Tribes and Transparency: Prospects for Digital Governance in Russian Science

Abstract

The paper examines the application of new digital tools in the self-organization of scientists and scientific management in Russia. Based on the overseas experience, the authors elaborated four experimental models of decentralized self-organization and group decision-making which could be used to implement the principles of e-governance in the domestic academic environment and proposed Russian researchers to discuss these models in the form of focus groups. The discussion resulted in the conceptualization of the system of relationships among the scientific community members through a socio-anthropological metaphor of tribe. The authors conclude that any forms of digitalization in the Russian scientific environment require certain prerequisites, such as understanding researcher guerrilla practices and establishing the basic  level of visibility (to understand who does what), accountability and deliberativeness (opportunity to discuss decisions) with regard to science, society and state. 

Acknowledgements. The study is financed by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR) and the Expert Institute for Social Studies in the framework of the project no.19-011-31522 (“Digital mechanisms of management and self-organization of scientific community as an essential prerequisite for a technological breakthrough”). The authors are thankful to Mikhail Sokolov (European University at Saint Petersburg) and the anonymous reviewer for the valuable remarks and comments.