Engagement with writing for publication/disengagement from other tasks

Research shows that success in academic writing is related to the ability to disengage from other tasks. However, this disengagement can be complex, and models of disengagement might not work to contain anxieties related to writing for publication. Successful academic writers move between research, teaching and administration in a series of engagements and disengagements. This inquiry focused on the concept of engagement/disengagement. This paper uses containment theory to interpret and analyse academics’ understanding of the role of engagement/disengagement in their writing for publication. This analysis shows that, for many writers, anxieties related to writing for publication are not contained by the engagement/disengagement model. This study suggests that the disengagement model cannot, in itself, explain success or failure in writing for publication. The engagement/disengagement model, because it is individualised, does not work to contain anxieties related to writing and may therefore not be effective.