Deployment of academic staff and disciplinary contexts in strategies for curriculum internationalization: a dynamic resource-based view of organizational change

In higher education literature, academic staff have long been considered the main blockers in internationalizing study programs, but recent research suggests that the real blockers are the many changes required in their disciplinary contexts. However, both perspectives have not been based on organizational change theory including academics and their disciplinary contexts. This article examines the recurring institutional issues with strategies, resources, and connections with curriculum internationalization from a Dynamic Resource-Based View of organizational change. The dimensions of this resource-based organizational change theory have been decomposed into five propositions for investigating the value of strategies for curriculum internationalization as perceived and experienced by academic staff in specific disciplinary contexts. In a multiple case study of four disciplinary contexts in a West-European university from 2012 to 2020, we studied 56 strategic documents and 29 in-depth interviews with academic staff. Our theory-based approach and value-adding analysis with multiple data, cases, and researchers allow for theoretical generalization with implications for higher education strategy development in various regions of the world. Our findings reveal that, as a process involving organizational changes, curriculum internationalization requires more explicit, integrative strategies, adequate deployment of leadership, knowledge, and academic staff competencies, and strategic alignment with core processes and the specifics, commonalities, and dynamics of disciplinary contexts. Based on the selected theoretical perspective of organizational change, we present new explanations and practical guidelines to substantiate and improve the process of internationalizing study programs. At the same time, we demonstrate the critical role of academic staff and their disciplinary contexts.