Academic inbreeding in nursing: intentional or inevitable?

Consensus exists that academic inbreeding inhibits innovation and scholarly achievement. Nevertheless, schools of nursing have been--and continue to be--more inbred than other schools within the university. In a follow-up survey to Miller and Ehnes' 1977 study, inbreeding has increased slightly--more junior than senior faculty are inbred, and rapidly expanding schools are the most inbred. A comparison of two schools (one highly inbred and one less so) demonstrates that schools do not recruit faculty from other schools in their region. The paper concludes that economic pressures may force deans to hire their own graduates (reducing recruitment costs) for junior positions and pay a relatively larger sum for a few senior level outbred faculty. Thus, academic inbreeding in nursing may be both inevitable and intentional.