A Danish Scientific Elite

This paper analyses the shifting relations internally in the Danish scientific elite and in its relations to other elites in the field of power. Using data form the Danish Who is Who from 1910 until 2020 and drawing upon a field analytical perspective from Bourdieu and descriptive statistics, we analyze the two relations by focusing on changes and stability in three configurations that all are important in order to understand the academic field. Firstly, we analyze the biographical composition of the scientific elite looking at family background, age, gender and geography. Secondly we analyses the academic configuration by analyzing disciplines, membership of renowned academies and international experience. Third and lastly we analyse the relation from the academic field to the field of power. Here we analyze the interaction of the professor with state and business. We focus on the act of state consecration such as member of commission and connection to the royal house and one the relations to business through boards etc.
The analysis suggests major shifts in the Danish scientific elite. Some of the changes are closely coupled to the institutional shift in scientific knowledge production and the organization of universities especially the massive expansion from the late 1950. We also show that the professors in the elite are tied to the interests of the state and the specific formulation of state and business interest in the form of the Danish growth model.