Difference between revisions of "Barone (Italy)"

The term barone (in English ‘baron’) originally referred to the highest feudal degree in the thirteenth century Italian feudal system. According to the Treccani Encyclopedia, the word ‘barone’, from the Latin, baro-baronis, may also refer to a cheater, villain, or rascal. Don Abbondio shouts this insult in Alessandro Manzoni’s novel, The Betrothed (Manzoni 1972 [1842])<ref>Manzoni, A.  1972. [1942].  The Betrothed. London: Penguin.</ref>. In the Italian university system the term is associated negatively with the practice of nepotism, although it may also be used more generally to describe senior academics working at the highest levels of scientific research. When positively connoted, the term barone refers to full chair professors, who have built a network structure in their field of excellence in which colleagues include a number of their former researchers engaged in a career in academia. In this instance ‘barone’ refers to knowledge and experience, but it can also be used negatively to refer to a system of undue personal influence and cooptation (Tagliavini 2003)<ref>Tagliavini, G.  2003. Diventare Professor Universitario. Indicazioni utili per l’avvio di una carrier in università, Milano: Hoepli.</ref>.

The term barone (in English ‘baron’) originally referred to the highest feudal degree in the thirteenth century Italian feudal system. According to the Treccani Encyclopedia, the word ‘barone’, from the Latin, baro-baronis, may also refer to a cheater, villain, or rascal. Don Abbondio shouts this insult in Alessandro Manzoni’s novel, The Betrothed (Manzoni 1972 [1842])<ref>Manzoni, A.  1972. [1942].  The Betrothed. London: Penguin.</ref>. In the Italian university system the term is associated negatively with the practice of nepotism, although it may also be used more generally to describe senior academics working at the highest levels of scientific research. When positively connoted, the term barone refers to full chair professors, who have built a network structure in their field of excellence in which colleagues include a number of their former researchers engaged in a career in academia. In this instance ‘barone’ refers to knowledge and experience, but it can also be used negatively to refer to a system of undue personal influence and cooptation (Tagliavini 2003)<ref>Tagliavini, G.  2003. Diventare Professor Universitario. Indicazioni utili per l’avvio di una carrier in università, Milano: Hoepli.</ref>.

The term ‘barone’ is widely used in the national press and the media, and several major newspapers and magazines have produced special editions dedicated to ‘baroni universitari’. Magazines and newspapers, such as L’Espresso, Il Corriere della Sera and Il Fatto Quotidiano, have investigated the impact and extent of the phenomenon, comparing it in style to practices employed by the mafia. Other publications and debates in the national media have been inspired by the personal accounts and experiences of scholars.

The term ‘barone’ is widely used in the national press and the media, and several major newspapers and magazines have produced special editions dedicated to ‘baroni universitari’. Magazines and newspapers, such as L’Espresso, Il Corriere della Sera and Il Fatto Quotidiano, have investigated the impact and extent of the phenomenon, comparing it in style to practices employed by the mafia. Other publications and debates in the national media have been inspired by the personal accounts and experiences of scholars.

When considering the Italian system of Higher Education, a comparison is often made with practices in the Spanish Higher Education system as it is considered to be the most closely related to the Italian case, although the levels of localism in appointments in Spanish Universities seem to be lower (Francalacci 2014)<ref>Francalacci, P. 2014. ‘Sul sistema di recultamento spagnolo’, ROARS, Return On Academic Research, 17 May, http://www.roars.it/online/sul-sistema-di-reclutamento-spagnolo/</ref>. A study conducted between 2000-2010 looked at family connections in the Italian university system. It found evidence of the recruitment or promotion of a close relative (defined as ‘son or daughter, spouse, nephew or niece, son or daughter in law’) in 18 out of the 57 universities it surveyed across Italy. This practice could be detected in six of the 10 largest universities in the country (Bari, Bologna, Florence, Milan, Naples and Palermo) (Durante et al 2011)<ref>Durante, R., Labartino, G. and Perotti, R. 2011. ‘Academic Dynasties: Decentralization and Familism in Italian Academia’, http://www.nber.org/papers/w17572</ref>. In 2008, at the Faculty of Medicine in Palermo, 58 of the 384 professors had at least one close relative in the same faculty, while in 2010, at the medical faculty in Messina, 100 out of 531 instances of nepotism were found, and in the Faculty of Law, 27 out of 75 members of the faculty were found to have appointed a close family member. A prosecutorial inquiry in Bari was reportedly known as the ‘Do ut des’ trial (‘I give, so that you will give’), which seems to accurately describe the nature of relationships within the local network.

When considering the Italian system of Higher Education, a comparison is often made with practices in the Spanish Higher Education system as it is considered to be the most closely related to the Italian case, although the levels of localism in appointments in Spanish Universities seem to be lower (Francalacci 2014)<ref>Francalacci, P. 2014. ‘Sul sistema di recultamento spagnolo’, ROARS, Return On Academic Research, 17 May, http://www.roars.it/online/sul-sistema-di-reclutamento-spagnolo/</ref>. A study conducted between 2000-2010 looked at family connections in the Italian university system. It found evidence of the recruitment or promotion of a close relative (defined as ‘son or daughter, spouse, nephew or niece, son or daughter in law’) in 18 out of the 57 universities it surveyed across Italy. This practice could be detected in six of the 10 largest universities in the country (Bari, Bologna, Florence, Milan, Naples and Palermo) (Durante et al 2011)<ref>Durante, R., Labartino, G. and Perotti, R. 2011. ‘Academic Dynasties: Decentralization and Familism in Italian Academia’, http://www.nber.org/papers/w17572</ref>. In 2008, at the Faculty of Medicine in Palermo, 58 of the 384 professors had at least one close relative in the same faculty, while in 2010, at the medical faculty in Messina, 100 out of 531 instances of nepotism were found, and in the Faculty of Law, 27 out of 75 members of the faculty were found to have appointed a close family member. A prosecutorial inquiry in Bari was reportedly known as the ‘Do ut des’ trial (‘I give, so that you will give’), which seems to accurately describe the nature of relationships within the local network.

The impact of ‘familism’ in universities also has a negative effect in terms of the quality of research within departments. Studies show that the higher the levels of familism, the poorer the research performance. Further, an examination of poor civic values, along with a low sense of civic responsibility, shows that the decentralisation implemented after the 1998 educational reforms instigated by Minister Luigi Berlinguer had a negative impact, resulting in an even higher incidence of nepotism (Durante et al. 2011: 23)<ref>Durante, R., Labartino, G. and Perotti, R. 2011. ‘Academic Dynasties: Decentralization and Familism in Italian Academia’, http://www.nber.org/papers/w17572</ref>. The Berlinguer Act implemented by the Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR)<ref>MIUR (ud) ‘Abilitazione Scientifica Nazionale’, http://abilitazione.miur.it/public/pubblicarisultati.php?lang=eng</ref>, enabled universities to appoint staff at a local level and replaced the previous system in which the national committee (concorso nazionale) had decided the selection of candidates. The reform was well intentioned in that it sought to speed up the hiring process and diminish bureaucratic selection processes (Verzillo 2013)<ref>Verzillo, S. 2013 ‘Decentralized academic selection mechanisms in Italy: opportunity or parochialism?’,http://2013.economicsofeducation.com/user/pdfsesiones/111.pdf</ref>, but had unexpected consequences.

The impact of ‘familism’ in universities also has a negative effect in terms of the quality of research within departments. Studies show that the higher the levels of familism, the poorer the research performance. Further, an examination of poor civic values, along with a low sense of civic responsibility, shows that the decentralisation implemented after the 1998 educational reforms instigated by Minister Luigi Berlinguer had a negative impact, resulting in an even higher incidence of nepotism (Durante et al. 2011: 23)<ref>Durante, R., Labartino, G. and Perotti, R. 2011. ‘Academic Dynasties: Decentralization and Familism in Italian Academia’, http://www.nber.org/papers/w17572</ref>. The Berlinguer Act implemented by the Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR)<ref>MIUR (ud) ‘Abilitazione Scientifica Nazionale’, http://abilitazione.miur.it/public/pubblicarisultati.php?lang=eng</ref>, enabled universities to appoint staff at a local level and replaced the previous system in which the national committee (concorso nazionale) had decided the selection of candidates. The reform was well intentioned in that it sought to speed up the hiring process and diminish bureaucratic selection processes (Verzillo 2013)<ref>Verzillo, S. 2013 ‘Decentralized academic selection mechanisms in Italy: opportunity or parochialism?’,http://2013.economicsofeducation.com/user/pdfsesiones/111.pdf</ref>, but had unexpected consequences.

Baronia, as a system, is self-sustaining, but it is not an all-encompassing system in which knowing and working with strong barons can ensure the survival of the system itself. The system is the main reason why many researchers leave Italy, a country that in 2015 was ranked 61st out of 167 countries in the Corruption Perception Index published by Transparency International. Unsurprisingly, examples of incidents provided by Nicola Gardini (2009)<ref>Gardini, N.  2009. I Baroni. Come e perché sono fuggito dall’università italiana. Milano: Giangiacomo Feltrinelli Editore.</ref> included intentionally being given the wrong timetable and venue for his teaching, as well as observations of low mobility and competitiveness (Verzillo 2013)<ref>Verzillo, S. 2013 ‘Decentralized academic selection mechanisms in Italy: opportunity or parochialism?’, http://2013.economicsofeducation.com/user/pdfsesiones/111.pdf</ref>. This practice continues to support the survival of this cultural phenomenon, which as Caciagli noted, has its roots in a code of ‘deference, which makes sense in a social context and from collective experiences’ (Caciagli 2006)<ref>Caciagli, M.  2006. ‘Italy’ in J. Kawata (ed.) Comparing Political Corruption and Clientelism. Aldershot: Ashgate Corruption Perception Index. 2015. http://www.transparency.org/cpi2015</ref>. One of the main goals of the Gelmini reform was the renewal of the Italian academic system in the hope that it would produce honest, enthusiastic and brilliant scholars and researchers who would have sufficient confidence to oppose the baronia system in the future.

Baronia, as a system, is self-sustaining, but it is not an all-encompassing system in which knowing and working with strong barons can ensure the survival of the system itself. The system is the main reason why many researchers leave Italy, a country that in 2015 was ranked 61st out of 167 countries in the Corruption Perception Index published by Transparency International. Unsurprisingly, examples of incidents provided by Nicola Gardini (2009)<ref>Gardini, N.  2009. I Baroni. Come e perché sono fuggito dall’università italiana. Milano: Giangiacomo Feltrinelli Editore.</ref> included intentionally being given the wrong timetable and venue for his teaching, as well as observations of low mobility and competitiveness (Verzillo 2013)<ref>Verzillo, S. 2013 ‘Decentralized academic selection mechanisms in Italy: opportunity or parochialism?’, http://2013.economicsofeducation.com/user/pdfsesiones/111.pdf</ref>. This practice continues to support the survival of this cultural phenomenon, which as Caciagli noted, has its roots in a code of ‘deference, which makes sense in a social context and from collective experiences’ (Caciagli 2006)<ref>Caciagli, M.  2006. ‘Italy’ in J. Kawata (ed.) Comparing Political Corruption and Clientelism. Aldershot: Ashgate Corruption Perception Index. 2015. http://www.transparency.org/cpi2015</ref>. One of the main goals of the Gelmini reform was the renewal of the Italian academic system in the hope that it would produce honest, enthusiastic and brilliant scholars and researchers who would have sufficient confidence to oppose the baronia system in the future.