Abstract
Informal spaces encourage the meeting of minds and the sharing of ideas. They serve as an important counterpoint to the formal, silo-like structures of the modern organisation, encouraging social bonds and discussion across departmental lines. We address the role of one such institution – the university tea room – in Australia in the post-WWII decades. Drawing on a series of oral history interviews with economic historians, we examine the nature of the tea room space, demonstrate its effects on research within universities, and analyse the causes and implications of its decline in recent decades.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 236-254 |
Number of pages | 19 |
Journal | History Australia |
Volume | 15 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 3 Apr 2018 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Intellectual history
- Australian universities
- ideas exchange
- tea rooms
- Australian economic history