WATER H. GMELCH and BOYD SWENT
This research was exploratory in nature, conducted in the context of a field study. A questionnaire was developed through a series of iterations, one important component of which…
Abstract
This research was exploratory in nature, conducted in the context of a field study. A questionnaire was developed through a series of iterations, one important component of which was the use of stress logs by a sample of administrators. The resultant instrument was completed by 1156 respondents from the Confederation of Oregon School Administrators (elementary and secondary principals, superintendents, assistant superintendents and central office staff). Twelve stressors are identified and discussed. Although there are differences in responses, all members of the management team are shown to share many common stressors, e.g. complying with rules, attending meetings, completing reports on time.
Department chairs represent one of the most intriguing, complex, and important leadership roles in higher education. Despite the important role chairs play, there is limited…
Abstract
Department chairs represent one of the most intriguing, complex, and important leadership roles in higher education. Despite the important role chairs play, there is limited research about ongoing dynamics and how they manage the complexities that come along with the position. The tension between the academic and administrative cores creates inherent stress in the position. What stresses department chairs? Has it changed over time? The theoretical construct used to investigate these questions is based on the four-stage chair stress cycle (identification, perception, response, and consequences), and in particular the first two stages of identification and perception. The data for this study are derived from two data sets collected in 1991 and 2016 surveying 800 and 982 department chairs respectively. Each survey assessed personal profiles, professional and organizational variables, and two validated stress and role instruments. Findings collected 25 years apart suggested some shifts in chair gender, motivation to serve, professional identity, preparation, tenure status, and ethnicity. When comparing top stressors from 1991 to 2016, more stress emanated from chairs trying to balance scholarship and leadership as well as work-life balance. Top department chair stressors underscored the difficulty to find some balance between professional and personal roles. Many of these imbalances appeared to be more structural and inherent in the position while others fall within the chairs' control to be personally managed. Female chairs experienced higher stress than men from having insufficient time to stay current in their academic fields and balancing administrative and scholarly demands. The researchers expected to find significant differences according to marital status, ethnicity, and age, but no significant trends emerged. Ultimately, higher education institutions will continue to have a leadership crisis if the conditions for chairing departments remain unmanageable.
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Thomas G. Noland, Shawn Mauldin and Robert L. Braun
The purpose of this study is twofold. The first purpose is to inform faculty who are thinking of becoming a department head about the challenges they face if they choose to pursue…
Abstract
The purpose of this study is twofold. The first purpose is to inform faculty who are thinking of becoming a department head about the challenges they face if they choose to pursue a department head opportunity. The second purpose is to provide insight into the leadership of the accounting departments by looking at various workload aspects of department heads. The authors surveyed accounting department heads from programs with the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accounting accreditation, AACSB business only accreditation, and non-AACSB accreditation. Surveys were sent to 918 individuals listed as the leader of an accounting program in the 2016–2017 Hasselback Accounting Directory with 144 individuals responding (15.7% response rate). In addition to the workload of the department head in the areas of teaching, research, and service, the study analyzed the major challenges and difficulties the department head faces. The study also sought responses from survey participants on additional issues such as the benefits of AACSB accreditation and compensation.
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Ozge Hacifazlioglu, Ihsan Kuyumcu, Bilge Kalkavan and Rebecca Cheung
This chapter focuses on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on academic leadership. Interview data from 13 academic leaders (department chairs, deans, vice-rectors) at two Turkish…
Abstract
This chapter focuses on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on academic leadership. Interview data from 13 academic leaders (department chairs, deans, vice-rectors) at two Turkish universities are used to voice their experiences. Two main themes emerged from the analysis: the challenges encountered in an era or uncertainty, and the experience of being in between balance and resilience. While all of the leaders interviewed got through the uncertainty produced by the pandemic, and some thrived, it is clear that universities need to do more to prepare themselves and their leaders for future crises.
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Brent Ruben, Gwendolyn Mahon and Karen Shapiro
Superior leadership in higher education makes the difference between institutions that merely survive and those that can truly thrive in today's complex environment. At this time…
Abstract
Superior leadership in higher education makes the difference between institutions that merely survive and those that can truly thrive in today's complex environment. At this time of significant transformation in higher education, academic leaders face intensifying institutional, environmental, and societal challenges, yet colleges and universities often devote limited attention to integrating their approaches to the selection, development, evaluation, and recognition of leaders. Moreover, traditional approaches and criteria used in the selection of academic leaders are often inadequate for predicting their success. Through the process of organizational and leader profiling, as described in this chapter, institutions can better understand the landscape in which the leader will be functioning, providing a more contextualized and useful approach to leader selection, development, evaluation, and recognition.
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G. Devos, D. Bouckenooghe, N. Engels, G. Hotton and A. Aelterman
The goal of this inquiry is to indicate which individual, organisational and external environment factors contribute to a better understanding of the well‐being of Flemish primary…
Abstract
Purpose
The goal of this inquiry is to indicate which individual, organisational and external environment factors contribute to a better understanding of the well‐being of Flemish primary school principals.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from a representative sample of primary schools in Flanders (n = 46) were gathered through questionnaires (principals and teachers) and semi‐structured interviews (principals).
Findings
The quantitative and qualitative outcomes suggest that well‐being is a complex psychological phenomenon affected by a myriad of factors. The analyses indicate that general self‐efficacy and achievement orientedness are significantly correlated with several aspects of positive (i.e. job satisfaction and job enthusiasm) and negative well‐being (i.e. cynicism and personal accomplishment). With respect to school culture and structural characteristics, very weak almost negligible effects are noted. In addition, the analysis demonstrates the significant role school boards fulfill in explaining both positive and negative well‐being. Finally, the role of central government in generally is found to affect well‐being in a negative way.
Practical implications
The findings of this paper provide important information for policy makers concerned with the improvement of the well‐being of primary school principals.
Originality/value
Although prior research investigated the influence of different antecedents on well‐being, several limitations in method and conceptual framework yielded information of which the usefulness must be considered tentative. In this inquiry an attempt is made to overcome these limitations and contribute to the literature in a double way: this study adopts a concurrent mixed method approach of data collection; and well‐being is examined from a positive psychology (job enthusiasm and job satisfaction) and negative psychology approach (burnout), whereas prior research almost exclusively looked at the negative pole of well‐being.
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Jouni Kekäle and Rómulo Pinheiro
This chapter describes current trends in academic leadership in the Nordic context, also prevalent in other Western societies. There has been a gradual but steady move toward more…
Abstract
This chapter describes current trends in academic leadership in the Nordic context, also prevalent in other Western societies. There has been a gradual but steady move toward more top-down leadership approaches resulting in the erosion of collegiality and decentralized decision-making. This is a paradox given the increasing complex and volatile environment under which higher education institutions operate, where more rather than less decentralization is thought to be beneficial in fostering responsiveness and agility. By drawing upon developments in Nordic higher education, this chapter sheds light on the consequences associated with the widespread and uncritical adoption of individual leadership approaches and provides conceptual insights and empirical evidence toward embracing more systemic and organic approaches centered on resilient or adaptive leadership postures and structures.
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Shamil George Naoum, Carlos Herrero, Charles Egbu and Daniel Fong
It is axiomatic that construction is a fast-paced and competitive industry, which goes hand in hand with many construction professionals suffering from stress including…
Abstract
Purpose
It is axiomatic that construction is a fast-paced and competitive industry, which goes hand in hand with many construction professionals suffering from stress including construction project managers (C-PMs). The role of C-PMs is crucial to achieving project success as they are responsible for planning the project, organising human resources, controlling operations and the budget, and forecasting probable difficulties. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the causal relationships between stressors, stresses, stress-coping behaviours and their impact on the performance of C-PMs.
Design/methodology/approach
To investigate the relationships between stress and performance among C-PMs, a questionnaire was designed based on the extensive literature, and was sent to 150 C-PMs who had amassed at least five years’ direct working experience in the construction industry. A total of 44 completed questionnaires were returned. Correlation analysis and structural equation modelling were employed to understand the integrated relationships between these factors. Based on the data collected and analysis of the results, an integrated structural equation model of the stresses and performances of C-PMs was developed using AMOS version 22.0.
Findings
The results of structural equation modelling reveal the following: burnout is the type of stress that has the highest impact on the performance of C-PMs, being detrimental to their interpersonal performance (IPP) and positive for their organisational performance (OP), whereas physiological stress worsens the task performance of C-PMs and objective stress improves their IPP. The most active stressor towards the performance of C-PMs is “workgroup cooperation”, which has an impact on the IPP in a positive way but is detrimental to the OP. Career-developing environment, poor organisational structure and role conflict affect both stress and performance together.
Originality/value
This study provides a comprehensive investigation into the impact of various types of stress on the performances of C-PMs. The result constitutes a significant step towards the stress management of C-PMs in the dynamic and stressful construction industry.
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Mei‐yung Leung, Yee Shan Isabelle Chan and Chen Dongyu
Construction is a competitive, ever‐changing, and challenging industry. Therefore, it is not surprising that the majority of construction professionals suffer from stress…
Abstract
Purpose
Construction is a competitive, ever‐changing, and challenging industry. Therefore, it is not surprising that the majority of construction professionals suffer from stress, especially construction project managers (C‐PMs), who are often driven by the time pressures, uncertainties, crisis‐ridden environment, and dynamic social structures that are intrinsic to every construction project. Extensive literature has indicated that stress can be categorized into: job stress, burnout, and physiological stress. This study aims to investigate the impact of stress on the performance of C‐PMs.
Design/methodology/approach
To investigate the relationships between stress and performance among C‐PMs, a questionnaire was designed based on the extensive literature, and was sent to 500 C‐PMs who had amassed at least five years' direct working experience in the construction industry. A total of 108 completed questionnaires were returned, representing a response rate of 21.6 percent. Based on the data collected, an integrated structural equation model of the stresses and performances of C‐PMs was developed using Lisrel 8.0.
Findings
The results of structural equation modelling reveal the following: job stress is the antecedent of burnout, while burnout can further predict physiological stress for C‐PMs; job stress is negatively related only to their task performance; both burnout and physiological stress are negatively related to their organizational performance; and task performance leads positively to their interpersonal performance. Recommendations are given based on the findings to enhance their stress and performance levels.
Originality/value
This study provides a comprehensive investigation into the impact of various types of stress on the performances of C‐PMs. The result constitutes a significant step towards the stress management of C‐PMs in the dynamic and stressful construction industry.
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This chapter offers a dynamic model of authentic leadership that links authentic leadership to situational leadership theory and shows how dynamics in the academic environment…
Abstract
This chapter offers a dynamic model of authentic leadership that links authentic leadership to situational leadership theory and shows how dynamics in the academic environment, one of the most difficult settings that leaders face, can be addressed. Kindsiko and Vadi detail the concept of situational authenticity, which reveals how authentic leadership takes place via forms of sensing – sense-giving, sense-making, sense-breaking and sense-keeping – in work-related situations. The authors highlight questions for future research: Is sensing the key to success? Are situational ethics valid if they adapt to evolving circumstances? Are situational ethics, in effect, just another way of expressing relativism? If so, can that be reconciled with authentic leadership theory?