Gastvortrag „Mental Health in Academia: A Structural Perspective“
Mental health in academia is an issue that demands urgent attention, and its significance has only grown since the Covid-19 pandemic. Numerous studies at both international and national level reveal that early career researchers (ECRs) face significant mental health challenges due to the academic mindset and career system. Steep hierarchies, power imbalances, relentless pressure to publish and to secure funding, intense job competition and non-manageable careers create hostile work environments at universities and research facilities. These often lead ECRs to develop, among others, anxiety disorders, depression or burnout. While academic institutions are aware of the problem and tackle it by providing their students and staff places to go for help or advice, these efforts often operate within a neoliberal framework. Mental health support is framed as a means of optimizing individual performance to meet institutional demands, thereby placing the burden of responsibility on ECRs themselves. Structural causes embedded in the academic system are thus neglected, and mental health turns into an individual responsibility of ECRs. This effectively absolves institutions of their responsibility to address systemic problems. The keynote aims to challenge individualizing narratives by shifting the focus to structural circumstances and working conditions of academia that shape mental health issues for ECRs. It critically examines hegemonic beliefs of (measurable) productivity, performance and excellence and interrogates processes of academic subjectification. Doing so, it aims to open a space for reflection, exchange, and possibly intervention – most importantly one where ECRs can feel validated and supported in their experiences.Zusammenfassung:
Montag, 16. Juni 2025, 17.15 Uhr„Mental Health in Academia: A Structural Perspective“
Gastvortrag
mit: Dr. Dorothea Böhme
Öffentlicher Vortrag zur Eröffnung der DAAD ERUA Research Week. Die Referentin hat an der Viadrina promoviert und ist am Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung (WZB) tätig.
Ort: Collegium Polonicum, Słubice Kleiner Konferenzsaal