Reconceptualising engagement: a conceptual framework for analysing university interaction with external social partners

Abstract

Currently in universities there is a widespread and formal promotion of ‘community engagement’, but there is also conceptual confusion, debate and contestation, as reflected in vastly differing interpretations of what counts as ‘engaged practice’. Universities are grappling to define what ‘community engagement’ means, and a lively debate on the relationship between the university and society in a developing country like South Africa is emerging. This article contributes to theoretical debate around the definition and conceptualisation of ‘community engagement’ in South Africa. It presents a conceptual framework that was developed to conduct empirical research to measure existing ‘engaged’ academic activities, in order to map forms of interaction in different types of university and disciplinary fields. The objective of the article is to show how the conceptual framework was developed, and how it can be used to guide empirical research, institutional strategic planning and national higher education policy processes. The conceptual origins lie in an unfolding body of research on the changing role of universities in economic development, using a national system of innovation framework. The article begins by developing a working conception of the role of the university in economic and social development in the first section. It then shifts to consider the policy debate and emerging research literature in South Africa, highlighting a disjuncture between higher education and innovation studies in the second section. A growing alignment provides a foundation for developing a new conception of university engagement. The third section then focuses specifically on the adaptation and extension of a conceptual framework used for studying university–firm interaction, to the study of university interaction with a range of external social partners – community, government, civil society, firms or farmers. The final section sets out how such a framework can be used to map interactive practice within a university and across the national system of innovation.