Keeping it regional: pseudo-internationalisation of Slovak political science

Abstract

AbstractThis article examines the contribution of Slovak political science to international academic discussions by analysing publications by faculty members of Slovak political science departments. Based on an analysis of 2660 publications, our results indicate that while Slovak political scientists publish only small numbers of articles in journals indexed in international databases and few monographs with prestigious publishing houses, they are very productive when it comes to other types of publications, especially articles in non-indexed journals and conference proceedings. However, in both cases, most of their publications outside the national context are limited to regional journals and publishing houses. Although there are significant differences between individual Slovak political science departments in this regard, the predominant focus on regional (and domestic) publication outlets limits the contribution of Slovak political science to main discussions within the discipline. We call this publication strategy, seen as the flip side of internationalisation, which contributes to discussions at the global level, ‘pseudo-internationalisation’. We argue that this is a pragmatic approach adopted by employees of public universities who are expected to publish internationally, but, due to a lack of academic contacts outside their (immediate) neighbourhood, focus on this geographic area.