Digital Scholarship and the Tenure Process as an Indicator of Change in Universities

Abstract

In this paper, the author aims to demonstrate that a practical barometer of how universities are dealing with the changes wrought by a digital, networked world can be found in the manner in which their reward and tenure processes recognise digital scholarship. The use of new technologies by academics to perform research, construct knowledge, disseminate ideas, engage students in learning and conduct a wide range of scholarly activities generates a number of issues for established reward and tenure systems, which can be seen as a representative microcosm of the issues facing universities more generally.