Title: Work environment and well-being of academic faculty in Czech universities: a pilot study
Source document: Studia paedagogica. 2014, vol. 19, iss. 4, pp. [121]-144
Extent
[121]-144
-
ISSN1803-7437 (print)2336-4521 (online)
Persistent identifier (DOI): https://doi.org/10.5817/SP2014-4-6
Stable URL (handle): https://hdl.handle.net/11222.digilib/132215
Type: Article
Language
License: Not specified license
Notice: These citations are automatically created and might not follow citation rules properly.
Abstract(s)
This article addresses the relationship between the work environment and the well-being of academic faculties in public Czech universities. It presents findings from a pilot study conducted at a Faculty of Arts at a major Czech university. The aims of the study were to describe the Faculty's work environment and to examine the impact of specific work environment variables on the well-being of academic employees. In total, 236 academics participated in the study. The results showed relatively high job satisfaction and high work engagement at all academic levels. The Faculty's organizational climate (measured using the Organizational Climate Measure; Patterson, Patterson, West, Shackleton, Dawson, Lawthom, Maitlis & Wallace, 2005) was defined by high autonomy and involvement in decision making, as well as relatively low pressure to produce. The Faculty's psychosocial work environment (measured using the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire II; Kristensen, Hannerz, Høgh & Borg, 2005) was defined by a strong social community and social support. Based on these findings, the authors suggest that the Faculty's work environment corresponds to the Humboldtian type of governance, defined by academic self-rule and a culture of collegiality, and they compare this type of governance with the market governance prevalent in Anglo-American contexts. The study contributes to the recent debates about national differences in academic governance by discussing how specific aspects of Humboldtian and market governance may contribute to well-being in academia.
Note
This work was supported by the Czech Science Foundation research grant 'Work Environment Quality and Employee Well-being in Public Higher Education' (Grant No. GA14-02098S), with the support of RVO 68081740.
References
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[31] Zabrodska, K., & Kveton, P. (2013). Prevalence and forms of workplace bullying among university employees. Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 25(2), 89–108. | DOI 10.1007/s10672-012-9210-x
[32] Zabrodska, K., Linnell, S., Laws, C., & Davies, B. (2011). Bullying as intra-active process in neoliberal universities. Qualitative Inquiry, 17(8), 709–719. | DOI 10.1177/1077800411420668
[2] Danna, K., & Griffin, R. W. (1999). Health and well-being in the workplace: A review and synthesis of the literature. Journal of Management, 25(3), 357–384. | DOI 10.1177/014920639902500305
[3] Davies, B., Gottsche, M., & Bansel, P. (2006). The rise and fall of the neo-liberal university. European Journal of Education, 41(2), 305–319. | DOI 10.1111/j.1465-3435.2006.00261.x
[4] Deci, E., & Ryan, R. (2008). Facilitating optimal motivation and psychological well-being across life's domains. Canadian Psychology, 49(1), 14–23. | DOI 10.1037/0708-5591.49.1.14
[5] Diener, E., Suh, E. M., Lucas, R. E., & Smith, H. L. (1999). Subjective well-being: Three decades of progress. Psychological Bulletin, 125(2), 276–302. | DOI 10.1037/0033-2909.125.2.276
[6] Dobbins, M., & Knill, C. (2009). Higher education policies in Central and Eastern Europe: Convergence toward a common model? Governance, 22(3), 397–430. | DOI 10.1111/j.1468-0491.2009.01445.x
[7] Fredman, N., & Doughney, J. (2012). Academic dissatisfaction, managerial change and neoliberalism. Higher Education, 64(1), 41–58. | DOI 10.1007/s10734-011-9479-y
[8] Gagné, M., & Deci, E. L. (2005). Self-determination theory and work motivation. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 26(4), 331–362. | DOI 10.1002/job.322
[9] Gillespie, N. A., Walsh, M., Winefield, A. H., Dua, J., & Stough, C. (2001). Occupational stress in universities: Staff perceptions of the causes, consequences and moderators of stress. Work and Stress, 15(1), 53–72. | DOI 10.1080/02678370117944
[10] Hampl, V. (2012). Usnesení 114. zasedání Pléna České konference rektorů. [Resolution of the 114th Plenary Session of the Czech Conference of Rectors] Praha: Česká konference rektorů. Dostupné z: http://crc.muni.cz/pdf/resolutions/114_cs.pdf.
[11] Hewson, C. M., Laurent, D., & Vogel, C. M. (1996). Proper methodologies for psychological studies conducted via the internet. Behavioral Research Methods, Instruments & Computers 28(2), 186–191. | DOI 10.3758/BF03204763
[12] Houston, D., Meyer, L. H., & Paewai, S. (2006). Academic staff workloads and job satisfaction: Expectations and values in academe. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 28(1), 17–30. | DOI 10.1080/13600800500283734
[13] Knudsen, H., Bucks, O., & Lindt, J. (2011). Work environment quality: The role of workplace participation and democracy. Work, Employment & Society, 25(3), 379–396. | DOI 10.1177/0950017011407966
[14] Kristensen, T. S., Hannerz, H., Høgh, A., & Borg, V. (2005). The Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire – a tool for the assessment and improvement of the psychosocial work environment. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health, 31(6), 438–449. | DOI 10.5271/sjweh.948
[15] Kuoppala, J., Lamminpaa, A., Liira, J., & Vainio, H. (2008). Leadership, job well-being, and health effects – a systematic review and a meta-analysis. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 50(8), 904–915.
[16] Matějů, P. (Ed.). (2009). Bílá kniha terciárního vzdělávání. [White paper on tertiary education]. Praha: Ministerstvo školství, mládeže a tělovýchovy.
[17] Matějů, P., & Fischer, J. (2009). Výzkum akademických pracovníků vysokých škol. [A survey of academic university employees]. Praha: Ministerstvo školství, mládeže a tělovýchovy.
[18] Patterson, M. G., West, M. A., Shackleton, V. J., Dawson, J. F., Lawthom, R., Maitlis, S., & Wallace, A. M. (2005). Validating the organizational climate measure: Links to managerial practices, productivity and innovation. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 26(4), 379–408. | DOI 10.1002/job.312
[19] Pesik, R., & Gounko, T. (2011). Higher education in the Czech Republic: The pathway to change. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 41(6), 735–750. | DOI 10.1080/03057925.2011.573639
[20] Schaufeli, W., & Bakker, A. (2004). UWES-Utrecht Work Engagement Scale: Preliminary Manual (Version 1.1). Utrecht: Utrecht University.
[21] Schaufeli, W. B., Bakker, A. B., & Salanova, M. (2006). The measurement of work engagement with a short questionnaire. A cross-national study. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 66(4), 701–716. | DOI 10.1177/0013164405282471
[22] Schulz, J. (2013). The impact of role conflict, role ambiguity and organizational climate on the job satisfaction of academic staff in research-intensive universities in the UK. Higher Education Research & Development, 32(3), 464–478. | DOI 10.1080/07294360.2012.680209
[23] Shin, J. C., & Jung, J. (2013). Academics job satisfaction and job stress across countries in the changing academic environments. Higher Education, 67(5), 603–620. | DOI 10.1007/s10734-013-9668-y
[24] Stansfeld, S., & Candy, B. (2006). Psychosocial work environment and mental health – a meta-analytic review. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health, 32(6), 443–462. | DOI 10.5271/sjweh.1050
[25] Thompson, C. A., & Prottas, D. J. (2005). Relationships among organizational family support, job autonomy, perceived control, and employee well-being. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 11(1), 100–118. | DOI 10.1037/1076-8998.10.4.100
[26] Thornton, M. (2004). Corrosive leadership (or bullying by another name): A corollary of the corporatized academy? Australian Journal of Labour Law, 17(2), 161–184.
[27] Twale, D. J., & De Luca, B. M. (2008). Faculty incivility. The rise of the academic bully culture and what to do about it. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
[28] Tytherleigh, M., Webb, C., Cooper, C., & Ricketts, C. (2005). Occupational stress in UK higher education institutions: A comparative study of all staff categories. Higher Education Research & Development, 24(1), 41–61. | DOI 10.1080/0729436052000318569
[29] Vartia, M. A-L. (2001). Consequences of workplace bullying with respect to the well-being of its targets and the observers of bullying. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment and Health, 27(1), 63–69. | DOI 10.5271/sjweh.588
[30] Winefield, A. H., Gillespie, N., Stough, C., Dua, J., Hapuarachchi, J., & Boyd, C. (2003). Occupational stress in Australian university staff: Results from a national survey. International Journal of Stress Management, 10(1), 51–63. | DOI 10.1037/1072-5245.10.1.51
[31] Zabrodska, K., & Kveton, P. (2013). Prevalence and forms of workplace bullying among university employees. Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 25(2), 89–108. | DOI 10.1007/s10672-012-9210-x
[32] Zabrodska, K., Linnell, S., Laws, C., & Davies, B. (2011). Bullying as intra-active process in neoliberal universities. Qualitative Inquiry, 17(8), 709–719. | DOI 10.1177/1077800411420668