The text offers a critical reflection on the concept of academic freedom from historical and theoretical perspectives. It begins with a “liberal founding framework” dating to around 1800, in which education, freedom, and the university—particularly in Humboldt’s thought—are closely intertwined. While this idea still shapes modern understandings of science, it proves insufficient for addressing contemporary debates. Historical analysis shows that academic freedom has never existed without conflict but has always been embedded in tensions between state, society, and institutional structures. Since the 20th century, these conditions have shifted significantly, in part due to the “scientification of the social”: science has become deeply intertwined with political and social processes, generating new conflicts, especially between epistemic freedom and social responsibility. Examples from the 1960s and 1970s illustrate disputes over academic freedom, research control and state intervention. The text concludes that academic freedom should not be seen as a fixed state but as an open, contested space of discourse that requires continuous negotiation and active responsibility.
This paper examines academic freedom in Austria, considering it in terms of the tension between protection against interference and research’s active role in shaping society. Starting from the legalnormative foundation, it illuminates the current situation in Austria and addresses various forms of influence on scientific freedom. Both external and immanent threats to academic freedom are discussed. Drawing on Isaiah Berlin’s distinction between negative and positive liberty, current debates, and recent empirical findings from the 2025 Science Barometer, a nuanced understanding of academic freedom is developed that goes beyond purely instrumental justifications. The paper concludes by advocating for a conception of academic freedom that recognizes both its intrinsic value for critical thinking and its role in dynamic social processes.
In Germany’s constitutional order, the free pursuit of science, research, and teaching is expressly protected as a fundamental right under Article 5 (3) sentence 1 of the Basic Law. Its professional practice is shaped to a particular degree by state-funded institutions. Furthermore, the academic world is exposed to multifaceted intertwining with politics and the challenges of the “post-factual” age. This article outlines these three interrelated aspects.
