Books & ideas

Academic inbreeding: new estimates

Olivier Godechot & Rachel Issiakou & Yann Renisio & Adrien Rougier — 2026-03-03T09:50:00Z

By analyzing nearly 8,000 recruitments for assistant professor positions in France between 2017 and 2024, Olivier Godechot, Rachel Issiakou, Yann Renisio, and Adrien Rougier revisit the long-standing and controversial issue of academic inbreeding.

Plato Banned, American Democracy Threatened

Nathan Bracher — 2026-02-24T08:00:00Z

Not only in Texas, where a professor was ordered to remove Plato from his syllabus, but throughout the United States, ideological dictatorship has begun. It amounts to nothing less than an attack on universities, the freedom of speech, and thought. How is it possible to resist in the face of this onslaught?

Philosophy as a feminist triumph

Martine Storti — 2024-10-17T08:08:00Z

Under the French Third Republic, the gender of “citizenship” and “philosophy” was masculine. Yet women pioneers managed to obtain university degrees and rise to positions of responsibility
from which they had been excluded.

The History and Future of Assyriology

Catherine Valenti — 2024-05-14T05:00:00Z

A recent book traces the rich history of Assyriology, from pioneers such as Oppert and Grotefend, through the major institutions that have contributed to its development, to today's research projects. This is a portrait of a surprisingly contemporary science.

How valuable are evaluations?

Coline Soler — 2023-07-06T08:30:00Z

For twenty years, universities and research have been the target of reforms and evaluations. Clémentine Gozlan examines the making of these mechanisms, which are central to the new system of academic governance—in which academics often participate.

Culture of poverty and Social Resilience

Nicolas Duvoux & Elise Tenret & Nadège Vezinat — 2011-05-20T07:37:38Z

In this interview, Michele Lamont explains different facets of her intellectual work. She comments on the cultural sociology she practices and on her urge to both understand how individuals make their lives meaningful and how to make sociology meaningful.

The Collective Identity of a Teaching Body

Vincent Descombes — 2011-03-04T08:20:00Z

How can we explain the breadth of the mobilization of academics against the plan to modify their status? For philosopher Vincent Descombes, it is the collective identity of the teaching body that is being injured by the current reforms, as well as the very definition of the university as a social form.

From Scholar to Official

Émilie Frenkiel — 2010-12-06T09:31:19Z

An interview with a Chinese political scientist trained in American universities gives us an insight into China's pragmatic policy of local experimentation. It chronicles how officials in the municipality of Chongqing have seized the opportunity offered by its special status to launch a unique blend of liberal and socialist economic policy.

Inbreeding in Universities: In Favour of Administrative Regulation

Olivier Godechot & Alexandra Louvet — 2010-04-29T08:37:00Z

In response to the reaction of three researchers in Economic Sciences and Sociology published yesterday in La Vie des Idées, Oliver Godechot and Alexandra Louvet here round out and clarify their position regarding academic inbreeding.

Academic Inbreeding: An Evaluation

Olivier Godechot & Alexandra Louvet — 2010-04-22T13:25:54Z

Is academic inbreeding an ethic of loyalty or perverse nepotism? In order to determine the extent of the favouritism shown towards a university's own ‘inbred' candidates, Olivier Godechot and Alexandra Louvet established a benchmark based on an original source: the theses that were defended between 1972 and 1996. The results are enlightening.