Description
Book SynopsisIn this insightful book, Peter Edlund takes a status-based approach to theorizing the development of the European Research Council (ERC). Drawing upon rich empirical material, the author vividly details how the ERC was transformed from a funding organization into an authoritative status intermediary in European science.
Edlund's innovative approach illustrates the ERC's path toward pre-eminence, building on a theoretical framework that the author uses to analyze evidence from Swedish and European contexts in an intriguing exploration of research funding allocated under the flagship Starting Grant scheme. Offering a field perspective on the multi-layered interactions between candidates and audiences within which the ERC was constructed as a status intermediary, this book redirects attention toward key antecedents that allow us to understand many of the extensive consequences generated by the ERC's funding.
Blending theoretical models and empirical findings, Edlund's book will appeal to academics seeking advances in status theory. Practitioners and policymakers working with research funding will also benefit from its account of the historic development of the ERC and the consequences of its funding across Europe.
Trade Review'With empirical and theoretical rigor, this book problematizes an essential feature of the current science system summarized in its opening statement: "evaluations are ubiquitous in science". Its analysis of the institutionalization of a particularly prestigious funding body gives new and important insight into the (self-)organization of the European science system.' -- Olof Hallonsten, Lund University, Sweden
Table of ContentsContents: Part I 1. The Makings of an Authority in Science 2. Theorizing Status Intermediaries Part II 3. Tensions and Struggles in Europe-Level Science 4. Creating Acceptance for European Research Council Evaluations 5. The Consequences of European Research Council Allocations Part III 6. Constructing a Status Intermediary in Science 7. Taking Stock and Looking Ahead Appendix Studying the European Research Council Index
