Managerial discourse to control professors in private higher education institutions: a critical analysis

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the managerial discourse used to control professors in private higher education institutions (HEIs). The aim is to verify the characteristics of the managerial power and individuals that influence the production of the managerial discourse, apprehend the mechanisms of the promotion of the discourse in the researched organizations, and to understand how the managers symbolize the managerial role operated within the managerialist ideology in the HEI and make it subjective. A qualitative and exploratory-descriptive research was carried out based on a study with twelve managers of three private HEI in a city located in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The data was collected through interview, based on a semi-structured and in-depth script. The analysis of data was based on the Critical Discourse Analysis inspired by the theoretical-methodological assertions by Fairclough (2016) together with the mode of inductive analysis under the perspective of the Clinical Sociology. The results revealed that the managerial discourse used to control professors is permeated by characteristics of managerial power in the ideological, cultural, political, economic and psychological domain. It is produced by the managers with the influence of the owners/board of directors/executive director. It was observed that the managers need to promote the discourse using mainly mechanisms of mediation. Managers subjectivized and symbolized the work and the institution positively in order to promote them based on a point of view of pleasure. Then, shortly afterward when questioned about working conditions, they revealed that they work in a context permeated by the managerialist ideology.