Table 3. Overview of the 15 tensions and...

Table 3.

Overview of the 15 tensions and their contradictory poles identified through Step 2 and presented to CAs in Step 3

Tension: level	Contradictory poles
*Academic freedom: all levels	SD is a central societal concept and must be taken up by universities vs SD as a normative concept endangers the freedom of science and teaching
*Breadth vs focus in participation: organizational	Bring everyone along vs focus on those who bring interest and capacity
*Commitment vs mandate (I): between organizational and individual level	Promote voluntary commitment of persons to SD vs clear mandate from management for SD agendas
Control vs autonomy: organizational	Install or allow control bodies vs make autonomous decisions at university level
*Cooperation vs competition: organizational and systemic level	Cooperation vs competition within and between universities
(De)central SD structures (I)*: organizational level	Rely on decentralized commitment/allow decentralized initiatives vs establish central coordination offices for sustainability
*Depth of change: organizational	Quick wins vs systemic change; optimization – improvement – renewal
*Diversity of actor(groups) within university: organizational	Diverse poles: bureaucracy – flexibility; collegiality – hierarchy; (in)stable employment; intrinsic – extrinsic motivational systems
*Individual roles (I): individual level	Different prioritization/roles of CAs at work and the respective value systems
*Internal vs external goals: organizational-systemic	Goals and interests of external partners vs sustainability goals of the university
*OE’s autonomy: organizational	Ensure autonomy of organizational entities (OE) vs alignment based on higher-level sustainability goals
*Degree of autonomy (U): between the organization and systemic level	Autonomy of university(s) vs political frameworks that promote/demand SD
*Resource allocation (U): organizational level, as well as between organizational and systemic level	Use budget for core tasks vs invest in sustainability in higher education institutions (SHEI)
*Scientific performance(s) (U): within and between all levels	Succeeding in relation to disciplinary academic performance evaluation system vs exploring new pathways of assessing success
*Societal responsibility: organizational-systemic	Diverse poles: different expectations towards universities and different understandings of university’s responsibility are in conflict

Tension: level	Contradictory poles
*Academic freedom: all levels	SD is a central societal concept and must be taken up by universities vs SD as a normative concept endangers the freedom of science and teaching
*Breadth vs focus in participation: organizational	Bring everyone along vs focus on those who bring interest and capacity
*Commitment vs mandate (I): between organizational and individual level	Promote voluntary commitment of persons to SD vs clear mandate from management for SD agendas
Control vs autonomy: organizational	Install or allow control bodies vs make autonomous decisions at university level
*Cooperation vs competition: organizational and systemic level	Cooperation vs competition within and between universities
(*De)central SD structures (I): organizational level	Rely on decentralized commitment/allow decentralized initiatives vs establish central coordination offices for sustainability
*Depth of change: organizational	Quick wins vs systemic change; optimization – improvement – renewal
*Diversity of actor(groups) within university: organizational	Diverse poles: bureaucracy – flexibility; collegiality – hierarchy; (in)stable employment; intrinsic – extrinsic motivational systems
*Individual roles (I): individual level	Different prioritization/roles of CAs at work and the respective value systems
*Internal vs external goals: organizational-systemic	Goals and interests of external partners vs sustainability goals of the university
*OE’s autonomy: organizational	Ensure autonomy of organizational entities (OE) vs alignment based on higher-level sustainability goals
*Degree of autonomy (U): between the organization and systemic level	Autonomy of university(s) vs political frameworks that promote/demand SD
*Resource allocation (U): organizational level, as well as between organizational and systemic level	Use budget for core tasks vs invest in sustainability in higher education institutions (SHEI)
*Scientific performance(s) (U): within and between all levels	Succeeding in relation to disciplinary academic performance evaluation system vs exploring new pathways of assessing success
*Societal responsibility: organizational-systemic	Diverse poles: different expectations towards universities and different understandings of university’s responsibility are in conflict

Notes:

SD = sustainable development, “Level” indicates, if the tension arises at or between the individual, organizational or systemic level;

Italic letters *mark those tensions that were further elaborated on, based on their relevance to the individual (I) or the university (U)

Source: Authors’ own creation/work

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