Research autonomy in a neoliberal system: a critical realist case study of New Zealand universities

Universities worldwide are increasingly shaped by neoliberal reforms that emphasise competition and performance measurement. This article examines how research autonomy is experienced and negotiated within two New Zealand universities operating in a marketised higher education environment. Drawing on 26 semi‑structured interviews with academics and research administrators analysed through a critical realist framework, the study identifies mechanisms shaping autonomy across institutional, disciplinary and positional contexts. Findings show that research autonomy is neither uniformly eroded nor fully preserved; rather, it is a negotiated and differentiated phenomenon influenced by funding pressures, institutional reputation, disciplinary cultures and academic hierarchy. Research‑intensive faculties benefit from reputational advantages, while applied and emerging fields face stronger pressures to align with external priorities. Early-career academics reported greater constraints relating to funding and influence, whereas senior academics exercised greater strategic agency. The article offers a mechanism‑based account of neoliberalism’s uneven effects and implications for sustaining academic autonomy in a changing research environments.