MOVING TO FRONT FROM JULY 24--MORE COMMENTS WELCOME
More than 1,000 readers voted; here were the top 9 vote getters (there was a drop-off thereafter):
1. Lack of tenure-track jobs (Condorcet winner: wins contests with all other choices) |
2. Erosion of tenure and closing of philosophy departments loses to Lack of tenure-track jobs by 469–453 |
3. Excessive politicization of the discipline loses to Lack of tenure-track jobs by 754–202, loses to Erosion of tenure and closing of philosophy departments by 727–209 |
4. Sexual harassment loses to Lack of tenure-track jobs by 851–102, loses to Excessive politicization of the discipline by 447–429 |
5. Harmful effects of social media (blogs, twitter, facebook) on the profession (e.g., promoting rumor-mongering, bullying, mobbing, group polarization) loses to Lack of tenure-track jobs by 821–147, loses to Sexual harassment by 456–392 |
6. Lack of tolerance for a wide range of philosophical and political views loses to Lack of tenure-track jobs by 815–143, loses to Harmful effects of social media (blogs, twitter, facebook) on the profession (e.g., promoting rumor-mongering, bullying, mobbing, group polarization) by 421–387 |
7. Capture of the APA by interest groups with political rather than philosophical aims loses to Lack of tenure-track jobs by 763–169, loses to Lack of tolerance for a wide range of philosophical and political views by 410–349 |
8. Lack of racial, ethnic and/or gender diversity in the profession loses to Lack of tenure-track jobs by 848–106, loses to Capture of the APA by interest groups with political rather than philosophical aims by 425–392 |
9. Excessive emphasis on issues of diversity in the profession loses to Lack of tenure-track jobs by 766–181, loses to Lack of racial, ethnic and/or gender diversity in the profession by 424–419 |
The neck-and-neck showing for #8 and #9 indicates how polarized opinion is on these issues right now. I would have been surprised if the top two had been anything other than what they were (by a wide margin). #4 and #5 were on my "top five," and I think #7 was in my top five too. But #3, #6, and #7 probably all reflect overlapping concerns.
Readers who voted are invited to comment on their own rank ordering, how they understood the choices, and/or choices they wished had been included. Comments are moderated, and may take awhile to appear; comments that include a valid e-mail address (which will not appear) are more likely to be approved.