Contingent Faculty Perceptions of Organizational Support, Workplace Attitudes, and Teaching Evaluations at a Public Research University

Abstract

This research examines contingent faculty's perception of organizational support, workplace attitudes, and Student Ratings of Teaching (SRT) in a large public research university to investigate their employee-organization relationship. According to t-tests and regression analyses for samples of 2,229 faculty and instructional staff who answered the survey and had SRT data (tenured and tenure-track faculty: 1,708, 76.6% of total; contingent faculty: 521, 23.4% of total), employment relationship of contingent faculty in this institution was closer to a combined economic and social exchange model than to a pure economic exchange model or underinvestment model. Contingent faculty's satisfaction with work, satisfaction with coworkers, perception of being supported at work, and affective organizational commitment were higher than tenured and tenure-track faculty at a statistically significant level. In addition, contingent faculty had higher SRT mean results in all areas of SRT items in medium-size (10-30) classes and in 'class presentation,' 'feedback,' 'deeper understanding,' and 'interest stimulated' in large-size (30-50) classes than Tenured and Tenure-track Faculty. These results not only refute the misconception that contingent faculty have too little time to provide students with feedback but also support that they provide students with good teaching, at least in medium-size and large-size classes. Whereas these results might be partially attributable to the relatively stable status of contingent faculty in this study (who work for more than 50 percent FTE), they indicate that, as a collective, contingent faculty also represent a significant contributor to the university, who are satisfied with their work, enjoy the community they are in, and are committed to their institution.

Dynamics of Student Internship System in Faculty of Art of KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana: Exploring Perceptions, Values, Access and Development Outcomes

“…51 For instance, Cha and co. indicated that employee's perception of workplace support and working environment affect employee organizational relationship. 52 It has been predicted by human capital theory that knowledge, skills and competence that are additionally accumulated during internship result in employability and higher renumeration compared to those who do not undertake internship. 53 This assertion was supported that internship enhances the employability of graduates and lead to higher earnings.…”

Working in uncertainty: Organizational behavior of contingent college teachers in the Philippines

“…The employment of contingent teachers in higher education institution is prevalent due to new staffing patterns in academia [1]. The percentage of fulltime, non-tenure track faculty has doubled from 18.6% to 37.6% from 1975 to 2007 and it has tripled during the past three decades as nearly 60% of new fulltime faculty appointments are now under temporary contracts [2]. Contingent faculty, also known as adjuncts, or non-tenure track faculty, represent two thirds of all faculty members in higher education in the United States [1].…”

“…Some scholars have suggested that less than equitable salaries and working conditions can result in relatively lower levels of overall organizational commitment for affected employees [6] and comparatively, contingent faculty members fall into these categories. A growing number of studies have reported negative aspects of contingent faculty's lives such as depression, anxiety, and stress at work due to their contingent employment status, on the other hand, another line of research suggested that the influences of contingent faculty were not always negative [2].…”