Global Journal of Human Social Science, C: Sociology and Culture, Volume 23 Issue 4

© 2023 Global Journals Volume XXIII Issue IV Version I 15 ( ) Global Journal of Human Social Science - Year 2023 C Exploring Motives and Strategies in the Production of Knowledge in the University Context by the Example of Academic Career Trajectories work groups that talked through the stuff. So, it was like studying alongside studying, if you will.” (Interview 2, lines 28-40; own translation) In exchange among equals – in our case, organizing study groups – new knowledge is generated jointly and exchanged. As people voluntarily and spontaneously engage positively with others, they react with non-specified reciprocal behavior. As described by Blau (1968), exchange among peers is based on positive relationships guided by the norms of reciprocity and expectations regarding trust, honesty, and mutual aid, thus showing prosocial characteristics ( Blau, 1968; Connelly et al., 2012, p. 68; cf. Blau, 1964; Buller & Burgoon, 1996 ). This process does not only include exchange, as resources are also bundled and shared in order to establish new knowledge stocks. Moreover, exchange among peers as organized in study groups also yields information and results in the adaptation of implicit knowledge about field-specific strategies of positioning within knowledge networks. “[...] but by my being able to participate in this [...] circle, I got acquainted with other things that became important to me [...] not only intellectually, but also how you bring yourself into the game in the first place. That was the issue. If you’re a Ph.D. student, you have to see to it that you get into the right, that you press every button to gather more knowledge, whether you have a chance at all, how to apply further, where you can land IN THE FIRST PLACE, which other people could be interesting, yes.” (Interview 2, lines 119 -125; own translation) Positioning within a network, in particular, is crucial to one’s courses of action, assessment of given action situations, as well as interests and resource allocations, as the structural network perspective emphasizes. 1. “Own experience”: Autonomy, focus on one’s projects, and learning by doing are important strategies for gaining tacit knowledge. “So number 5 came into play. A colleague, whom I had known for some time, was studying with me at about the same time [...] but then a great opportunity arose because we had an idea together [...] And then we had a project idea together and did the project together. [...] uhm, that somehow got quite a lot of media attention, this project. [...] We were somehow quite present in all kinds of media [...] with our, uhm, with our project and, uhm, we both took something into our own hands for the first time without our boss, and I think we benefited from each other enormously. Because as a young scientist, you’re relatively used to somehow fulfilling tasks that you’re given and somehow doing projects that you have to participate in, but you’re actually told what to do, and that was different, because we were, on an equal level, if you can put it that way, because we had an idea together and then, yes, for the first time we did something on our own, and then we did something right away that was also connected with incredible risk.” (Interview 12, lines 142-169; own translation) Here, Ego and Alter were able to collect their own experiences during their time as young scientists, which also included the danger of failure. In doing so, they generated implicit knowledge, since they could not fall back on any research experience of their own, as emphasized in this passage. 2. “Observation/imitation” is one of the purest forms of implicit knowledge transfer ( see Halder 2019 ). In the example below, it becomes clear that considering one’s autonomy, one weighs up which of the observed methods seems to make the most sense. The focus is on classifying the information. The associated strategy is to obtain ideas for one’s actions by observing others. “So I didn’t see it in the sense that if he advises me to do it, then I should do it, but I think it’s always good to know the ideas other people have and to be able to compare and classify them somehow, whether they’re crazy or normal or whatever.” (Interview 1, lines 209-212; own translation) Emphasizing that tacit knowledge in the form of expert knowledge relies on experience, Kind & Hilber (2006) described expert knowledge as a collection of skills such as “grasping the situation, prudence, skill, insight, and situational judgment” (Combe & Kolbe, 2008, p. 870, quoted by Halder, 2019, p. 53; own translation). Another example illustrates how knowledge about conducting and giving lectures is acquired through observation and, to some extent, imitation. Nevertheless, emphasis is placed on independence by using newer methods to convey the contents of the lecture, which enable the students to distinguish themselves from their superiors. “I think I had already oriented myself a bit towards number 4, because, uhm, I already somehow found that good, so he was able to talk so freely, and that was all quite entertaining, uhm, I then of course, also tried, uhm, but it wasn’t that I somehow asked ‘So how should I do that?’ or ‘Can you give me your lecture?’ That didn’t work because he still held his lecture with slides, and of course, I didn’t want to show up with slides, but rather do it as a PowerPoint.” (Interview 12, lines 520-526; own translation) In this context, Halder (2019) outlined that superiors possess expert knowledge largely based on experience. This experiential knowledge is usually implicit and is transferred to subsequent generations by imitation. In our example, the supervisor gained experience in adequately designing and giving lectures by practicing lecturing and teaching for many years. Younger lecturers adapt such useful knowledge in a slightly modified form through observation and imitation. 3. “To claim answers to questions / ask for advice” Another strategy to obtain tacit knowledge is “to claim answers to questions” or “to ask for advice”. The following passage describes a strategy to gain advice from supervisors and other doctoral students. “[I did it myself - I did it - I decided on it myself]. I mean, I told them afterward, and I told them that, I mean, you also