Year: 2014
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This study examines the development of academic talent in higher education from a \nsocial exchange and organisation support perspective. More specifically the study \ninvestigates to what extent a quality leader-member exchange relationship between a \nchair of department and an academic staff member contributes to the perceived \ndevelopment of academic talent in higher education. \nThe leader-member exchange theory was applied in this study to examine the \ninfluence of the quality of the relationship between an academic leader and a follower \non supervisory support for development as well as its ultimate effect on perceptions \nof organisation investment in employee development. Insight into the said quality and the effect of this relationship would provide greater clarity to leaders about the \ndevelopment of academic talent in higher education. \nThe study employed a mixed-method approach that combined quantitative and \nqualitative data collection. Quantitative data was collected from participants \n(members of academic staff as followers) through an online survey, and qualitative \ndata was collected from leaders (chairs of academic departments as developers of \nacademic staff) through conducting one-on-one interviews. In addition, a theoretical \nmodel of the hypothesised relationships between leaders and followers was tested \nusing path analysis. \nThe study found new evidence of the ways in which relationship resources embodied \nin the leader-member exchange relationship between supervisors (leaders) and \nemployees (followers) influenced employee perceptions of both supervisory and \norganisation support for development. The results also demonstrated how leadermember \nexchange theory, combined with theoretical work on organisation support, \nhelped to explain and understand the critical role of supervisors in developing \nacademic staff. This study suggests that leader-member exchange theory could be \nused as an appropriate leadership theory for application in the development of \nacademic talent in higher education. In addition specific development practices for a \nchair of department in their roles as developers were also presented.
Author: Andre Leonard Horne
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2110150565