Higher Education on the Democracy – Autocracy Continuum – What roles do bureaucrats in higher education play for democratisation and safeguarding democracy?
This pilot study aims to understand the role of higher education bureaucrats in shaping democratic processes under different political regimes, using Sweden and Ethiopia as contrasting case studies. Specifically, it examines how these bureaucrats influence policy implementation, institutional norms, and governance, as well as how they navigate and respond to political pressures. The goal is to generate new insights into how bureaucrats contribute to either democratisation or autocratisation, to advance theoretical frameworks, and to provide policy-relevant knowledge on the democratic significance of higher education governance.
Details
- Period: 2025-05-01 – 2026-12-31
- Budget: 1,109,796 SEK
- Funder: Programmet för demokrati och högre utbildning, Uppsala Universitet
Description
This pilot study examines how higher education bureaucrats influence democratic processes under different political regimes. While higher education is often seen as a driver of democratization and key for democratic safeguarding, the role of its bureaucrats remains understudied. Using Sweden and Ethiopia as contrasting cases, the research explores how bureaucrats shape policy implementation, institutional norms, and governance in higher education.
Through key informant interviews and document analysis, it investigates their interactions with policymakers, responses to political pressures, and potential roles in democratic safeguarding, democratisation and/or autocratization. By moving beyond binary classifications of governance, the study bridges Global North-South divides in public administration research and offers a more nuanced understanding of bureaucratic roles on the democracy-autocracy continuum.
The findings will refine theoretical frameworks on bureaucratic influence in higher education and contribute to interdisciplinary debates on governance, democratization, and state capacity. The study is policy relevant, revealing how bureaucratic actions in higher education influence both the strengthening and erosion of democracy across different political contexts.