PSIR Programme Seminar: "Russian Websites, Facebook and 'Phone A Friend': Accessing Academic Literature as a Public Servant"

New Zealand's public service is tasked with producing a wide range of research that informs both ministry policy and local and central government decision-making. Despite the importance of this research its conceptualization, production, and reporting are not well understood. How then do academically qualified public servants conduct research in the New Zealand bureaucracy? This paper is the first output from interviews conducted with 17 researchers who hold doctoral qualifications and work in research and evaluation units across New Zealand's public service. It outlines the significant efforts made by researchers in the public service to access paywalled academic literature and considers some implications of uneven access to such literature.

Seminar details

Luke is a political scientist specialising in the politics of Aotearoa New Zealand. His research interests traverse various arts disciplines, with publications in the fields of political science, sociology, and critical higher education. Arriving at THW-VUW in 2024, Luke brings a mix of academic and public sector experience. He has previously worked for the Department of Corrections (2016-2017) and the Ministry of Social Development (2022-2024). The research Luke is presenting in this seminar is drawn from findings made possible by his Faculty Research Establishment Grant.

When:

3.10 pm on 19 March 2026

Where:

16KP/101 and Online via Zoom