To like or not to like? That is the academic question
Of course we use social media, but how do we operate on these platforms for professional purposes? When are we sharing personal opinions and when do we represent our university? Is it really one or the other? How much leeway do we have? A new study investigated social media practices and views of faculty to learn more about public engagement online.
Many academics use social media to promote research, connect with colleagues around the world, and share perspectives on areas of expertise. We can see what is happening in our fields through Facebook pages, X posts, YouTube videos, and the like. The comment sections on these sites offer further opportunities to share information and opinions. Social media also provides an important platform to counter misinformation if necessary and engage in open, perhaps critical, dialogue among peers. These sound like healthy practices. Questions about such active engagement arise, however, when thinking about when an academic is communicating as themselves as an individual or when they are representing their respective institutions. Issues of freedom of speech and academic freedom may crop up, as a scholar struggles with what to share or comment on and how to do so.
New research by Hook and colleagues in Higher Education Research & Development focuses on online behaviours and related attitudes expressed by academics in Australia. In that context, academic freedom is defined by law in higher education “to include the freedom to teach, research, comment within areas of expertise, and express opinions about one’s institution”. But how does this work in practice? That is what the researchers wanted to find out. Using a survey and focus groups, they explored, among other things, how academics understand their institutions’ social media policies, how they use social media in their professional roles, and what issues might make them hesitate to express themselves.
Findings showed that most university faculty have a strong understanding of academic freedom, consistent with the legal definition above. Despite this freedom, however, many reported refraining from sharing opinions on social media. Participants point out that social media is an outlet where experts can share opinions and perspectives that are informed by research and experience, allowing them to potentially share their knowledge with and impact society more broadly. They emphasized that for academics to contribute to social media in these ways, they should be able to do so without threat of interference or repercussions from their institutions. Such engagement comes with conditions, of course, and teachers mentioned the need to express potentially controversial views and arguments in respectful ways.
Another strand of the study looked at what, if anything, teachers thought they were not allowed to say about their own institutions on social media. Here, a conflict between the legal expression of academic freedom and teacher perceptions is evident. More than a third of respondents said they would hesitate to criticize their university directly or to make comments that reflected negatively on the university. Some stated that administrators and senior faculty could become punitive and try to pressure or punish teachers who are outspoken on social media, even within their specific areas of expertise. Other teachers mentioned that they think twice about posting, sharing or ‘liking’ material on social media, fearing how such actions might be viewed by others in their departments. Some pointed out the extra time and effort they’ve put in to managing social media content, especially in regard to departmental functions like guest seminars and invited speakers, showing how social media as a tool for personal expression can become blurred when combined with professional topics. The potential for blow-back in the workplace has led more than half of respondents to self-censor in order to avoid sticky situations, with one stating they consistently ask themselves “How’s this going to look?” to colleagues.
Next came the topic of institutional monitoring of employees’ online behaviours. Though the article doesn’t specify whether the social media accounts are personal ones or those set up and maintained by the universities themselves, it seems understood that this research is asking about teachers’ personal accounts. This is an important distinction since institutional social media accounts would likely be strictly monitored and be used by trained communications officers for explicit purposes. More than a third of these teachers thought that their university monitored their social media use (presumably personal), and very few believe that their university has a right to do so. In focus groups, some teachers acknowledged that institutions may need to do some monitoring to protect staff and to ensure faculty are not involved in inappropriate behaviour (e.g., racism, sexism, misogyny). They also recognized that online monitoring of faculty members’ social media actions may be a form of risk management to protect institutional reputation.
Social media provides a new way of engaging with professional topics. As institutions seek to increase visibility, it provides an easy way of gaining attention. Making sure faculty are aware of any social media policies and how these operate in relation to academic freedom are elements of academic dialogue that are coming more in to focus.
Comment: This study introduces research on a form of academic dissemination and dialogue that rarely gets discussed, at least critically. Universities and departments want to engage with young people to attract attention, promoting use of modern tools to connect with would-be prospective students. Having a social media account, presumably, would help with internationalization goals and ideally allow for open dialogue among experts, who provide informed opinions and perspectives that can help deliver academic research to those who don’t regularly read journal articles or attend higher seminars. There’s a part of me, however, that is hesitant to cross this boundary between my personal and professional lives.
The study has made me reflect on my own, albeit sparse, social media use. Social media can be an important and productive tool for professional development, and as a scholar of English and applied linguistics, I’m quite interested in how it is used as such. I’ve used it mostly in a receptive capacity, learning about new publications, calls for papers, and international conferences that I wouldn’t have otherwise come across. I’ve also posted about publications I’ve been involved with and shared links to Open Access papers. This helps get attention for me professionally, for my department, and for the university, all positives. But I do sometimes wonder if it is appropriate for me to use a non-work-related outlet to promote my research or develop professional contacts.
When I see colleagues from various contexts engaged in online debate on topics within my expertise, I hesitate to engage. I read, for sure. But I prefer not to actively share opinions or perspectives for a few reasons. First is the cost-benefit analysis. I’m not necessarily convinced that I’d get much out of the engagement. I’m also skeptical about whether social media is an appropriate forum for an actual content debate. Without a moderator, shared understanding of contextual factors, and/or a clear purpose for the dialogue, there’s a risk of meaningless back and forth. On top of these concerns come those highlighted by Hook and colleagues’ research: will this be monitored by the university, my department, current or future students? Here, context is also important. Within the classroom, we may feel justified in exercising our academic freedom in dialogue with students. Sharing our professional views outside the classroom or university context, however, may affect if and how we do so. There is also an issue of time. If I post something related to my profession, how is that represented in my work plan? Am I using work time or personal time for that type of social media engagement?
Learning about what academic freedoms we have and how we can exercise them is an important aspect of academic life that extends beyond classroom teaching and can help us engage meaningfully with surrounding communities. This article reminds us that we can consider when, where, and to what extent we exercise our academic freedom and any effects, positive or negative, that doing so might have.
Text: Joseph Siegel, Department of English
Keywords: academic freedom, social media, university oversight, online behaviour
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Senast uppdaterad: 2026-09-25
Sidansvarig: Centrum för universitetslärarutbildning