Melanesian culture and Western-style higher education: Reflections of PNG university academics

Abstract

This paper describes the ways in which the different values and approaches of Melanesian culture and Western-style higher education are presented by academic staff at Divine Word University in Papua New Guinea. The research is drawn from a wider study on the construction, presentation and maintenance of academic identities in a PNG context, including consideration of the ‘identity work’ that academics undertake to provide a coherent self-concept. Using a social constructionist framework, the study explored volunteer academics’ views on a range of topics, including a specific question on perceptions of cultural tension. The analysis of interview data on this specific question reveals a wide r..