Building commitment: an examination of learning climate congruence and the affective commitment of academics in an Australian university

Southcombe, Amie; Fulop, Liz; Carter, Geoffrey; Cavanagh, Jillian

doi:10.1080/0309877x.2013.869566

Cited by 11 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…A relational approach emphasising on-going exchanges between students, institutions and academics, is a valuable analytical lens, increasingly adopted by scholars writing about the higher education context (e.g. Bowden and Wood 2011;Raciti 2012;Bowden 2013;Li 2014;Southcombe et al 2015;Chen 2016). This paper argues that commitment is the most important element of a relational approach, encompassing notions of dedication and on-going interaction.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘What drives students’ affective commitment towards their university?’

Cownie

2017

Journal of Further and Higher Education

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This paper suggests how universities can build ongoing , committed relationships with students, able to withstand the financial and emotional challenges of studying in higher education. The research proposes that students' ongoing attachment to their university, based on positive feelings towards the university, is an important aspect of the student experience. This ongoing attachment is conceptualised here as students' affective commitment towards their institution. Using an online survey-method and a research sample comprising undergraduate students studying in the UK, the research identifies three factors which drive students' affective commitment towards their institution. These factors include students' affective commitment towards academics and students' calculative commitment towards the institution; factors which draw from the relational literature. A third factor, commitment balance, was developed within this research. Commitment balance occurs when a student's commitment to their university is perceived to be reciprocated by the university's commitment to the student. The study found that commitment balance was the most important driver of students' ongoing attachment to their institution. The paper proposes that commitment balance is a key idea to consider within relational studies generally, but has a particular relevance in the higher education context for understanding the student experience. Commitment balance reflects the pulse of reciprocity which energises relational exchanges between students and institution. The findings of this research reinforce how critically important it is for universities and academics to build relationships with students. The desired outcome is to enhance the student experience, create positive attachment between students and university and ultimately improve student retention.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘What drives students’ affective commitment towards their university?’

Cownie

2017

Journal of Further and Higher Education

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“…Affective commitment is also stronger when teaching staff have plenty of time to learn new tasks and are encouraged to express their ideas and opinions openly (Southcombe, Fulop, Carter, & Cavanagh, 2014).…”

Section: Antecedents Of Organizational Commitment Among University Famentioning

confidence: 99%

Antecedents of organizational commitment among faculty: an exploratory study

Lovakov

2016

Tertiary Education and Management

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“…The element of teaching presence has emerged as an integral part of the model with respect to its relationship with the other two elements and its influence on student satisfaction, perceived learning and sense of community (Joo, Joung, & Kim, 2013;Southcombe, Fulop, Carter, & Cavanagh, 2015). Teaching presence is the "binding agent" which directs the educational purposes for the community of learners (Garrison et al, 1999).…”

Section: Teaching Presencementioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond Being There: Practices that Establish Presence, Engage Students and Influence Intellectual Curiosity in a Structured Online Learning Environment

Orcutt

Dringus

2017

OLJ

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To fully understand teaching presence and its implications for the intellectual climate of an online classroom it is necessary to explore the phenomenon from the perspective of the instructors who experience it. Informed by the theoretical perspective of the Community of Inquiry (CoI) model, the actions, intentions and perceptions of instructors were investigated through a collective case study. The goal of this study was to examine the decision processes employed in establishing teaching presence in a structured online environment in order to make a contribution to the body of knowledge from a practical pedagogical perspective. Using the lived experiences of instructors enabled the exploration of the influence pedagogical choices had on the creation of an intellectual climate in the online context. Using semi-structured interviews as the main source of data, the study utilized the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) method as an analytical tool to address concerns of rigor in the qualitative interpretation of experiential data. Results of the collective case revealed student engagement and intellectual curiosity were influenced most greatly by an instructor's active interest and passion for teaching, an ability to identify the relevance of course topics to the student, and the encouragement for a shared responsibility in the learning process. The findings showed that the shared goal of learning extended beyond the stated learning objectives and expected outcomes of a course and served as a foundation in the creation of authentic relationships between instructor and students. In addressing the overarching research question of how instructors establish teaching presence and inspire intellectual curiosity in a structured teaching environment, the findings of this study contribute to knowledge related to the nature of teaching presence and its role in setting an academic climate in an online classroom.

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Building commitment: an examination of learning climate congruence and the affective commitment of academics in an Australian university

Cited by 11 publications

References 63 publications

‘What drives students’ affective commitment towards their university?’

‘What drives students’ affective commitment towards their university?’

Antecedents of organizational commitment among faculty: an exploratory study

Beyond Being There: Practices that Establish Presence, Engage Students and Influence Intellectual Curiosity in a Structured Online Learning Environment

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