Professor Caroline Clarke

Professional biography

My research interests are located in identity and emotion, but increasingly I am turning my attention towards human-animal relations, and veterinary surgeons in particular.  Another interesting avenue is exploring how research is an embodied and affective experience.  I collaborated on a 3 year study of academics in business schools exploring concepts of identities, insecurities, gender, and career behaviours within the increasingly performative and neo-liberal demands of academia.

With Professor David Knights, I am currently writing up research exploring the experiences and practices of Veterinary Surgeons. For this timely and important project we were awarded several small grants and were able to interview 73 veterinary surgeons across the UK. Our main findings relate to the problems with adopting an absolutist ontology towards science, which leads vets to become preoccupied with 'right' and  'wrong' answers based on predictability and certainty, perfection and failure. Other equally important findings relate to the gendered organisation of veterinary work, particularly in relation to securing a partnership in the veterinary practice, as well as the marginalisation of part-time workers.  I was awarded a small grant from the Veterinary Management Group for a project called Returning Vets to Practice.

Also of interest are issues relating to age, anthropomorphism, anthropocentricism, and wider concerns around speciesism, the nature of non-human/human animal relations and how these enable pandemic outbreaks..  

I am currently studying the deliberate strategies of spreading ignorance about the climate crisis, particularly in relation to the Fossil Fuel Industry and the Animal Industrial Complex.

My work is qualitative, and is situated within a critical  interpretive framework, with a particular interest and focus on discourse.

I have published in Organization Studies, Human Relations, Academy of Management Learning and Education, International Journal of Management Reviews, Gender Work and Organization, Culture and Organization, International Journal of Human Resource Management, and The Scandanavian Journal of Management.  I also undertake peer reviewing activity for a number of journals. 

My latest publication is with David Knights:

Clarke, C and Knights, D. (in Press) Practice Makes perfect?  Skillful Performances in Veterinary Work.  Human Relations.(ABS 4),  http://oro.open.ac.uk/52684/ 

Key words:

Identity. Emotion. Gender, Human Animal-Animal Relations. Embodied Research. Post-Humanism. Academics. Veterinary Surgeons. Professionals.

As I was awarded my undergraduate degree by The Open University I have a lot of empathy and admiration for those doing part-time distance learning.  Prior to working at the Open Unviersity as a central academic, I spent a number of years doing face to face teaching, and I have experience  at all levels, particularly in relation to post-graduate and post-experience management students. Whilst I have taught most topics in organization studies, my favourite topics include identity, power and politics, gender, emotion, and culture.  

I was module chair for the production of B870 - Managing in a Changing World, the first module on the new MBA, and I am now Module Chair for the K presentation. I also authored some of the material on ethics, identity, and managing.  In 2018, I wrote Block 4 (Power and Identity) of the new, cutting edge Level 2 Module: Developing Leadership (B208). Other Open University material I have written includes: the identity section of the MBA elective BB848 Managing in an international context; rewritten some of the B716 Unit 1 and Unit 2 material during its mid-life review, also co-chaired B716  the foundation MBA module for a period of four years.  I have also taught on the PhD Mres course.

I have supervised eight PhD students to completion, and currently have three PhD students. Sam Hawtin is researching 'Working through the Pandemic: The Importance of Space.  Melda Kelemcisoy is bringing together the strands of Critical Management Studies (CMS) and Critical Animal Studies (CAS) in her doctorate 'The Organization of Anthropocentrism; and  Paul Hemphil is looking at Virtual teams.

l am interested in applications from  PhD students who would like to undertake a doctorate in any areas relevant to my reserach interests, especially concerning the organisation of the animal, and ignorance surrounding the Climate Crisis.

The Veterinary Management Group