The effect of accreditation on higher education performance through quality culture mediation: the perceptions of administrative and quality managers

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to examine the effect of accreditation on higher education performance, directly and indirectly, through the quality culture as a mediator in the context of higher education, based on the perceptions of administrative and quality managers.Design/methodology/approachThis is a quantitative study using stratified random sampling techniques to collect data through a nationwide survey of universities in Pakistan. Of the 150 questionnaires distributed, 105 are found to be valid, while the data are analyzed by partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).FindingsThe results provide interesting insights, including significant effects of accreditation on quality culture and higher education performance, significant effects of quality culture on higher education performance and the mediating role of quality culture in relation to accreditation and higher education performance.Research limitations/implicationsLimitations of the study include a relatively smaller sample size and the selection of administrative managers as the sole respondents. This study extends the theoretical understanding by introducing several linkages, including the link between accreditation and higher education performance, accreditation and quality culture, and by introducing quality culture as a mediator. Furthermore, the study also provides empirical evidence for all proposed links in the university setting. This study has implications for administrative and quality managers, in terms of effectively implementing accreditation standards by cultivating a quality culture at their respective universities, resulting in improved university performance.Originality/valueThis study is the first to introduce quality culture as a mediator between accreditation and higher education performance and examines the effect of accreditation and quality culture on higher education performance in the university context. Also, the interdisciplinary nature of the study makes it relevant and interesting to administrative and quality managers in the fields of higher education and quality management.

The nexus between leadership styles and organizational performance: the mediating role of quality culture

“…Furthermore, QC as a dynamic ability was found to play a significant role both as a predictor of OP and as a mediator in the relationship between TFL, TNL and OP, aligning with DCT principles. While some recent studies have examined the mediating effect of QC (Iqbal et al , 2023b; Iqbal et al , 2023c), no previous research has investigated QC as a mediator in the relationship between TFL, TNL and OP in the context of HE. Therefore, this study provides novel insights into the crucial role of QC as a dynamic capability that acts as both a predictor and mediator, enhancing quality and OP and ultimately leading to a competitive advantage.…”

“…Several researchers have examined QC primarily as a predictor variable (Hilman et al, 2017;Iqbal et al, 2023b;Wu, 2015), or, in a few cases, as a criterion variable (Herminingsih et al, 2020). However, there have been limited studies investigating QC as a mediator in the context of HE, and their results confirmed the mediating effect of QC on the relationship between accreditation and HE performance (Iqbal et al, 2023c), and the relationship between intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation and HE performance (Iqbal et al, 2023a). Nevertheless, there is a gap in the existing literature regarding the investigation of QC as a mediator between TFL, TNL and OP.…”

“…The RBV theory emphasizes the use of valuable, scarce, inimitable and irreplaceable internal resources to achieve a competitive advantage (Barney, 1991). Despite criticism regarding its ability to address dynamic environments, many researchers still support the applicability of RBV in various contexts, enabling firms to leverage their internal resources (Iqbal et al, 2023b;Iqbal et al, 2023cIqbal et al, , 2023dKhaw and Teoh, 2023;Yaakub and Mohamed, 2020). On the other hand, DCT theory has been applied to improve the static characteristics of RBV, DCT continuously leverages organizational resources, enabling firms to achieve sustained business success and competitive advantage (Khaw and Teoh, 2023).…”

“…However, the third role or mission is a multidisciplinary, complex and evolving phenomenon that is related to the social and economic mission of universities (Compagnucci and Spigarelli, 2020). The concept of service encompasses internal and external services provided to employees, students, industry and society; however, limited evidence exists on the investigation of services from a dual perspective (Iqbal et al , 2023a; Iqbal et al , 2023d, 2023c). Given the above discussion and in line with previous studies (Agasisti and Bertoletti, 2019; Compagnucci and Spigarelli, 2020), we have operationalized OP in terms of teaching, research and services (both from the perspective of internal and external services).…”

“…Organizational performance (OP) is a widely studied topic, but its definition lacks consensus (Cotelnic, 2022). Therefore, researchers have examined OP from various perspectives, such as financial, teaching, innovation, research, operational and service performance (Alshaikhmubarak et al , 2020; Asiedu et al , 2020; Cotelnic, 2022; Iqbal et al , 2023c; Kaur et al , 2019; Sinawi and Sharma, 2020; Wang et al , 2021). Given the lack of agreement to measure OP and considering the three weak areas in the Pakistani higher education (HE) context, further research is needed to enhance understanding.…”