle, regulation is intended to serve the public interest. In practice, however, stigler taught us that regulators may be “captured” by the very producers that they are supposed to regulate.Cognitive psychology learning and memory as a result, instead of serving the public interest, regulation may advance narrow commercial or political interests. A similar phenomenon potentially plagues donor-funded academic research.Cognitive psychology learning and memory in principle, academic research is intended to serve the public interest. In practice, if institutions of higher education become “captured” by financial donors, then academic research is at greater risk of becoming (wittingly or unwittingly) biased towards donors’ own interests.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

The ACWS will provide information on organizations and individuals that have engaged in violations of well-accepted academic norms involving financial donations.Cognitive psychology learning and memory organizations include private foundations, public charities, colleges, universities, departments, centers, and institutes; individuals include donors, administrators, directors, and researchers.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

Public trust in the integrity of scholarship is vital if the academy is to advance the public interest. Undue financial donor influence has the potential to bias scholarship and compromise truth-seeking, thereby undermining public trust.Cognitive psychology learning and memory in particular, researchers funded by donors granted inappropriate influence are less likely to be wholly independent, so that the integrity of their scholarship is more likely to be called into question.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

Norms of academic freedom and institutional independence—sustained by the practice of faculty governance over academic matters—have historically safeguarded the integrity of scholarship and promoted public trust.Cognitive psychology learning and memory by violating well-accepted academic norms, inappropriate financial donor influence erodes public trust and diminishes the value of academic research to society (rapach and wilson 2018).Cognitive psychology learning and memory

1. Financial donor influence in hiring decisions. Such influence can take the form of a financial donor requesting that a specific individual be hired by a department, center, or institute that is part of a college or university.Cognitive psychology learning and memory it can also manifest in a donor (or a donor representative) serving on a committee that reviews candidates or provides approval for the funding of a position for a specific individual in a department, center, or institute that is part of a college or university.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

2. Financial donor influence in individual research projects. Influence in this context entails a financial donor providing direction and/or funding approval for individual research projects conducted under the auspices of a department, center, or institute that is part of a college or university, in violation of institutional independence.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

Yes. The ACWS implements a recommendation of zingales (2013) by bringing attention to organizations and individuals who do not adhere to basic principles of academic independence and integrity.Cognitive psychology learning and memory colleges and universities, administrators, and researchers are understandably concerned about their reputations. The risk of suffering reputational damage by failing to adhere to well-accepted academic norms in financial donations significantly raises the costs of accepting such donations, thereby helping to make them less likely.Cognitive psychology learning and memory the alerting of funding agencies and journal editors to research funded by donations that violate well-accepted academic norms also raises the costs of accepting such donations.Cognitive psychology learning and memory furthermore, publicity surrounding donations that violate academic norms calls into question the charitable intent of donors, thereby reducing the value of such donations to philanthropic organizations and individuals who want to be perceived as generous.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

We anticipate that the first vintage of the ACWS database will be available in approximately three months. The official release will include the criteria used to identify violations of academic norms and will provide all supporting documentation.Cognitive psychology learning and memory an appropriate evidentiary standard will be used to determine when an organization or individual warrants inclusion in the database.

In its early days, we expect the ACWS database to focus on documenting cases of inappropriate donor influence.Cognitive psychology learning and memory in the future, we anticipate the database to also include a library of model policies designed to help colleges and universities avoid undue donor influence.Cognitive psychology learning and memory in addition, we expect the database to provide examples of donors who support public trust in the integrity of scholarship by choosing to abide well-accepted academic norms in their giving.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

Concerning your initiative (I assume in earnest), I’m afraid the warning system has been at high alert, or if one prefers, the threat level is and has been at red for decades.Cognitive psychology learning and memory in my view you undermine your thesis otherwise by signalling your obvious partisanship when such influences emanate from all quarters. Saul bellow’s introduction to allan bloom’s 1986 “closing of the american mind” in higher education, provides a reasonable judgment on the effect of such influence more generally.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

Otherwise the “suppressed correlative” of a warning system remains, somewhat inexplicably, the modern state and its portfolio of special interest agencies penetrating the campus environment, and with them, the sympathetic financial motivations and attendant donors, both corporate and individual, that penetrate the university board.Cognitive psychology learning and memory this partly explains the recent EO as a restorative act to the lingering if not institutionalized effects of the DCL from the prior administration.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

You may appreciate an oped I wrote for the students and faculty in same, concerning the pearson institute and its pedagogic distortions. These are among hundreds of examples that have been ideologically dormant but with glaringly visible and audible warnings ignored, until the recent eruption of political mass hysteria and in some respects psychosis that while at least providing probity into such matters, are skewed if not fully to the political right.Cognitive psychology learning and memory in such academy bias the legitimacy of criticism is underminded including the financial patronage propensity of families underwriting tuition.Cognitive psychology learning and memory otherwise “the dons” by annan (UCP) regarding oxbridge admissions policy and donor solicitation may provide context as it still exemplifies the modern university business paradigm and can only be explained by academy behavior, and by extention, its monopoly in governance.Cognitive psychology learning and memory

As for the stigler center and luigi zingales who you cite, they currently suffer both quizzical and troubling cognitive disequalibrium, and thereby judgment, concerning the actual nature of the state and therefore policy.Cognitive psychology learning and memory the law school is perhaps even more impaired. This is a product of unchecked partisanship and special interest agency, which I think also at least partly characterizes your (I assume not cynical) proposal.Cognitive psychology learning and memory