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Exploring Multi-Actor Collaboration and Its Value Resonance in Universities’ National Security Education: Based on Actor-Network Theory

Author(s)

Li Wu1,2,*

Affiliation(s)

1College of Humanities and Foreign Languages, China Jiliang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China 2Zhejiang Province Safety and Emergency Management Industry Development Research Center, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China *Corresponding Author

Abstract

National security education in higher education institutions acts as a crucial instrument for fully applying a holistic approach to national security. Its effective implementation depends on the synergistic involvement of multiple actors. Drawing on Actor-Network Theory, this paper constructs a theoretical analytical framework for multi-actor collaboration and its value resonance in university national security education, and systematically identifies the composition and interaction mechanisms of human actors (e.g., governments, universities, educators, students) and non-human actors (e.g., institutions, technologies, cultures,value orientations). The research indicates that establishing obligatory passage points through "problematization", fostering equal interactions among elements on the basis of the principle of generalized symmetry, and relying on the translation process to accomplish enrolment and mobilization are three primary pathways to achieving inter-subjective value resonance. Rather than being manifested in the establishment of a consensus on interests, value resonance unfolds as a dynamic process that generates synergy precisely through and across differences. This perspective, we contend, offers great significance for enhancing the effectiveness of national security education in universities.

Keywords

Institutions of Higher Education; National Security Education; Multi-Actor; Collaborative Engagement; Value Resonance; Actor-Network Theory

References

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