Scientific Performativity in Türkiye: A Critical Analysis of the Shift from Public Knowledge Production to Competitive Academia

Year 2026, Volume: 7 Issue: 1, 1 - 22, 28.01.2026

Çağrı Yalkın , Mustafa F. Özbilgin

https://doi.org/10.54733/smar.1789997

Abstract

This article critically examines the impacts of neoliberal transformation on academic institutions in Turkey and the consequences of scientific performativity on vulnerable groups. Within the framework of Karl Polanyi’s concepts of fictitious commodity, disembedding, and value, the commodification of academic labor through market-oriented performance criteria is discussed. The study demonstrates that performativity evaluates knowledge production not in terms of social benefit but through competitive indexes and citation culture, thereby generating individualization, lack of motivation, professional dissatisfaction, and burnout among academics. Furthermore, it is argued that the performative transformation in academia renders vulnerable groups even more defenseless, while universities operate increasingly like market actors, distancing themselves from their social role. Ultimately, the article contends that alternative value systems prioritizing social solidarity and public knowledge production must be developed, and proposes that academic performance evaluation systems be restructured in a more inclusive, equitable, and socially oriented manner.

Keywords

scientific performativity , neoliberalism , vulnerable groups , Turkish academia , Karl Polanyi

Türkiye'de Bilimsel İcracılığın Eleştirel Çözümlemesi: Kamuya Bilgi Üreten Akademiden Rekabetçi Akademiye Dönüşüm

Abstract

Neoliberal dönüşümün Türkiye’deki akademik kurumlar üzerindeki etkilerini ve bilimsel icracılığın kırılgan gruplar üzerindeki sonuçlarını eleştirel bir biçimde inceleyen bu makalede Karl Polanyi’nin fiktif meta, çözülme ve değer kavramları çerçevesinde, akademik emeğin piyasa odaklı performans ölçütleri aracılığıyla metalaştırılması tartışılmaktadır. Çalışma, icracılığın bilgi üretimini toplumsal fayda yerine rekabetçi endeksler ve atıf kültürü üzerinden değerlendirdiğini; bu durumun akademisyenler arasında bireyselleşme, motivasyon eksikliği, mesleki tatminsizlik ve tükenmişlik yarattığını ortaya koymaktadır. Ayrıca, akademideki icracı dönüşümün kırılgan grupları daha savunmasız hale getirdiği ve üniversitelerin toplumsal rollerinden uzaklaşarak giderek daha fazla piyasa aktörleri gibi işlediği ileri sürülmektedir. Sonuç olarak, toplumsal dayanışmayı ve kamusal bilgi üretimini önceleyen alternatif değer sistemlerinin geliştirilmesi gerektiği savunulmakta; akademik performans değerlendirme sistemlerinin daha kapsayıcı, adil ve toplum yararına odaklanacak şekilde yeniden yapılandırılması önerilmektedir. Bu makale, neoliberal dönüşümün Türkiye’deki akademik kurumlar üzerindeki etkilerini ve bilimsel icracılığın kırılgan gruplar üzerindeki sonuçlarını eleştirel bir biçimde incelemektedir. Karl Polanyi’nin fiktif meta, çözülme ve değer kavramları çerçevesinde, akademik emeğin piyasa odaklı performans ölçütleri aracılığıyla metalaştırılması tartışılmaktadır. Çalışma, icracılığın bilgi üretimini toplumsal fayda yerine rekabetçi endeksler ve atıf kültürü üzerinden değerlendirdiğini; bu durumun akademisyenler arasında bireyselleşme, motivasyon eksikliği, mesleki tatminsizlik ve tükenmişlik yarattığını ortaya koymaktadır. Ayrıca, akademideki icracı dönüşümün kırılgan grupları daha savunmasız hale getirdiği ve üniversitelerin toplumsal rollerinden uzaklaşarak giderek daha fazla piyasa aktörleri gibi işlediği ileri sürülmektedir. Sonuç olarak, toplumsal dayanışmayı ve kamusal bilgi üretimini önceleyen alternatif değer sistemlerinin geliştirilmesi gerektiği savunulmakta; akademik performans değerlendirme sistemlerinin daha kapsayıcı, adil ve toplum yararına odaklanacak şekilde yeniden yapılandırılması önerilmektedir.

Keywords

bilimsel icracılık , neoliberalizm , kırılgan gruplar , Türkiye akademisi , Karl Polanyi

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